Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		2.0

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 18, 2020

Perhaps some of you reading this review are familiar with the au courant controversy surrounding Cuties, a “scandal” that was sparked at least in part by some pretty boneheaded marketing attempts early in the show’s production cycle. Something at least a little similar evidently also happened with Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs, where some of the initial posters and other key art put out to market the film were met with round brickbats of seeming to be “fat shaming”. Only here’s the thing — with regard to Cuties, while the initial marketing was probably inarguably provocative and probably even disingenuously salacious, the show itself would seem to be more or less the exact opposite of what many have alleged it to be. In the case of Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs, however, some really odd content decisions have been made that make some aspects of its “revisionism” with regard to several venerable fairy and/or folk tales, well, provocative and quite probably offensive. Chief among these is that this film’s version of Snow White (Chloë Grace Moretz) is a kind of plump and homely girl who only becomes “fairest in the land” when she dons a pair of magical red shoes that are transformed from apples into that footwear, in just one of this film’s patently odd conceits. Despite the film’s creative staff’s assertions (after the debacle of the initial poster) that the film actually promotes a positive self image and acceptance of an “inner person” regardless of how they look, there’s just an unavoidable subtext to the story when Snow White, in her “attractive, slim” guise as Red Shoes, is deemed practically perfect in every way.

Even fans of Into the Woods or similarly “aggregated” fairy tale pieces like Enchanted might be overwhelmed by the sheer number of referents Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs tries to stuff into its story and characters. Aside from Snow White, the evil queen is called Regina (Gina Gershon), but there are also the seven “dwarfs”, who, in this version, are actually seven superheroes under the spell of a fairy queen who has cursed them to resemble very Shrek-like green ogres. However, the dwarfs bear names like Merlin (Sam Claflin) and Arthur (Simon Kassianides), which seems to be stuffing a completely different mythos into the proceedings, and there are even references to Excalibur (the sword, not the movie) just to make things even weirder.

The main story here is that Regina has taken over the kingdom and Snow's father, the king, is missing. Regina grows the magical red shoes on a tree every day and attempts to rejuvenate herself with them, always failing for some undisclosed reason (there are tons of unexplained phenomena running rampant throughout this tale). Snow sneaks into Regina's lair to get information on her missing father, and puts on the shoes because — well, just because, instantly transforming herself from a slightly hefty shlubby sort into the very model of a modern animated female superstar. She escapes on a magical broomstick and crash lands into the home of the seven dwarfs, where she is found by the dwarfs eating their porridge (or something like that). In the meantime, Regina, who didn’t recognize Snow in her “new, improved” form, has sent a bunch of henchmen out to find out who stole her magical shoes. Is this patently peculiar enough for you yet?

Well, if not, consider this: the film has an almost obsessive relationship with wood, for reasons which frankly I was never able to discern, other than that Regina's evil powers seem to be linked to being able to create things like branches out of nothing. Regina has three little “pieces of kindling” who are her acolytes in her palace, but later Snow meets a gigantic hopping rabbit that seems to be carved from a tree trunk or something, and there are other characters who are similarly, well, wooden. Maybe some expert in the Grimm Brothers can provide some rational reason for the inclusion of this particular element; I am unable to.

One of the oddest elements in the presentational aspect of the film is how it ping pongs seemingly randomly between how characters are perceived and how they "really" look. In that regard, Merlin, who turns out to be the romantic interest for Snow/Red, is often "seen" as a green troll, even if in some passing shots I guess supposed to be from his perspective he's seen in his pre-curse "studly" form. Similarly, there are scenes where Snow and Red just kind of arbitrarily "change places" for no discernable reason. There's what might be called "Superman syndrome" at play here, where none of the dwarfs ever realize that Snow and Red are the same person, due evidently solely to her size and shape, something that in and of itself might undercut any protestations from the creative team that they weren't concerned with "surface appearances".

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Whatever qualms some may have with the subtext (or even the text) of this film, the animation is often quite winning, with decent if not exactly innovative character design and some fun, more CGI heavy, effects as in this film's "magic mirror". The palette is bright and agreeable throughout, and there are some especially lovely purples, pinks and violets on display that pop quite impressively. Fine detail is often excellent, especially on items like the "fabrics" of the outfits the dwarfs are wearing.

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that attains some good surround activity in some of the effects sequences, as in an opening scene where Regina creates a pathway of branches so that she can walk across a chasm, or, later, when Snow takes off on her mad dash on an out of control broomstick. Outdoor material has decently placed ambient environmental effects for the most part. The film does have a few tunes kind of shoehorned into the proceedings, none of which is likely to secure an Academy Award nomination, but which provide the soundtrack with some energy and dynamic range. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout this problem free presentation. Optional English subtitles are available.

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• The Making of Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs (1080i; 14:56) is interesting if for no other fact than that it highlights how this was an international production.


• "Something So Beautiful" Music Video (1080p; 3:00)


• "Start of Something Right" Music Video (1080p; 3:12)


• From Storyboard to Animation: Creating Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs (1080p; 4:50) offers back and forth looks between final rendered versions of scenes in the film and various stages in the storyboard and animation process.

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I think if Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs had simply jettisoned the whole "weight" issue, it actually might have been at least decently fun, if far from original. There are some sweet characterizations here, but some of the decisions writer and director Sung-ho Hong made just don't seem particularly well thought out. Technical merits are solid for those considering a purchase.