Top 10 F’d Up Fairytales
Behold our list of the Top 10 Twisted Fairytale Films to herald this next (and hopefully not too derivative) influx in the category.
Now that virtually every comic book hero and even a few 80s cartoons have become fodder for large-scale blockbuster treatment (we’re still waiting for THUNDERCATS: THE MOVIE), Hollywood is in the process of pillaging yet another trove of storybook treasures, namely old-school fairytales. Aside from this week’s much-anticipated Charlize Theron-Kristen Stewart vehicle SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN, there was this winter’s other Snow White abomination MIRROR MIRROR (shame on you, Julia Roberts), as well as a slew of upcoming updates: Bryan Singer’s JACK THE GIANT KILLER, due next month, and next year’s update of HANSEL AND GRETEL: WITCH HUNTERS starring Jeremy Renner (behold the birth of a new genre: the action fairytale). Of course, this is territory Hollywood has trod before, always trying to update the classic fables and find twisted new angles. Behold our list of the Top 10 f'd up fairytale films to herald this next (and hopefully not too derivative) influx into the category.
10. THE RED SHOES
This Academy Award-winning, 1948 classic feels like equal parts Hans Christian Andersen’s macabre fable and 1977’s THE TURNING POINT, as an earlier examination of the desperate pull experienced by dancers between devoting their lives to dance and the desire have lives. The film’s tragic nature reminds us that the original versions of the fairytales we’ve come to know and love were, in fact, much darker in nature than we remember (thanks to Disney etc.). They oftentimes have very sad, or gory, endings: Andersen’s Red Shoes describes a fair maiden cursed to dance herself literally to death.
For those into an even more twisted take on this tale, check out the 2005 South Korean horror film of the same name, in which a woman finds a pair of pink pumps on the subway and all manner of death and dismemberment ensues. But be warned—this is decidedly more blood red than the film from the 40s...
Author: Dan Heching
9. SNOW WHITE: A TALE OF TERROR
This horror-ish film from 1997 starred Sigourney Weaver as the Evil Queen as well as Sam Neill, and it will surely be more than upstaged by the new studio production of the Grimm Brothers fable with Charlize Theron and Chris Hemsworth. But here too we find that many of the more sinister elements of the original fairytale are still intact, not to mention the tale’s commentary on the often grueling class system in history; this film takes place in the time of the Crusades, and the miners Snow White allies with are not dwarfs, but are nonetheless dwarfed by their status as peasant laborers.
Author: Dan Heching
8. EVER AFTER
A guilty pleasure if there ever was one, this Andy Tennant-directed Drew Barrymore feature may not completely twist around the Cinderella fairytale, but it does a great job of placing the story in a historical French context, and features several actors in their prime: dreamy Dougray Scott as the stock Prince Charming, the always-delightful Judy Parfitt as his Queen Mother, and the incomparable Anjelica Houston, who receives one of the best comeback lines of all time from daughter Melanie Lynskey (from HEAVENLY CREATURES): “Of course not, Mother. I'm only here for the food.”
Author: Dan Heching
7. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
If you’re doing a double take as to why this film is included here, consider this: the central relationship between beastly Hannibal Lecter and beautiful Clarice Starling is a near-mirror for the archetypal Beauty/Beast relationship, as she is helplessly drawn toward his brilliant inner world, and she holds the key to any sort of salvation he may hope for. Of course, there is no beautiful Prince lurking beneath the surface of Hannibal’s cannibalistic skin, but those who read the book will agree that his feelings for Clarice, as they grow stronger, instill a sense of belated morality within the monster. It’s pretty clear from early on—Hannibal would never (and never does) lay a finger on his Beauty.
Author: Dan Heching
6. Films of David Lynch
David Lynch is a noted lover of THE WIZARD OF OZ (which in our filmic minds also deserves the status of fairytale), although the warm and fuzzy 1939 family classic might not be the first influence you’d expect considering this guy’s body of work—some might prefer to call Lynch the master of twisted filmmaking, as opposed to anything ‘warm and fuzzy’ (THE STRAIGHT STORY notwithstanding). But it’s interesting to note the storytelling parallels between OZ and much of Lynch’s work, most notably the preoccupation with dream structure.
The could-this-be-a-dream scenario is found in many of Lynch’s films, from MULHOLLAND DRIVE to BLUE VELVET (side note: Isabella Rossellini’s character is named Dorothy), where recurrent themes and characters appear at the beginning and end of the film, causing the characters (and most often the audience right along with them) to question whether any of the craziness in the middle actually ‘happened’.
And then of course there’s WILD AT HEART, Lynch’s Palme d’Or-winning ode to THE WIZARD OF OZ, a film that features several direct references to the munchkin-populated musical, including a mention of the Yellow Brick Road. (And what about the munchkins at the end of MULHOLLAND DRIVE? Creepy.)
Author: Dan Heching
5. FREEWAY
This film reads like the Little Red Riding Hood fairytale as retold by Eminem. Featuring a sophomoric Reese Witherspoon, FREEWAY is a white-trash rendition of the fairytale, arguably deserving of its status as a cult film. For Kiefer Sutherland fans, this is one of his more fun roles, playing Bob Wolverton (note fairytale reference) a sadistic madman who gets a lot more than his comeuppance.
Author: Dan Heching
4. BLACK SWAN
Drawing much inspiration from another entry on this list (namely THE RED SHOES), BLACK SWAN is quite obviously attributed as well to Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, which for all intents and purposes is a fairytale in its own right (the composer based his legendary ballet on Russian folktales).
Twisted doesn’t even begin to describe Natalie Portman’s delirious and hypnotic downfall due to obsession and untold amounts of pressure in the contemporary world of ballet in New York City, and her award-winning performance ends up carrying an otherwise slightly overrated film.
Author: Dan Heching
3. KIRIKOU AND THE SORCERESS
Drawn from African folktales, this animated children’s film is inspired by the classic—and global—prodigal son story, about a young boy (Kirikou) born with the ability to already speak and walk who becomes his village’s last hope for survival. With a bold animation style that embraces its ethnic origins, this film does wonders compared to Disney’s often lame attempts to capture the fairytales of another culture (for examples please see the largely forgettable MULAN or entirely forgettable PRINCESS AND THE FROG).
Author: Dan Heching
2. THE COMPANY OF WOLVES
Neil Jordan’s very adolescent and VERY twisted take on Red Riding Hood is pure 80s schlock all the way, but even though the werewolf horror film has aged poorly (it was only Jordan’s second time behind the camera), the attempts to uncover the extremely psychological and sexual nature of the fairytale characters—Freudian and otherwise—are noble. Also Granny is played by Angela Lansbury, which remains delightful.
Author: Dan Heching
1. LABYRINTH
If you’ve never considered this Jim Henson-directed treasure as an inventive update to the WIZARD OF OZ, take another look—a girl on the verge of womanhood ends up in a magical dream world, searching for answers from an overlord in a central city (Goblin, Emerald) and meeting three unlikely confidantes along the way—the brainy and intellectual Hoggle, the buffoonish but loveable Ludo, and the ever-brave Sir Didymus. The parallels are really not that hard to pick out. For most Americans under 40, this film (or Henson’s entirely puppeteered THE DARK CRYSTAL) has a special place in the hall of childhood nostalgia, but a re-watch now shows that the impressive visuals, mood and of course music (a la Jareth himself, Mr. David Bowie) hold up surprisingly well. As far as twisted 80s fairytales go, LABYRINTH is by far the one to beat.
Author: Dan Heching
