Mirror Mirror
(2012)
The second case of great visuals, sloppy
plotting from Tarsem Singh in the space of a year. There's no sense of
narrative drive to either this or last year's Immortals, and if his take on
Snow White isn't quite such an insult to the viewer's intelligence as his murdering
of Greek myth it still ends up feeling like bit of an endurance test.
Part of the problem is the very knowing,
wink-wink, approach. For the most part the script isn't witty or clever enough
to sustain this. There's the odd amusing line about changing endings approved by focus groups, but it won’t
go down as this generation's The Princess Bride. And, while the director knows
the look he wants, it's debatable how well this works; a forest clearly shot on
a sound stage and limited locations give the impression of fairy tales on a
budget. The self-consciousness means there's never any sense of atmosphere or
danger, while the music reinforces the impression that it’s a lazy jape more
fun to make than to watch.
On the plus side, Armie Hammer hits just
the right note of self-mockery, and Nathan Lane could sleepwalk this kind of
role but brings bags of energy along. Julia Roberts isn't as much fun as she
should be as the Queen, although her beauty treatment is amusing, but then I've never been a great fan while Lilly Collins'
eyebrows are extraordinary, and good for her.
**
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