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by Sandra Olmsted

Director Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror is a delightfully twisted, campy, gorgeous, girl-powered version of the Grimm Brothers’ classic tale, Snow White.  Told from the Evil Queen’s perspective, Mirror Mirror shifts the familiar story around enough to flesh out the characters better than earlier versions.

The opening animated sequence, in which the figures look like porcelain statues, catches the audience up on the back story, and because it is narrated by Evil Queen (play with delicious villainy by Julia Roberts) the audience is also introduced to the Evil Queen’s dark magic.

Tarsem Singh also reimagines the looking glass as water passage to a exotic dwelling over a lake, where the Evil Queen visits her conscience, who warns the Evil Queen that there will be heavy price to pay for her use of magic.  The Evil Queen used a potion on King (Sean Bean) to induce marriage and promptly sends the King off into the woods which surround the castle.  He is never heard of again, and the Evil Queen taxes the people heavily and spends the money on herself.  Soon, the people no longer sing and dance for joy.

Ten years later, Snow White (Lily Collins) turns 18 and is encourage by the Cook (Mare Winingham) to take back her kingdom.  Out for a walk in the woods, Snow finds two half dressed men dangling head first from a rope.  She frees them, unaware that one of them is Prince Alcott of Valencia (Armie Hammer), a fabulously wealthy prince who seeks adventure.  When the Prince shows up at the castle looking for assistance, the Evil Queen sees his bare chest, learns of his fortune, and hears their wedding bells.  (Roberts also revels in the role of a cougar).

When Snow and the Prince enjoy dancing together a little too much, the Evil Queen orders her obsequious lackey, Brighton (Nathan Lane), to take Snow into the woods and kill her.  Brighton is unable to do this and tells Snow to run away.  Fortunately, Snow is given shelter, on a temporary basic, by a gang of dwarves, who the Evil Queen banished.  The dwarves, who are definitely not similar to those in the Disney version, are highway men and steal in order to survive, and they are the ones who set upon and humiliated the Prince.

The dwarves have a darker sense of humor, and their drives and desires aren’t as cartoonish.    Half Pint (Mark Povinelli) doesn’t hide his crush on Snow, and Wolf (Sebastian Saraceno) and Chuckles (Ronald Lee Clark) tease him the most about it.  They also rib Grub (Joe Gnoffo), who wants Snow to stay and cook for them.  Napoleon (Jordan Prentice), who is the leader, and Grimm (Danny Woodburn), who was the school teacher, also make merry occasionally, but mostly they take serious defending the gang against the Queen and the Beast that lives in the forest.  Eventually, the dwarves vote to let Snow stay.

From the animated opening right to Bollywood production number during the end credits,  Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror is a sumptuous, screwy romp and a triumph of art direction.  The wickedly witty script by Marc Klein and Jason Keller has an irreverence similar to The Princess Bride and Shrek.  The stunning costumes, such as the insect and animal inspired ones for the royal ball, were designed by the renown Oscar-winning costume designer Eiko Ishioka, who died is January at age 73.  The costumes compliment Tom Foden’s glorious production design which is full of set piece inspired by nature, from the rustic, woodsy home of the dwarves to the Evil Queen’s pearlized, shell-shaped throne.  The snowy landscapes, dark woods, bleak town, and shimmering castle radiate the film’s themes and contrasts because of director of photography Brendan Galvin’s strategic camera and lighting work incorporating live action and special effects.