The Huntsman: Winter’s War ***½ (2016, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain, Sam Claflin, Sheridan Smith, Alexandra Roach, Nick Frost) – Movie Review

Those twin marvels of humanity Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron return as the axe-wielding warrior Eric the Huntsman and the Evil Queen Ravenna in the fantasy adventure The Huntsman: Winter’s War, director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan’s entertaining 2016 follow-up to Snow White and the Huntsman (2012).

It is both a prequel and sequel as it takes place before and after the events of the first film. It is written by new screen-writers Craig Mazin and Evan Spiliotopoulos, based on characters created by Evan Daugherty, inspired by the fairy tale Snow White compiled by the Brothers Grimm, and The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen.

With no sign of Snow White or Kristen Stewart who played her in 2012 (though she does appear in archive footage), it is Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain who join Eric and Ravenna centre stage as the thermally challenged Ice Queen Freya and Sara, Eric’s forbidden lover. That is, forbidden by the jealous Ravenna, a woman who doesn’t believe in love and stamps it out whenever she sees manifestations of it. The love that has been denied her she sees as a betrayal in others. Pretty deep all this, huh?

Back to the actors. Sam Claflin is back from Snow White and the Huntsman in a nothing part as William, son of Duke Hammond, and Nick Frost returns too as the diminutive Nion, forming an amusing double act with Rob Brydon as titchy and tetchy Gryff, while Alexandra Roach and Sheridan Smith play other dwarves, their knockabout romantic interest! Mmm, more manifestations of love… Must be stamped out immediately.

There is a new director, too, in France’s Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, a visual effects artist promoted from second unit director on Snow White and the Huntsman to make his directorial debut. So, what can I say, the visuals are really well taken care of – it is a sleek and lovely looking movie – but there are too many visual effects. Nicolas-Troyan does exactly the job he is employed for in an extremely craftsman-like but rather anonymous way.

Winter’s War tells a dark, Grimm-style fairy tale of sibling rivalry and true love, as evil sisters prepare to conquer the land and two renegades set out to stop them. There is plenty of the ‘war’ stuff of the title, though ‘Winter’s War and Summer’s Love’ might be a better title, as there is plenty of romance too. It has even got a serious theme behind it, of power corrupting, or am I imagining it? So, excellent!

The four stars – Hemsworth, Theron, Blunt and Chastain – do a grand job with their roles, though Hemsworth seems less good this time and Theron better. Hemsworth is perfectly cast and brilliantly manly, but he is saddled with a seriously silly accent (possibly Scottish or maybe Irish) that stops you hearing his dialogue clearly and gets in the way of your enjoyment of his performance. Why didn’t they just get him to talk Aussie? No one would have minded and we would all have been able to understand him. His Melbourne tones would be fine for Eric The Huntsman.

When Hemsworth is in his fighting mode, he’s great. When he’s mumbling sweet nothings to Chastain, he’s as ordinary as unbuttered toast. When he’s not intimidating, Hemsworth looks a lot of fun, but he doesn’t seem very romantic. Meanwhile, Theron, who didn’t quite hit the right camp buttons last time, nails it this time. With the tone of the performance perfectly pitched, she’s the very model of a major Evil Queen.

And she is matched nicely by the impeccable and impressive Blunt, taking it a shade more seriously and her Ice Queen more somberly. Theron makes it Gothic and Blunt tries to keep it real – the performances work both separately and together. Alas, Chastain’s part is less interesting. She is suitably tough and convincing as a warrior, but again not very romantic when it comes to the love department. Chastain is an extremely powerful actress but she can’t do cute or pretty.

Reliable Frost, Brydon, Smith and Roach are given lots to do to keep the comedy quota up. They manage it pretty well, even arguably very well, raising more laughs from their simple material than you’d expect. Also, though they are mostly CGI-ed because, hey, they are much smaller than Hemsworth, though of course most everybody it, their performances keep a human dimension to a way over-CGI-ed movie.

The climax of the movie is a particular disappointment in this matter, just descending to Blunt and Theron whipping up CGI ice and pointy things and, er, birds to win the final battle. It is a shame that the climax is limp in this respect, and the wrap-up after it hasty and fumbled, quickly mentioning as a final thought that our story is over but fairy tales never end. Oh no, Part Three beckons! They could even patch it up with Kristen Stewart and bring back Snow White.

Emily Blunt explains: ‘Despite the fantasy, you’re trying to ground these people in some kind of a reality. We’re all aware we aren’t making The Remains of the Day here.’

The Huntsman: Winter’s War disappointed at the box office, bringing in a gross of just $19.4 million in its opening weekend in the US and $9 million in its second for a total US gross of $48,390,190. It has managed to climb to a $165,536,477 cumulative worldwide gross, but will struggle to hit $200 million, about half of the first movie’s $396 million. But the budget is much smaller at $115 million as opposed to the original’s $170 million.

The running time is 114 minutes, with 120 minutes in the extended cut.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Movie Review

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