THE HUNTSMAN: WINTER'S WAR
Director: Cedric Nicolas-Troyan
Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain, Charlize Theron, Nick Frost, Sheridan Smith, Rob Brydon, Alexandra Roach, Sope Dirisu
Rating: (M) ★★★+
I know that this makes me a bad person, but all I remembered about 2012's Snow White and the Huntsman was the gossip about leading lady Kristen Stewart's fondness for director Rupert Sanders. A sequel was planned, but the fallout from their affair resulted in Stewart and Sanders being removed from the project.
New director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan was the visual effects supervisor on the first film. After a period of concentration, I remembered enjoying Charlize Theron's evil Queen Ravenna and thinking that Chris Hemsworth was better than expected as the burly Huntsman. Maybe Stewart had done us all a favour, as I also remembered her Snow White as incredibly dreary.
The Huntsman: Winter's War (Readings) is a little odd, structurally. It starts with some back story from before the first film and then jumps seven years to a time after Ravenna has been defeated.
All should be well, but Ravenna's mirror remains intact and has made Snow White sick, so she asks the Huntsman to take it to a place where it can do no harm.
An easy enough task except Ravenna has a sister, Freya (Emily Blunt), who is a mighty queen in her own right and wants the mirror to make her even more powerful.
The second film is certainly a lot more fun than the first, with everyone putting in high-energy performances. It is a little bit Lord of the Rings, but the jokes are better.
- By Christine Powley
