In spite of all the drama and controversy surrounding Disney’s new live-action Snow White, this is a film to watch. In a time where everyone’s opinions are so freely accessible, it is so easy to go along with what others are saying rather than forming your own opinions—but where is the fun in that? I saw the film with my family, all of whom are long-time Disney fans, and we were pleasantly surprised by the edits they made to the storyline. Changes can be good, but the changes made to a classic story like Snow White can certainly ruffle a few feathers.

In this new live-action, Snow White (Rachel Zegler) gets her name because she survives a snowstorm as a baby. Snow White’s parents ruled the kingdom with kindness and compassion until the queen’s death, and Snow White’s father remarries an enchanting woman whose beauty gives her power. This woman eventually gets rid of Snow White’s father and becomes the Evil Queen (Gal Gadot), turning the kingdom into an impoverished land. Unlike the original Disney cartoon, which centered around Snow White’s desire for love and her struggle against the vain Queen who wants to be fairest of them all, the live-action changes the narrative and focuses on Snow White’s desire to free her kingdom and restore the land to its people.

The public distaste for the film began when Rachel Zegler, an actress of Colombian descent, was cast in June 2021. She faced plenty of racist comments from people on the internet because of her race, because people felt she was ill-suited to play a character whose namesake came from her skin that was white as snow in the original story. Zegler was subject to further criticism after her interview with Variety magazine at Disney’s D23 Expo in September 2022, where she criticized Disney’s 1937 Snow White cartoon. When asked about the “modern edge” they were bringing to the film, Zegler responded by saying, “It’s no longer 1937, and we absolutely wrote a Snow White that is not gonna be saved by the prince…She’s not gonna be dreaming about true love, she’s dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be.” In an interview with ExtraTV at the same event, she says, “There is a big focus on [Snow White’s] love story with a guy who literally stalks her. Weird! Weird. So we didn’t do that this time…We have a different approach.”

The internet took her comments as an appalling insult to the original story. Zegler’s perspective is nothing new—in fact, since Disney began making their live-action remakes, starting with Cinderella in 2015, they have been pushing the idea of rewriting their princesses as strong female characters who are not focused on their love stories. In March 2015, at the Cinderella premiere, Lily James, who played Cinderella, said, “there’s subtle changes [to the film]. I think Ella is a stronger character, she’s not waiting around for a prince to rescue her. She’s a strong independent girl…They fall in love but it’s nothing to do with the prince coming and saving a damsel in distress.” Similarly, in March 2017 at the Beauty and the Beast premiere, Emma Watson, who played Belle, said, “For me, the biggest thing about watching Belle for the first time compared to other Disney heroines was that she wasn’t waiting to be saved.”

Additionally, further controversies emerged in January 2022 when Peter Dinklage, an actor with a form of dwarfism, criticized the live-action Snow White for being a “backwards story about seven dwarves living in a cave.” Disney responded by saying they would be taking a “different approach” and “consulting with members of the dwarfism community”. This “different approach” was criticized online after a picture leaked in July 2023 of the seven dwarves being played by a diverse group of actors of different genders and ethnicities. Disney revealed they would be using CGI to create the dwarves in October 2023, but were criticized for being too “woke”.

My opinion after watching the film is that it is less of an adaptation/remake of the 1937 Disney cartoon than an entirely new interpretation of the Snow White story. The live-action Snow White preaches the importance of community and standing up for what you believe in. Zegler’s Snow White is compassionate and gentle, and her character arc centers around her desire to find her voice and speak up for her people. Those who were concerned that they had taken the love story out should be comforted to know that there is, in fact, a love story for Snow White with a rebel named Jonathan (Andrew Burnap), and their relationship is what pushes Snow White to fight for her people. I am a little disappointed that the song “Some Day My Prince Will Come” from the 1937 Snow White was cut, but Zegler’s performance in “Waiting on a Wish” makes up for it. A detail I enjoyed was the use of the word “fair” as a homonym to show the different priorities of Snow White and the Evil Queen. To Snow White, “fair” means “justice,” and to the Evil Queen, “fair” refers to her own beauty, showing that while Snow White cares about being just, the Queen only cares about her looks.

With all the controversies and hesitations considered, this is a film that will be enjoyed by fairytale lovers and should not be ignored solely because of opinions expressed by internet strangers. Form your own opinions of the film by checking it out yourself—even if it is not up to par, at the very least, it is an interesting take on the classic story.