In episode #11 discussion of Snow White and the Huntsman and the novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter leads to talk of awkward accents, hot archers, and history lessons from fiction novels. Plus some lessons that Disney probably shouldn’t have taught us.
I’m in withdrawal.
Fairy tale withdrawal.
Since the season finale of Once Upon a Time on May 13, it pains me to have another Sunday go by without getting my OUAT fix. And with that ending – the curse broken, Snow White reunited with her Prince Charming, Regina’s comeuppance, magic’s return to Storybrooke – how in the world are we all supposed to wait until the fall for season 2 to start?
There’s only one thing that helps me get through this long period of waiting: those tantalizing tidbits of info telling us what to expect from the next season. And no news could be quite so magical as the OUAT exclusive released earlier this week, which announced that Emilie de Ravin has been updated to series regular for season 2.
Along with a press release announcing the beginning of production on the 2014 film, Disney also gave fans the first look at Angelina Jolie (Wanted) donning the iconic Maleficent headdress. The film will focus on the origin of this famous Disney baddie and explain what pushed her to the point of cursing the princess in an attempt to hurt her family and the kingdom.
The character is a Disney invention from their version of the Grimm Brothers original story where the thirteenth fairy curses the princess and then proceeds to never be heard from again. In their 1959 adaptation of the tale, Disney expanded the character to a level of determined resentment that certainly merits explanation considering that, as far as we know, all King Stephan did was not invite her to a party.
Based on Hans Christen Andersen’s The Snow Queen, Disney began working on its version of the tale back in 2010, but put it on hold because of ‘story issues.’ Production is now surging forward with a release date set for November 2013 and cast announcements that include Kristen Bell (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) and Idina Menzel (Wicked). In its official press release, Disney gave this synopsis:
In “Frozen,” a prophecy traps a kingdom in eternal winter, so Anna (voice of Bell) must team up with Kristoff, a daring mountain man, on the grandest of journeys to find the Snow Queen (voice of Menzel) and put an end to the icy spell. Encountering Everest-like extremes, mystical creatures and magic at every turn, Anna and Kristoff battle the elements in a race to save the kingdom from destruction.
Everyone is back to talk about the Grimm Brothers’ Little Snow White and Tarsem Singh’s Mirror, Mirror (2012) plus many other interesting and occasionally disturbing adaptations of the classic fairytale.
Adaptation Podcast 