Snow White, Cinderella and Christmas

I believe, Christmas time is storytelling-time. Just have a look at your TV programme and all the fairytale movies that are being shown: Dozens of Cinderella adaptions of all decades, the everlasting story about the depressed girl, her cruel stepmother, a pair of shoes (recently: music player or mobile phones) and Prince Charming. Dozens of Snow White based films, again, the castaway princess, all the same, except the shoes, and with the fact that her cruel stepmother is not only trying to enslave, but to kill her. 

At this point you may discuss about the role of women in fairytales. Liberated and autonomous princesses, depicted in new-age adaptions, such as Drew Barrymore in Ever After (1998) or Kristen Stewart in Snow White and the Huntsman (2012). Not a hint of a helpless little girl, dreaming of a brave Prince Charming, coming all the way down to rescue her. 

You may also debate about cruelty in tales and its effect on children. Why, by the way, do a lot of people think that fairytales were made for kids only? Fairytales had a lot more cruelties, more blood and unpicturesque details originally inborn, before Brothers Grimm came and made them way more child-friendly. Leave alone Perrault!

There are countless possibilities to spend time on arguing on fairytale topics... you can if you feel the need to, but you needn`t else.

You may marvel about the varieties of fairytale film adaptions. Endless apple bites and tons of lost shoes. For university I once made a supercut to depict the popularity of fairytales instancing the most popular, Cinderella and Snow White.

Isn`t it unbelievable how many actors, actresses, directors and film teams have attended to the tale film production every time again and again? The same old story - tons of film adaptions. Some day, the story should have been perfectly told. Funnily enough directors can`t get enough of it. It seems as if you still can find new styles of storytelling with every new adaption, re-invent traditional ideas... may it be.

TV channels will run blank around Christmas time, if there weren`t new film adaptions every year. And honestly: If Christmas is all about family and relationships, coming together and having a good time with hot wine punch, cut-out cookies, Christmas carols, trees, Santa Claus and all that stuff, something would be missing without reading, telling and listening to heart-warming and delightful fairytales - and even if merely watched on the TV screen... Wouldn`t there?

Good night, sleep tight!

Neary