Ahead of the release of the new Disney film Snow White, reviews for the live-action adaptation starring Gal Gadot were published worldwide on Wednesday — and let’s just say they leave something to be desired.
The audience score on Rotten Tomatoes currently sits at just 45% (based on 73 reviews at the time of writing). On Metacritic, which aggregates and averages reviews from various websites globally, the score is 47, including 19% negative reviews, 49% mixed reviews, and 32% positive reviews.
Movie trailer
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Some critics didn’t hold back when it came to Gadot's performance. On the website DiscussingFilm, the reviewer praised Rachel Zegler, who stars alongside Gadot as Snow White, but didn’t hesitate to harshly criticize the Israeli star.
"Rachel Zegler’s endless charisma convincingly positions Snow White as a strong, pure-of-heart leader even when the script isn’t pulling the same weight," it said. "The titular princess simply pops from the screen, especially when Zegler is allowed to put her stamp on the original film’s iconography. The same cannot be said for Gal Gadot, who turns in what might be her worst performance to date. Gadot is woefully miscast as the Evil Queen, unable to sell us on the glamor, fierceness or true camp of a classic Disney villain."
The reaction on Roger Ebert’s renowned film review website wasn’t any better. "Gal Gadot plays the Evil Queen and sorceress, but her thin singing voice reflects her pale performance, especially when she’s required to display anger at her stepdaughter for challenging her authority. The film doesn’t give her much material to work with, beyond the impressive costumes and special effects."
The Guardian awarded the film just one star, calling it "horribly tedious." The newspaper added: "With tiresome pseudo-progressive additions that tie the whole thing in knots, this is a waste of estimable entertainers like Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot."
Rolling Stone wasn’t any kinder: "This Snow White may not be the worst live-action adaptation of an animated touchstone, though it’s a strong contender for its blandest. The movie does earn points as a bedtime story, however, because it will definitely put you to sleep."
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The Times didn’t sugarcoat its feelings either, calling the adaptation a "new low" and even warning viewers to bring a barf bag. "Gadot tries to adopt a seductive approach as the Queen but completely lacks the detached eroticism Angelina Jolie brought to 'Maleficent,' or even the vocal power of Lucille La Verne in the original role 88 years ago," The Times wrote. Zegler wasn’t spared criticism either, with the review adding: "The new songs, like Zegler’s performance, are feeble and uninspiring, while the dramatic tension is almost nonexistent. It’s hard not to see this as a crisis point for Disney."
The Independent, which also gave the film one star, wrote that "Rachel Zegler deserves better than the lazy, visually repellent Snow White. This Disney musical offers nothing to the talented ‘West Side Story’ star – who has faced racist abuse since her casting was announced – and features a dud of a performance from Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen."
The Boston Globe review outright warned viewers to avoid the film, describing it as a failure in every sense except for Zegler’s performance. "Of course, she’ll be blamed when this movie doesn’t make back its enormous budget," the review said. "But the real blame belongs to director Marc Webb, screenwriter Erin Cressida Wilson, the 'La La Land' guys (Benj Pasek and Justin Paul) who wrote this film’s dreadful songs, whoever designed those CGI dwarf characters, and the godawful performance of Gal Gadot. Gadot is so ineffectual the narration has to tell us that her character is 'eeeeevil.'"
That said, there were also some reviews that praised the live-action adaptation. The Hollywood Reporter described the film as "glamorous entertainment" and even complimented Gadot’s impressive presence. Variety argued that this is one of Disney’s more successful live-action adaptations. A reviewer on IndieWire concluded that, "at the end of the day, it’s a sweet film that will likely please audiences."