Search - Snow White & Cinderella (Jetlag Productions) on DVD

Larry W. (Blackettle) from NAMPA, ID
Reviewed on 7/14/2009...

This is not a Disney item. It is an anime based on the Disney Titles.

An Enchanting Double Experience

FranklyMyDear | 08/16/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I grew up with both this and the Disney versions of Snow White and Cinderella. This is MUCH better than the Disney interpretations, for both Cinderella and Snow White.

SNOW WHITE: I never cared for Disney's Snow White. I did not find Snow White to be particularly beautiful at all - she's pretty, but not gorgeous enough to be "the fairest in the land." The songs were mediocre, and the story strayed very much from the original. I was terrified when the evil queen transformed into the old hag, and she gave my brother nightmares. He used to run out of the room and hide under his bed whenever she appeared.

In THIS version, Snow White is positively stunning, and she is portrayed as very kind and sympathetic. The song "The Power of Love" is very good and "A Little Bit of Magic" is fantastic. "Hip Hip Hooray" is very funny. The evil queen is also very beautiful, and her vanity is depicted much better. True to the original tale, the queen visits Snow White THREE times. The Brothers Grimm have her take on the same form each time, but in this version,she has three different disguises (probably so Snow White does not look like an idiot, accepting poisonous gifts from the same person). Her first disguise is of an old woman, not too frightening, but she smiles evilly. This is much better for children to see, for they are only a little scared, rather than petrified. The second disguise is that of an old man, and the third - brilliantly so - is that of a pretty little girl. This girl is the one with the poisoned apple. She puts on a very convincing show, even taking a bite out of the half of apple that had not been poisoned. This shows that you should not accept things from ANY stranger. Disney's Snow White is famous for that scene when the prince awakens her with a kiss. However, in the original story, the apple is dislodged from her throat when the prince picks her up. This is what happens here. The queen's end is also different. Disney has her fall off a cliff, which I remember finding extremely horrifying. The Brothers Grimm have her dance herself to death in red hot iron shoes, which could also be very scary. THIS version has her sucked into her magic mirror, trapped there for eternity - a chilling end, but also fitting and much more child-friendly. I am giving you the opinion of myself as a little girl and of myself as a fourteen-year-old. I look back on THIS movie fondly, and Disney's in distaste. I watched this again a couple months ago, with my eight-year-old sister - she loved it, and I was delighted to find I thoroughly enjoyed it.

CINDERELLA: I must admit that I am partial to the Disney Cinderella. However, I still love this version. In Disney, Cinderella (the character) is more beautiful and has a wonderful, heart-melting voice. She also appears to be older. The fairy godmother is like a magical grandmother and Cinderella has plenty of mice and bird friends. The stepmother is menacing and evil, with a wicked cat and two daughters who are constantly quarreling.

In THIS version, Cinderella has a happy family until her mother dies from an illness. When her father remarries, he leaves Cinderella with her new stepmother and stepsisters (who soon take control of everything) and he goes away on business. Cinderella soon meets her fairy godmother, a smaller fairy with wings, pink hair, and a distinct personality. The fairy is fun and has a sense of humor, as seen when she plays a couple tricks on the stepsisters and stepmother. She lives in Cinderella's snow globe and affectionately calls the girl "Cindy." The stepsisters are portrayed as spoiled and selfish. One stepsister is blonde and thin, with a high laugh, and is smarter than the other. The other is fat, unattractive, and brown-haired, nearly always stuffing herself, and is rather dumb, with a low, dull voice. These stepsisters are also constantly bickering. The stepmother is not as frightening as the Disney stepmother, which is good for younger children, and she is a rather vicious, greedy woman. Closer to the original story, the stepmother empties a bowl of lentils into the ashes, telling Cinderella that she can go to the ball if she picks out all the lentils in time. With the help of the fairy godmother and a flock of birds, the task is completed, but of course the stepmother still doesn't let her go. (Thanks to the fairy godmother, Cinderella makes it after all.) In this version, the prince is tired of snobbish suitors and so his two meddling parents decide to throw the ball. Cinderella arrives in at the ball in glass slippers and a blue and yellow dress, her brown hair with a pretty reddish tint (unless that's just because I have a very old copy). The BEST part about this version is definitely the songs. This Cinderella's voice is not as gorgeous as Dinsey's, but the prince has a wonderful, heart-melting voice. The songs are better, and even one of the stepsisters sings in one of them. The prince's duet with Cinderella ("When Love Has Gone Away") is romantic, the "theme song" ("Dream On, Cinderella") is lovely, and "(It's the) Chance of a Lifetime" is delightful. All of the songs are catchy and definitely worth hearing. As a litte girl (aroind five years of age) I was enchanted, and I even learned two new words: elegant and gaudy. At fifteen years old, this movie still delights me.



I HIGHLY recommend this movie. It is a must-see for any child (even my brothers loved it!) and is a pleasurable experience at any age."