I pride myself on being a woman of my word. When I reviewed Mirror, Mirror back in March, I vowed that I would continue my ride on the fairy-tale bandwagon all the way to seeing Snow White and the Huntsman. And that I did. I cannot say that it exceeded my expectations, because I am not sure that anything involving Kristen Stewart ever will; however, it did meet said expectations, and I was certainly pleased with the outcome. The film succeeded at creating a darker and deeper version of the classic Grimm Brothers tale, and did its best to allot a third-dimension to its respective characters. From start to finish, the picture was beautiful visually, save for a few elements of the Dark Forrest that I could have done without (but an aversion to snakes is purely personal). Now, I could regurgitate a story that we have all heard over and over again (especially as of late), but I think it would be more exciting—at least for me— if I tell you exactly what sets this adaptation of Snow White apart from its television and cinematic predecessors.

To begin with, Charlize Theron (Young Adult) assumed the role of the Evil Queen with a menacing charisma that made Julia Roberts look like the Easter Bunny. From the manner in which she overtakes the throne (by killing the King during the consummation of their marriage), to her sucking the youth out of the kingdom’s 20 and under female population, she makes it clear that she will stop at nothing to maintain her undeniable hotness (seriously, even when she was supposed to look old and haggard, Theron still managed to look sensational). Unfortunately, her angry petulance, which at times went a little overboard, left the remainder of the characters looking like they were just going through the motions. Though looking underwhelmed has become Kristen Stewart’s (Twilight) trademark, she was able to keep the heavy breathing in check for long enough to give Snow White an adequate mixture of understated beauty and elusiveness. Truth be told, I would rather watch her attempt to look mysterious than painfully awkward like she normally does. And finally, the Huntsman, played by Chris Hemsworth (Thor). I won’t drown you in my drool. Instead, I will attest to his acting capabilities, which leave a little bit to be desired. He has already proven that he can play a troubled hero with some decent comedic timing. Sadly, all he accomplished in this movie was reprising the same role.

What truly saved this film was the artistic license that writers Evan Daugherty (credited with penning the story), John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side), and Hussein Amini (Drive) took with the screenplay, and the sinister universe created by first-time movie director Rupert Sanders (known for directing commercials). It may have gone 10-15 minutes longer than it should have, but I appreciated that the writer’s gave the characters some depth (i.e. the Evil Queen and the Huntsman had back-stories, something usually only awarded to Snow White). Their attention to detail gave Sanders and his visual direction team everything they needed to generate a world that could go from revolting to serene in a matter of seconds. If one paid enough attention, you could even catch some religious and sociological undertones.

At this point, I fancy myself somewhat of a fairytale adaptation expert (if not junky), and I think this movie did exactly what the trailers depicted it would. It kept you excited and took you to a land uncharted thus far by other interpretations. No, the acting was not superb, and some of the story could have been shaved off without losing the overall point. But, you are reading this find out whether or not the movie is worth it, and to that I say yes.