Summer of Magic- "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"

Otis Ferguson of The New Republic wrote, "To say of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs that it is among the genuine artistic achievements of this country takes no daring." To set a standard for an entire genre of cinema is no small task, but that is exactly what Walt Disney and company did with this timeless and endlessly entertaining adaption of the classic Grimm tale. I truly cannot overstate how perfect Snow White is. From beginning to end, Walt has us right in the palm of his hand, making us laugh, raising our adrenaline, and forcing us to fight back to tears. Disney's Folly is undoubtedly Disney's Masterpiece.

The characters are so well developed as each one has a chance to shine bright. Snow White is everything you would expect from a fairy tale princess, exhibiting sheer grace and elegance even in the midst of her adverse situations. She set the bar for arguably the best set of characters in Disney history. The seven dwarfs are simply legendary. The standouts, Grumpy and Dopey, are deservedly the crowd's (myself included) favorites, but each dwarf has a moment of hilarity and heartfelt sincerity that continually makes Snow White a film that offers so much upon each viewing. The Evil Queen/Witch is the quintessential Disney villain, setting the bar immensely high for all succeeding villains in the Disney canon. She is dastardly, yet sophisticated, with an agenda she is determined to accomplish no matter what the obstacles. The scene when the Witch visits Snow White with the cursed apple is one of the most awe-inspiring scenes in the history of animation.

The film is filled to the brim with classic, iconic scenes. In fact, just about every scene is an iconic scene that deserves to be studied and examined in an attempt to crack the code of how Walt mastered this generation-defining feat. The songs are simple sublime. There are no show-stopping numbers, but the songs that are included are perfect compliments to the story and the characters. The "Heigh Ho" sequence is one of pure bliss and joy. I dare anyone to not smile during "The Silly Song." Then, of course, when Snow White sings the emblematic "Someday My Prince Will Come," Disney tops his perfect creation off beautifully. The one that started it all still endures to this day as the unrivaled classic for audiences of all ages.

Rating: 10/10

Historical Significance: This is an obvious one. In 1937, no one believed that an audience would watch a cartoon for longer than a few minutes. As we know, however, Walt proved them all wrong as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs became the first full-length animated film in the history of cinema. When adjusted for inflation by Box Office Mojo, Snow White grossed over $935 million in the US, which places the film in the top ten of all-time in domestic grosses to this day (yes, even above Star Wars: The Force Awakens, for some perspective). With this new found abundance of money, Walt built his own studio, which would proceed to churn out classic after classic in the forties and fifties, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Behind the Scenes: One of my favorite stories relating to Snow White is that some people were so confused about how to approach a full-length animated film that some professional doctors wrote in newspapers that watching a cartoon for a lengthy amount of time could lead to blindness. Luckily, no one watched Snow White and left blind. Actually, I would say their eyes were opened even wider to the greatness of what they just witnessed and the potential for animation as a genre.

Favorite Character: There are so many wonderful characters in Snow White, but I would have to single out Dopey as my favorite. Without the assistance of a single word, Dopey makes us laugh
hysterically while also melting our hearts at the exact time. His physical and situational comedy is just superb. His numerous attempts to convince Snow White to give him a real kiss never ceases to make me smile.

Favorite Scene: The finale featuring Snow White's eternal vigil created by the dwarfs is one of the most chill-inducing scenes in Disney history. With a wide camera shot, we see the rays of sun shine
down on the sleeping beauty as the forest animals and dwarfs mourn the death of their dear friend. Then, suddenly, the Prince appears after searching for his one love everywhere to revive her back to life with true love's kiss to the absolute delight of the forest animals and dwarfs. This is the purest of Disney magic where we simply stand in awe of Walt's mastery.

Favorite Song: Every single song in Snow White is classical, but "Heigh Ho" is just too entertaining for me to mention another song in this section. Our first introduction to the dwarfs is an iconic one as we meet them in their mine digging for riches. Each dwarf's personality is displayed expertly here, here!).
which is why this is such a great song. Not only are the lyrics and music fantastic, but it progresses the storyline by introducing these exceptional and essential characters (Watch "Heigh Ho"

Miscues: None. Not a single one at all. If you have a miscue for Snow White, you have no soul.

Ranking: This ranking is an easy one considering it is the first one in our Summer of Magic, but I can envision Snow White remaining high on this list for quite some time.

1. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Snow White set the precedent for Disney animation. Without its success, who knows what the studio would have done in efforts to recover from the financial hit. Fortunately, Snow White was a gigantic success in 1937 and continues to be a gigantic success today. Everything related to Disney owes its success to Snow White. So how do you follow such a masterpiece? Tomorrow, we will wish upon a star and find out as we witness the story of Pinocchio!

-Cody Fleenor