The beautiful and kindhearted princess Snow White charms every creature in the kingdom except one — her jealous stepmother, the Queen. When the Magic Mirror proclaims Snow White is the fairest one of all, she must flee into the forest, where she befriends the lovable seven dwarfs — Doc, Sneezy, Grumpy, Happy, Bashful, Sleepy and Dopey. But when the Queen tricks Snow White with an enchanted apple, only the magic of true love’s kiss can save her!
For thoughts on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs comes to 4K UHD Blu-Ray with a 2160p/HDR10 transfer derived from a recent 4K restoration in which the restoration team scanned the Original Nitrate Negative in 4K and did an extensive cleaning pass to remove dirt and artifacts. This process received input from Disney Animation legends and authorities, including Michael Giaimo and Eric Goldberg, to preserve the filmmakers’ intended details and artistic choices. The previous Signature Edition Blu-Ray from Disney released in 2016 did not have quite as many issues as the original Cinderella Blu-Ray with the overly cleaned-up presentation, but this new 4K UHD Blu-Ray still brings out so many facets previously lost in the older masters.
The use of HDR brings forth some enchanting enhancements to the dazzling colors throughout in the background scenery and character details, while the disc also provides more substantial black levels for a cleaner viewing experience free of black crush. The deft handling of the restoration is on full display with vibrant hues radiating off the screen. This presentation handles the subtle gradients of the artwork in a way that makes the film feel more alive than ever. The source elements have been treated well with print damage or dust specks eliminated, leaving only the refined natural grain on the screen over the timeless artwork.
With Disney going back to the negative, there are some minor source issues that pop up including some brief blurring in a handful of edges of the frame, but this can be attributed to deficits in the source and not an issue with this transfer. Disney has rightfully tried to keep things as natural as possible. The Blu-Ray lost some detail somewhere along the restoration journey, so it is nice that the 4K UHD disc rectifies this with subtle facets intended by the animation team. This disc provides excellent line detail and more distinct shading, which gives the characters a greater presence on screen. The Blu-Ray has served the film well for quite a while, but Disney has pulled out all of the stops for this classic with their newest release.
Audio Quality
This 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc comes with an enjoyable DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix that repeats what was on the previous Blu-Ray release. We wish the original mono was included on this release, but the utilization of the surround channels here is delicately implemented. Dialogue emanates without issue with its clarity never becoming compromised by parallel sounds. Each channel maintains a distinct fidelity and separation so every element gets a chance to shine, but once again the surround channels never become the focus of the experience with a showy presence. The expansion is primarily noticed in the classic musical moments that flow throughout the room in a memorable way. The track shows some age-related weakness with some boxy sound moments, something likely unavoidable due to the vintage of the source recordings. Overall, this is the best the film can likely sound without the option of the original mono. There are English SDH, French, Spanish, German and Japanese subtitles provided.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Roy E. Disney and Historian John Canemaker supplement archival recordings by Walt Disney to provide a commentary track that gives great insights into the creation of the feature, the obstacles along this journey, and more.
- In Walt’s Words – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: A four-minute archival audio interview is provided in which Walt Disney discusses the journey of this film to the silver screen.
- Iconography: A seven-minute piece in which several creatives discuss the legacy of Snow White, how so many elements permeated popular culture, how the work inspired other art and much more.
- @DisneyAnimation – Designing Disney’s First Princess: A five-minute piece with Animator Mark Henn, Art Director Michael Giaimo, Art Director Bill Schwab, and Art Director Lorelay Bové in which they discuss the design of the iconic character and some of the secondary characters that surround her.
- The Fairest Facts Of Them All – 7 Things You May Not Know About Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs: A five-minute piece hosted by Sofia Carson which breaks down seven interesting facts about the history and legacy of the film.
- Snow White In Seventy Seconds: A 72-second hip hop retelling of the classic story.
- Alternate Sequence – The Prince Meets Snow White: A nearly four-minute look at an alternate meeting between Snow White and The Prince including some voice recreations of scene descriptions.
- Disney’s First Feature – The Making Of Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs: A great 33-minute featurette that delves into the absurd idea of making an animated feature film, the challenges faced during production, how it was the building block for the studio and much more.
- Bringing Snow White To Life: A 12-minute featurette on the mentors of the infamous “Nine Old Men” who helped pave the wave for animation as we know it today.
- Hyperion Studios Tour: A 31-minute piece that gives a great look at archival footage and audio interviews that reveal so much rich information about the creation of the film and what it was like to work for Disney in the early days.
- Decoding The Exposure Sheet: A seven-minute featurette that breaks down some of the technical elements that went into animating the film.
- Snow White Returns: A nine-minute examination of initial ideas for a potential sequel for the classic film.
- Story Meetings: Brief featurettes are provided that detail some initial Walt Disney story notes about certain characters within the film.
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- The Dwarfs (5:51)
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- The Huntsman (3:55)
- Deleted Scenes: A couple of brief sketches of unused scenes are provided.
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- Soup Eating Sequence (4:07)
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- Bed Building Sequence (6:28)
- Animation Voice Talent: A nearly seven-minute look at the vocal talent that brought the iconic characters to life.
Final Thoughts
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is one of the gems in the Disney crown – a story that has been adapted numerous times but rarely as effectively as this timeless original. The storytelling of this one is very economical with great attention paid to quickly developing a group of characters that enchant and delight. The story is brought to life with stunning animation that still impresses after all of these years. Disney Home Entertainment has delivered a 4K UHD Blu-Ray that is tremendous in the A/V department along with a substantial array of supplemental features. This is a release worth owning in any collection. Essential
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray and Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Disney Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.