“The Twelve Brothers” by Steve Mulvey
A short adaptation of The Twelve Brothers that focuses on the threat of death to the princes and their determination to murder the next female that crosses their path in retribution for it.
“The Twelve Brothers” by Dmitry Dryer
This is a silent short film that retells the fairy tale The Twelve Brothers in a very creepy but confusing way. The story takes place in a science fiction future in a kingdom of robots and seems to stop not long after the siblings are reunited.
The Real Housewives of Disney
Probably the best spot from Saturday Night Live last night was their spoof on Real Housewives reality shows with a Disney rift (with LiLo as Rapunzel who just escaped the tower, natch). These fairy tales are such a ubiquitous part of our culture that the princess in-jokes could effortlessly be reduced to a series of one line zingers even if they were largely in poor taste.
An ad spot for The Guardian takes the fairy tale The Three Little Pigs and shows how it would play out in the 21st century with the main stream media descending, news pundits putting in their two cents, digital recreations of the crime scene being created alongside conspiracy theories, and of course people from all over the world tweeting and voting and commenting on it via social media. The result is a fascinating view into how our culture devours news stories (in a wolf like manner) and uses those same stories to mirror ourselves (like a vain evil queen) as we personalize and internalize these issues. The climax is viewing this news coverage as a call to arms to protect out own (like valiant princes everywhere) and by extension ourselves. How the happily ever after eventually comes about has yet to be seen.
Many films have lifted the veil on fairy tale fantasies, revealing the depraved, pitch-black narratives hiding in literature’s fabled legends. One flip through the storybook confirms that our childhood fantasies were a treasure trove of primal fears and sexual anxiety. Coming-of-age nightmares, patriarchal distress, and feminine paranoia are just a few of the Grimm-inspired subjects that Hollywood has explored in its retelling of these mythic stories. Click through for a look at ten films that put a dark twist on our favorite fairy tales.
Betty Boop in “Poor Cinderella” from 1934.
The perils of basing your true love on the size of a shoe.
The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats by Brothers Grimm
