The Huntsman: Winter's War

Plot synopsis:
Evil sorceress Queen Ravenna's powers allow her to know that her younger sister Freya, whose powers have not emerged, is not only engaged in an illicit affair with nobleman Andrew, but is also pregnant with his child. Sometime after Freya gives birth to a baby girl, Freya discovers that Andrew has murdered their child and, in a grief-fueled rage, Freya kills him with her sudden emergence of ice powers.
Freya abandons the kingdom and builds herself a new kingdom. Ruling as the Ice Queen, Freya orders children to be abducted so they can be trained to avoid the pain of love (as she suffered), and to be an army of fearsome huntsmen to conquer for her. Despite the training, two of her best huntsmen, Eric and Sara, grow up and fall in love, secretly marry, and plan to escape together. Freya discovers their secret and confronts them, creates a massive ice wall to separate them, then casts Eric out of her kingdom after first forcing him to watch as Sara is killed by their fellow huntsmen.
Seven years later, and after Ravenna's death, Queen Snow White falls ill after hearing Ravenna's Magic Mirror calling her. Because of its dark magic, she ordered it to be taken to Sanctuary, the magical place that sheltered Snow White during the events leading to Ravenna's death, so the mirror's magic could forever be contained. Snow White's husband, William, informs Eric that the soldiers tasked with carrying the Mirror went missing while en route to the Sanctuary. Eric realizes that he is being watched by Freya through magic. Knowing the magic of the mirror can make Freya even stronger, Eric agrees to investigate, but reluctantly allows Snow White's dwarf ally Nion and his half-brother Gryff to come along.
While travelling to the last known location of the soldiers, the trio are attacked by a group of Freya's huntsmen, but are rescued by Sara. Sara reveals that she had been imprisoned by Freya the entire time, only to escape recently. While Eric had been made to see Sara die, she had been made to see him running away rather than fighting to help her. Eric convinces her that Freya had conjured these visions, eventually gets Sara to join with him and the dwarves to thwart Freya. The quartet is ensnared in a trap set by she-dwarves Bromwyn and Doreena. They convince the she-dwarves to help them find the Mirror, and the two lead them to the goblins that guard the mirror. The party fight off the goblins and retrieve the Mirror.
As the group nears Sanctuary with the Mirror, they are ambushed by Freya and her huntsmen. Freya reveals Sara had been loyal to her all along, and Sara was using her companions to find the Mirror. In the ensuing chaos, Nion and Doreena are turned into ice statues, and Sara fires an arrow into Eric's chest on Freya's order, killing him. Freya departs with the Magic Mirror, but she is unaware that Sara intentionally missed so Eric can live. Back in her palace, Freya discovers that Ravenna had become one with the Mirror when Snow White vanquished her, and that her spirit is free thanks to Freya. Ravenna then usurps Freya's rule by ordering Freya's huntsmen to exact revenge on Snow White's kingdom, without consulting Freya.
Eric infiltrates the ice palace with help of Gryff and Bromwyn. He attempts to assassinate Freya, but is stopped by Ravenna. When Freya realizes that Sara didn't actually kill Eric, she reluctantly sentences them both to death because of Ravenna's manipulation. However, Eric is able to convince a few huntsmen to rebel, claiming the love of brethren. Ravenna begins to kill the huntsmen. Freya, realizing that her "children" are being killed, protects them with an ice wall, separating the huntsmen from the sisters. As Eric, Sara and the rebelling huntsmen climb over the wall to fight Ravenna and Freya, the two sisters argue over the icy kingdom. Freya discovers that Ravenna ultimately caused the death of Freya's child so she could remain the fairest of them all, so Freya finally turns against her sister. Freya is impaled by Ravenna, but with her remaining strength Freya freezes the Magic Mirror. Eric shatters the Mirror, thus destroying Ravenna. As Freya dies from her wounds, she smiles at the sight of a vision of her old loving self, and gladly witnesses Eric and Sara together.
With Freya's death, those who had been imprisoned by Freya's magic are set free, including Nion and Doreena, while a mysterious golden bird flies overhead.
In a post-credits scene, a tall woman in a red dress with a crown on her head (presumably Snow White) is seen from behind. The aforementioned bird flies and lands on the balcony next to her.

Tags: dark, fantasy, suspenseful, comedy, murder, paranormal, violence, flashback, good versus evil, insanity, psychedelic, romantic, tragedy, revenge

Review:
It was a fun ride with plenty of action, plenty of humour, and a great cast - Chris Hemsworth brings his usual cheery action hero to the mix, Jessica Chastain was a good addition as The Huntsman's wife, and Emily Blunt played the fragile Ice Queen wonderfully well.
Throw in Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain and you're confronted with a pretty enviable - if surprising - cast for a film of this level.The basic driving plot of the film is centred on Eric's (the previously anonymous Huntsman from the first outing) dubiously arranged quest to locate and return the powerful magic mirror, before it falls into the wrong (icy) hands.
It's not even really a full plot in this film but plot points: this happens and then this happens and then and then and so on, and it cribs from Frozen so much that it's hard to ignore.It's not that everything from the Disney movie is here, but when you start to describe what this story is about - two sisters in royalty are split apart when one of them (Emily Blunt this time as the sister to Charlize Theron's Wicked Queen) loses her son and takes over her kingdom...
Some of it's from the dialog, but a good deal of it feels improvised and when lady dwarfs get introduced into the film there's some fun stuff there as well.All the actors are here to work, and I didn't see them exactly bored during this; Blunt does her best to give her Ice Queen Freya conviction and villainy (and, later on, some sense of true confusion and betrayal), but it's hard to go up against Theron when she owns this role once again of Ravenna.
And there are even some moments, like with a creature that the characters come across to find the mirror, that isn't a terribly convincing special effect.I almost feel like I need to write this so I don't forget most of the movie in a few days; it's not *bad* in the sense of it being too stupid or too illogical (though there are certainly points where you think 'yeah, that's a bad idea to, say, make that jump and hope to connect with that building even when you know and acknowledge that it's a bad idea').
This is simply a story line that was stretched and contorted so another movie could be created with Charlize Theron as the evil queen and Chris Hemsworth as the huntsman, everything else didn't matter, the producers thought they could get some more money from the struggle between these two and the rest simply had to fit in.
It was visually stunning and had a terrific Charlize Theron, but suffered from a badly miscast Kristen Stewart, a clunky script and muddled story.'Huntsman: Winter's War' was at times enjoyable, but uneven prequel/sequel.
Again the forest beast is poorly done, only Freya is developed well, there are continuity errors meaning that the film just doesn't fit within the storytelling and time-line of 'Snow White and the Huntsman' (while it was a good idea not having Stewart's dead-weight presence in the film, the absence of Snow White- mentioned only in passing fleetingly- does leave a gaping hole in the plot) and Sam Claflin is both underused and out of place.All in all, uneven film with things that are both good and bad.
From the preposterous title (it would appear that the story occurs in springtime, and that the one battle in the film is a tiny 10-person battle in a throne room) to the absolute lack of reason, sense, or skill, this coldly-received sequel to an already flawed film (Snow White & the Huntsman) is like finding a diamond in the rough in terms of bad movies.
Almost.The movie is narrated by Liam Neeson with empty phrases like "lands to the North" and "the Good Queen built a fortress around her heart." We meet the Evil Queen from the first movie (the absurdly over-the-top Charlize Theron who is the only fun role in the film) and her sister, Elsa -- I mean Freya, a woman who's heart was broken and uses her ice powers to turn her hair white, adopt an icy wardrobe, and reign in an ice castle on top of a mountain.
I mean the battle that takes place in the last 3 minutes of the movie.In reality, the plot seems to be about the group of heroes (the Huntsman, some of the dwarfs from the first film (whoever wanted to come back, I guess), and some other female dwarfs) on the hunt for the Magic Mirror, hoping to find it before Evil Queen Freya reclaims it for herself.
From the overly-choreographed fight scenes, Lord of the Ring's-inspired mythology (which seems to be the standard for fantasy films nowadays), and the rehashing of characters both living and dead with no regard to story (how many times can Charlize Theron come back to life without absolutely flushing brain power down the toilet?), the film churns along from one predictable beat to the next, and by the time it ends it's hard to remember that there are actually decent movies made anymore.
I had low expectations about this movie, specially because I did not like the first one very much, but I got a good surprise when I watched this one.Emily Blunt and Charlize Theron did an excellent job in this film.
I imagine this alone accounts for a big difference in their box office takings.I know that in ten years from now, series like LOTR, The Hobbit, Mad Max and inter-related movies like Deadpool/Suicide Squad will still ring clear in my imagination while the most recent 4 Star Wars movies will have faded into oblivion.I will say this though, Star Wars and The Avengers are still several classes above the execrable Divergent series which gets worse with every installment and lacks a truly cool and elegant or funny lead in Shailene Woodley (a reasonable actor, but so totally miscast and out of her depth in this series) a poor support cast, and very dull story lines and dialogue.The Hunger Games is superior to the Divergent series, in all departments especially the actors and special effects, but the story etc are still tedious and the series (while entertaining) is highly over-rated particularly as the makers went into "bloated" and "OTT" mode for the closing chapters and destroyed what could have been a terrific series.
If only the series had the writers from Deadpool or the kinetic energy of Mad Max (which has its downside, but like Deadpool) has something that these other movies totally lack and that is movie magic.It is always such a shame to me that movie makers cannot step back enough from their films and look at what they are doing with a clearer vision, cannot be critical enough of their own scripts, or the greatest disease of all, falling foul of the studios/producers who do not understand what it is to make a great film, or cannot control their own agendas enough to allow the directors and their crews and cast to weave the magic that hey themselves so often lack.If nothing else, The Huntsman had humour, drama, cool effects and stunts, a basic but pleasing story and enough going for it generally to allow some movie magic to shine through to the audience.If you go to the movies once a week like we do, to be entertained by anything from a thriller, a romance, all action, supernatural, war or western or whatever, I want to leave feeling I have been entertained and that this movie has brought something cool to my life.
In her character's place, it is perhaps only natural and inevitable that Chris Hemsworth's axe-wielding hero Eric would be elevated to lead status, in order to form the narrative glue between the events of that 2012 original and this latest – and if you're wondering about Charlize Theron's evil queen Ravenna, let's just say that she plays at best a supporting role that is much less significant than the promotional materials have made her out to be.Rather than choose between a prequel and a sequel, French director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan and his writers Evan Spiliotopoulos and Craig Mazin have decided to make their live-action fairytale a bit of both, resulting in a time jump that will leave those unfamiliar with the earlier film more than a little confused.
It is perhaps no coincidence given 'Frozen's' box-office success that Freya develops icy-related powers in her post-traumatic process, transforming into the Ice Queen who goes about establishing her kingdom of ruthless killers by kidnapping kids and training them to be warriors she calls huntsmen.Two of her best warriors happen to be Eric (played in his teenage years by Conrad Khan) and the flame-haired Sara (Niamh Walter; then Jessica Chastain), who defy Freya's commandment not to love by doing just that with each other.
The film stars Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Nick Frost and Sam Claflin reprising their roles, who are joined by Emily Blunt, Rob Brydon and Jessica Chastain.
And the great Colleen Atwood returned as well, both Charlize Theron and Emily Blunt look so ravishing in those head-turning, captivating dresses, Atwood was going for lavish and extravagant but also they also exude authority.I think THE HUNTSMAN: WINTER'S WAR is a more interesting story because this time around, it's no longer about, 'look, we can make normal-sized people appear dwarf-like' so the attention isn't on that anymore, and I appreciate that the whole themes of betrayal and love stay true from start to finish, they don't evolve into something they're not or some unnecessary colossal war.
I saw the first part and liked Charlize Theron as Ravenna and Chris Hemsworth as Huntsman Eric, but overall I was not too impressed by it.This prequel/sequel takes what I liked about the first film and removed most of what I disliked to make a decent if not particularly special fantasy action adventure.We learn about the Huntsman's background and his wife, Sarah, who was mentioned in the first film.
Charlize Theron is also at her seductive best, reprising her role as the evil Ravenna and she continues to be absolutely stunning in this franchise.New additions to the story include Eric's love interest Sara, played by Jessica Chastain and Ravenna's icy sister Freya enters the story as well, played by the diverse and always beautiful Emily Blunt.
It even included some comic relief, with the naturally hilarious Rob Brydon and Nick Frost playing two dwarfs who help Eric along on his journey to retrieve the stolen magic mirror (at the request of Snow White's Prince Charming himself, William, played by Sam Claflin).This film delivered as being a darker, more adult version of Disney's Frozen and apart from it being a little cheesy at times and slightly predictable, it was an enjoyable popcorn movie where, aside from (or possibly because of) a few obvious plot twists, delivers exactly what you'd expect.motherofpopcorn.wordpress.com.
(A note to parents: There's a lot more boning here than you'd expect from a fairy tale-sourced story, and though the film cuts around the nudie bits, you should prepare yourself for a post-movie conversation about what consenting adults do when their clothes come off.) Tagging in for Rupert Sanders, first-time director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan was previously nominated for an Oscar for his work as visual effects supervisor on Snow White and the Huntsman, and justifiably so: The effects work was outstanding.
The actors are all game, but the job's beneath them – Hemsworth, a pro, and a real champ at faking enthusiasm for this dud; Theron, still doing camp but this time with no tempering complexity or empathy; Blunt, stuck playing a frost-bitten Mommie Dearest; and the digitally diminished "dwarfs," who get the best laughs with their bickering but suffer repeated jokes confusing dwarfs with children – a tin-eared running gag from scripters Evan Spiliotopoulos and Craig Mazin, considering the already-dubious decision (carried over from the first film) to not cast actual little people in the roles."Predictable" is maybe a weird complaint to throw at a modernized fairy tale, the very nature of which is to traffic in well-worn tropes.
A sequel to Snow White and The Huntsman a film that I enjoyed, although I missed Kirsten Stewart Jessica Chastain, Emily Blunt and the always fantastic Charlize Theron more than make up for her loss.Hemsworth (awful Scottish accent aside) continues to make a great hero in this sword and sorcery romp through fairy-tale lands, there's comedy relief from Rob Brydon and Nick Frost reprising their roles as two of the 7 dwarfs ably supported by an absolutely fantastic Sheridan Smith.The CGI was passable and the story drives along at a fair old lick, there's action, romance, a capable hero, his equally able female partner, deliciously evil queens and scary monsters, what more could you want from a fantasy film..?.
The Huntsman is a confusing, dull, flat film which obviously tries to emulate Frozen but comes across as a mess.We have Ravanna (Charlize Theron) and her sister Freya the Ice Queen (Emily Blunt) who is betrayed by Ravenna as she had Freya's baby killed as she would grow up to be the fairest of them all.Freya's heart goes cold and she uses children to train in her army including the Eric the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) who grows up to fall in love with Sara (Jessica Chastain) but love is forbidden in the kingdom of the Ice Queen and tragedy befalls.
Some years later the Huntsman has to retrieve the magic mirror with the help of some dwarfs but Freya is also on the scent.The comedy is unfunny, the action is mundane but at least the special effects are good but this is a poorly realised movie and an unnecessary follow up to the Snow White film..
the visuals were stunning, the whole way thru i was thinking this is a great lord of the ring substitute, or game of thrones.critics complained about the usual, lack of story, characterization, they were obviously busy with minds elsewhere while the movie was on, they may actually have seen the complex intriguing plots and subplots on show here about betrayal and love and hope above all else.charlize stole the show again playing the she bitch and she was DA bomb, love her, best part of the last one i can remember.
If you haven't seen Snow White and The Huntsman, I suggest you do because some plot points and character interactions may go over your head.Now for the movie itself, overall it is 100% a love story.
Some of the subject matter deserved a bigger world but like I said, it's a love story FIRST and everything else afterward.Charlize Theron didn't get as much screen time as I had hoped because she was soooooo good in the first one but I was okay with that.All the visuals in this movie are beautiful.
The plot is a bit more of a fantasy romance with some action in it, but Jessica Chastain and Chris Hemsworth give their characters some life so that you do want to see them succeed by the time the movie is over.
Chris Hemsworth reprises his huntsman role and is joined as one by a feisty Jessica Chastain in a story that is both prequel and sequel to Snow White, beginning afore and then skipping seven years when Emily Blunt's Frozen cash-in frost- queen goes ice-sh*t because of some pretty disturbing infanticide.
Chris Hemsworth returns as Eric, the Huntsman, and the movie follows his journey as a young boy, who eventually falls for Sara (Jessica Chastain) whilst living in Queen Freya's (Emily Blunt) palace.
He hasn't directed any other movies but he has supplied the visual effects for the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, the Ring, One Hour Photo and the Weather Man. I was expecting more from this sequel and I don't know were they can go with this franchise after this movie but I still enjoyed it.Budget: $115million Worldwide Gross: $165millionI recommend this movie to people who are into their action/adventure/dramas, starring Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain, Nick Frost, Rob Brydon and narrated by Liam Neeson.
The only interpretation that I liked from this movie was Emily Blunt's who played as Ice Queen / Queen Freya and she was very good at it.Finally, I believe that "The Huntsman: Winter's War" is another average movie which either you watch it or not it will be the same.
The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016): Snow White and The Huntsman is one of the worse adaptation of classic fairy tale with bad cast of Kristen Stewart as Snow White.That movie is entire rubbish except good visuals and striking performance of Charlize Theron as Ravenna,the evil queen.But who would expect as sequel for that film.But surprisingly they made it and expectations were raised with entry of Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain.Forget Chris Hemsworth..I expected a lot from the trio female superstars of Hollywood.But unfortunately it didn't happen..:-(Plot:Frozen with evil touch + Huntsman=Huntsman Winter's War.Plus Points:1)VFX: This movie has brilliant visuals and sets.Now a days even a B grade Hollywood movie are having decent visuals.So nothing special when compared to Huntsman's huge budget.2)Casting: Well I am informing that this only helped to raise expectations.Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain,both really made me to watch this movie and don't forget the star of the movie Charlize Theron.Even though this movie has limited screen presence of her,she dominated the screen.Minus Points:1)Story and Screenplay: Well this movie may be liked by kids but to adults,its just so cliché ridden fairy tale with entirely unused potential of great actors.So,The Huntsman :Winter's War has good visuals but a huge disappointment even with its stellar cast.Entirely misused opportunity.My rating 5.5/10.
After seeing and reviewing well over 500 movies in the past few years alone, keeping all this straight is a bit challenging but I'll do my best to hold it together long enough to give you my original, fair and open-minded review of the 2016 prequel-sequel "The Huntsman: Winter's War".The film begins with the story of how the beautiful but evil queen Ravenna (Charlize Theron) used her (unexplained) evil powers to rise to evil power.