User reviews

Adolph Zukor's company Famous Players in Famous Plays, despite releasing some stagy early feature-length films (e.g. "Queen Elizabeth" (1912) and "The Count of Monte Cristo" (1913)), managed to sign two actresses who become two of the most popular movie stars, Mary Pickford and, the star of "Snow White", Marguerite Clark. Clark had already been a hit on Broadway, including playing the title role in the 1912 theatrical version of "Snow White", for which this film is based. In just her first film, Clark's performance in "Wildflower" (1914) was voted by fans for Motion Picture Magazine the second greatest performance to date by 1916--right above Henry B. Walthall's third place role in "The Birth of a Nation" (1915). As further evidence of her fame, Clark was voted the second most popular movie star in a 1918 Motion Picture Magazine poll, below only Mary Pickford. A Princeton poll in 1919 placed her third among screen actresses. And, she was voted the top female box-office draw by a 1920 Quigley poll.

The filmed "Snow White" is comparable in film technique to another available Famous Plays production, "Cinderella" (1914), which starred Mary Pickford (also to Pickford's "The Taming of the Shrew" (1914), although the print of it that I saw wasn't in the good condition these other two films are in). The camera generally remains stationary as in the earliest feature-length films and mostly from a long-shot framing, but the shot succession is more frequent and better paced in these later films—changing shots based on character movement and with some crosscutting—and there are a few medium shots and closer views, although not nearly enough. "Snow White" seems choppy in parts today, but that's at least partially due to some lost footage.

Although rather stagy even for a 1916 production, "Snow White" is a somewhat enjoyable, light fairytale. As mentioned elsewhere, it borrows from "Cinderella" the part of Snow White forced to do chores by her stepmother. It's also interesting to see Walt Disney's inspiration for his 1937 animated version. The dwarfs are amusing. Additionally, Snow White is friendly with animals in the forests. I don't know how a lion got to a woodland in what one assumes is somewhere in medieval Europe, though. There are a few special effects shots, including the basic superimpositions and substitution-splices for lapse dissolves, as well as a brief animation shot of the witch flying away on her broom, and the miniaturized double exposure of the actors in the introductory tie-in of the film's release with Christmas. Clark does as well as Mary Pickford did; and, unlike the film, she isn't too theatrical. Like Pickford, she was small and often played child and ingénue roles. Unfortunately, most of her films are now unavailable, which makes "Snow White" an even more recommended treat.

Adapted by Winthrop Ames from his own 1912 Broadway adaptation of the tale published exactly a hundred years earlier by the Brothers Grimm, 'Snow White' was one of Adolph Zukor's Famous Players productions, the Famous Player on this occasion being Marguerite Clark in the role she had created on stage. Aged 33 when the film version was made but easily passing for a girl half her real age, Miss Clark is surrounded by a handsome if stagy production, lushly photographed by H. Lyman Broening, who when called upon also conjures up more spooky visuals for scenes such as down in the dwarfs' mine and - most vividly - the witch's lair; both of which can be recognised in the 1937 version produced by Walt Disney, who saw this as a 15 year-old. In this version, the witch and the wicked stepmother are separate characters; the former played for laughs by Alice Washburn, with Dorothy Cumming as the latter resembling Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth in John Singer Sargent's famous 1889 portrait.

You can see this and other rare vintage films on the "Treasures from American Film Archives" DVD. This is a feature film, about 60 minutes, long. The highlights for me were the seven dwarves and the wicked witch. The film jumps around a little bit but is well worth seeing.

"Lost" movies are truly the stuff that dreams are made of. So many were destroyed simply on whims of studios because the movies were too old to make any more money or who wanted to make room in their vaults. In retrospect we now know that many real treasures were lost and that is why finding a film presumed lost is such a reason to rejoice. Just recently the 10 reel LOST WORLD (1925) was found and so were uncut prints of THE GHOUL (1933), ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (1930), the original 1925 print of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, and the jewel in the crown, the 1910 Edison FRANKENSTEIN. And that brings me to the film I am here to-night to talk about, the 1916 SNOW WHITE. It was the time of the child-woman, the waif-girl. Audiences did not want their illusions shattered and once an actress turned in a convincing performance in a juvenile role she was typecast in the eyes of the ticket buying public. That is why you could find 32 year old Mary Pickford playing a 16 year old orphan in SPARROWS and why 23 year old Mary Miles Minter played sweet, blushing virgins until her involvement in the William Desmond Taylor murder case shot her career down in flames. Mabel Normand was always the funny tomboy and Dorothy Dwan was sweet and winsome. Marguerite Clark was 34 when she played the teen-something heroine in this classic fairy tale. Luckily the camera loved her and her age is not at all obvious. Sticking pretty close to the Grimm fairy tale Snow White is a true princess here but must work as a scullery maid thanks to her jealous stepmother, the queen. Everyone in the castle treats Snow like the royalty she really is even though she looks like a ragamuffin. When by accident she meets up with handsome Prince Florimond (Creighton Hale, who would go on the play the comic hero in THE CAT AND THE CANARY(1927)) and he falls in love with her not realising who she is it incites the queen to demand Snow's life, thus setting in motion the story we all know so well. The Hollywood movie industry was still in its infancy in 1916 so one must wonder out loud where they found 7 midgets (and in truth most of them ARE midgets, not dwarves) to play the 7 Dwarves. Then again finding 7 was probably a cinch compared to the even dozen who appeared in the 1914 RIP VAN WINKLE and that was shot in upstate New York! With a running time of just over an hour this is a film that is a must see for film students and people who just love silent movies. Now if someone could just find A BLIND BARGAIN and LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT. Well . . .we can dream, can't we?

This film was a pretty good production for 1916, as the sets were pretty good as were the special effects. It is far less stagy than the 1910 version of THE WIZARD OF OZ, but doesn't even come close to the magic and perfection of PETER PAN (1924). And for whimsy and creativity, it lags well behind the earlier films by Méliès (such as LE VOYAGE DANS LE LUNE). So, for a silent fantasy film, it seems about average, though I have to admit that I fell asleep several times while watching the film. Sure, I was a bit tired, but this also says a lot about the film.

This version of SNOW WHITE is awfully different from the familiar Disney story. Unlike the 1938 Disney classic, the evil step-mother is NOT a witch--the witch is a separate person who helps the step-mother. There are many other little differences as well, but probably aren't worth discussing. Additionally, more energy and focus is on the events that preceded Snow White's going to live with the seven dwarfs in this earlier film.

Although this film is excellent for lovers of silent cinema and film historians, I doubt that most adults or kids today would be impressed by this film. It's an interesting curio and that's about all.

The 1916 SNOW WHITE is undoubtedly one of the most important movies in the history of fantasy pictures. Without it, we would have no Disney SNOW WHITE, and without a Disney SNOW WHITE, the 1939 WIZARD OF OZ would have never been greenlit, along with many other great fantasy films we have enjoyed in the subsequent years. Regardless of this significance, the 1916 SNOW WHITE is not necessarily a classic in its own right,

The positives first though: Marguerite Clark is an exuberant lead, channeling both the princess's innocence and her burgeoning romantic yearning for the prince. The aesthetics of the film are charming in a classic storybook mode, filled with the usual anachronisms you'll find in the world of fairy tales. I also thought the other actors were game with their performances, especially Dorothy Cummings as the vain, scheming queen.

My main issue with this version is the storytelling. So much time is wasted on uninteresting court politics or the Huntsman's cuddly little kids. The dramatic moments lack urgency: when Snow White learns the Huntsman plans to kill her, she basically laughs it off. There is nothing like suspense at all, even as the story builds to its climax. It makes a striking contrast with the Disney adaptation, which, despite its sentimental nature and cheerful songs, undoubtedly had narrative urgency and moments of pure terror that made the happy ending feel earned.

Another problem is the direction, which is flat and static even by 1910s standards. You never really feel transported into another world like you do with, say, Douglas Fairbanks' THE THIEF OF BAGDAD from a few years later. The few moments of interesting staging, such as a close-up of Snow White peeking into the dwarves' cottage through the window (later aped for the Disney movie), throw the overall flatness into even greater relief.

Still, regardless of how this movie plays today, it inspired young Walt Disney to the point where he still treasured the memory of it into his thirties. And for silent film enthusiasts, the survival of this movie is still a great blessing, not just because of the film's historical significance, but because it gives us a glimpse of the otherwise elusive Marguerite Clark, who has so little work surviving.

The 1916 film of "Snow White" is a screen adaptation of the 1912 Broadway play, written by Jessie Braham White. It tells the familiar tale of the "Stepmother from Hell" and the princess with "skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood and hair as black as night". It was thought to have been lost, until the George Eastman House located a print in a Danish film vault.....and the film world is so lucky they did!

Marguerite Clark recreates her Broadway role as "Snow White", and must have been born to play this faerie tale heroine!!! She is the epitome of this character!!!! I only wish that I was alive in 1912 to see her do the role live on stage.

Creighton Hale (The Cat and the Canary) is dashing as Prince Florimond, Snow White's love interest. It is a thankless role, but he manages to shine.

Dorothy Cumming is the vain "Queen Brangomar", Snow White's nemisis. It's ironic that years later she would play the "Virgin Mary" in "King of Kings".....quite a turn around!!!

The rest of the cast handles their roles equally as well as the above mentioned......including Lionel Braham (A Christmas Carol) as "Berthold the Huntsman", and Alice Washburn as "Witch Hex".

Hollywood folklore says that this is the film that inspired Walt Disney to create his animated classic. The similarities between the two are amazing! In the opening of the 1916 film, Snow White is a kitchen maid, going about her daily duties.....very much like Disney's heroine scrubbing the castle steps and crooning to doves. A little brown bird shows Snow White the way to the dwarfs' cottage....just like the animated animals did for her in the cartoon. She also cleans up the cottage, in both versions, before the dwarfs come home, and then falls asleep.

I highly recommend seeking out a copy of this film!!!!

It being Christmas, Santa Claus enters (stage left) through the chimney, magically makes a decorated tree appear (begging the question, "Why didn't this household already have one?"); then, he deposits a set of theatrical dolls on a nearby table. They come to life and play-out the story of "Snow White (and the Seven Dwarfs)"…

Our heroine's beautiful queen mother bears a little princess "with skin white as snow, lips red as blood, and hair black as ebony." She grows into the fairest Marguerite Clark (as Snow White). This rattles jealously wicked Dorothy Cumming (as Brangomar), who wants to be the most beautiful woman in town. She goes to bald-headed Alice Washburn (as Witch Hex), who grants Ms. Cumming both loveliness and a truth-telling "Magic Mirror"; in return, the Witch demands that, "in the future, she would receive the heart of Snow White." Mr. Washburn plans to use Clark's heart as a hair-growing tonic.

Within a year, Ms. Clark's mother dies. The newly-lovely Cumming marries the king just before he dies, then turns Clark into a "Cinderella"-like servant. Of course, this doesn't stop visiting prince Creighton Hale (as Florimond) from falling in love with Clark. Wicked Queen Cumming is upset that handsome Mr. Hale didn't propose to her, despite his being much younger; Cumming tells Hale she will allow him to wed Clark, after the Princess spends a year in boarding school. Actually, Cumming sends Clark on a wild goose chase, and orders huntsman Lionel Braham (as Berthold) to go rip out her heart!

This is the thoroughly charming original film version of Clark's beloved stage play "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1912) which was, as you'll see, the blueprint for Walt Disney's famous 1937 version. Mr. Disney saw this as a teenager, and was obviously enchanted. By 1916, Clark was rivaling Mary Pickford in popularity, and challenging her for highly-sought Christmas box office receipts. All this, despite the fact that Clark a decade older, and didn't like making movies. Still, she is the fairest "Snow White" of all, and hopefully more of her films will be found (like "Wildflower" and "Prunella").

For modern viewers, an initial weakness will be the film's certain staginess - but, director J. Searle Dawley and Paramount's "Famous Players" did not seek to simply film a stage play. Witness the editing, variety of shots, and constant movement of the performers on screen. Some good examples are Clark's walking down the center of the screen, after meeting Hale; and, her discovery of the Dwarf cottage in the woods. "Snow White" compensates for the fact that the screen, unlike the live stage, is flat. This is not the style of film-making which became standard, but it is an example of how to make it lively.

******** Snow White (12/25/16) J. Searle Dawley ~ Marguerite Clark, Creighton Hale, Dorothy Cumming, Lionel Braham

The highlight of this version of "Snow White" is the lively performance by Marguerite Clark, who fits into the role very well and shows why she was so popular in her time. Overall, the movie is a pleasant, old-fashioned telling of the story, with a stage-like technique but some pretty good production values for the mid-1910s.

At one time, Clark was as popular as any other actress of her day, but almost all of her movies have since been lost. Even this movie is still missing some material at various points, although the reconstruction in the Treasures From American Film Archives collection is very nicely done, and makes it fit together as well as it possibly could have.

Even when compared with the other great actresses of her day, Clark works very well in the role of a young girl. Her small stature certainly helps, but her actions and mannerisms are also very believable. For the story to work, "Snow White" has to be extremely sympathetic and engaging, and Clark is able to do that quite well.

The story stays fairly close to the Grimm Brothers' original, though downplaying or eliminating some of its more violent aspects. Most of the supporting characters are one- dimensional, but the cast members do a solid job with them. Without Clark, it would have been a decent movie anyway, though probably of interest only to those who are devoted fans of silent movies. Clark's performance makes it pretty good, and well worth seeing.

"Snow White", directed in the far away year 1916 by Herr J. Searle Dawley, is a beautiful film adaptation of the classic Grimm fairy tale.This film was considered long lost but fortunately a copy was found in the"Filmmuseum", a kind of Dutch film archives where the nitrates are not very well arranged, certainly nothing like this German aristocrat's film archives where the films are perfectly organized and classified in a German way, so in this way no film is lost, including Herr Stroheim's "Greed" (in its 9 hours complete version… ). Anyway, thanks to the good luck of finding this lost silent film, every silent film fan can now appreciate Herr Searle's talent.

"Snow White" ( this German count doesn't think it necessary to relate this well-know story about beauty competitions in the Middle Ages ), as this aristocrat said before, is a visually lovely film in which the art direction and the sets are absolutely outstanding, not to mention the make-up, some charming special effects and even a little animated sequence. As it happens with some remarkable early silent film versions of fairy tales, there is a remarkable concern to depict and recreate in detail the magical atmosphere of those original stories on the screen and this one is a perfect recreation of the tale. It must said though that in those classic film productions, there is not usually a trace of transgression or boldness ( which is scarcely necessary most of the time since the original stories are full of cruelty ),and they are conservative and polite adaptations intended to be harmless and wholesome entertainment for families around the world. "Snow White" starred Dame Marguerite Clark, an important film star in the teens, and she plays her pure and chaste role very well, and the rest of the cast is equally good, all perfect for an early film that doesn't suffer with the passage of time.

And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count has an appointment with the evil Queen.

Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/

Supposedly this what got Disney's mind oriented toward cartoon versions of well known "fairy tales."

But we can hardly blame it for the patronizing travesty he has performed on children's literature. The story here is a bit Bolwderized (some sex, and much cruelty have been removed from the traditional version). But it is still complex and has lots of side stories, like how she disguises herself as one of her maids in waiting. And how the stepmother tried a comb first, before the apple.

The structure of the play on which this is based is supposedly influenced by the revival of Macbeth then current in London, where the Shakespeare story is explained as controlled by the three witches. Here it is almost as if the witch were responsible for the Faustian deal the ugly stepmother makes.

This film was conceived as a direct result of the amazing popularity of "Birth of a Nation," perhaps the most influential film in history. That's because Birth cemented the notion that movies are like plays — not an entirely predetermined outcome. This was the first big budget play to be movie-ized afterward.

The film is in bad condition, so you have to imagine which cuts were original and which are because of missing segments. I prefer to imagine most of the jumps as missing material because the thing moves so languorously in what we see. For instance, there's a clearly drawn Queen's Toady who we spend many minutes watching in pompous walk.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

Snow White (1916)

*** (out of 4)

Early version of the classic Grimm fairytale has the wicked Queen (Dorothy Cumming) ordering Berthold (Lionel Braham) to kill Snow White (Marguerite Clark) but he lets the future Princess in on the plan. He orders her to stay away and she finds shelter with the seven dwarfs but when the Queen finds out what has happened she goes out for revenge. According to legend, Walt Disney remembered seeing this film when it played his hometown and it left such an impression on him that he decided to make it his first feature. Seeing this film today it's easy to see why it was such a hit back in the day even though it's doubtful many kids of today would bother sitting through it. It's also interesting to note that the now forgotten Clark was 33-years-old when she played this role, which meant she was doing the same type of thing that Mary Pickford was doing, which was an adult playing children. I must admit that this was the first time I had seen anything from Clark and she was quite impressive. I didn't even realize she was as old as she was until I read the liner notes for the film and I was shocked to see the age. She did a remarkable job at pulling off this child role and not for a second did you not believe anything she was doing. I thought she did a fine job at capturing the spirit of the role, which was certainly the most important thing. Cumming was also very good in the role of the Queen and Braham also stood out as a likable character and performance. I think most people will be put off by the first ten or so minutes as these are clearly the weakest in the film. I thought it took a bit too long for things to really get going but once they hit the dwarfs house things really started to fly. The "look" they gave the dwarfs was another interesting thing. Elements of the Cinderella tale are thrown in and those just familiar with the Disney version are certainly going to notice a few differences. It's doubtful modern audiences will enjoy this but those who enjoy silent cinema should get a kicked out of it. It's certainly far from perfect but the 63-minute running time goes by quite fast and makes for some good entertainment.