Mirror, Mirror Movie Review
Enchanting.
That word describes how I feel about the visual feast that is Mirror, Mirror, starring Oscar®-winner Julia Roberts, Lily Collins (The Blind Side), and Armie Hammer (The Social Network).
The fairy tale trend is holding strong, and since I am a fan of all things fantasy, this bodes well for my entertainment options. Mirror, Mirror begins with narration from the perspective of the evil queen, and ends with her, (spoiler alert) demise. I know. It’s shocking.
Mirror, Mirror is a film where you can take the whole family. The advantage of this movie is that if you want to focus on the fun, and fantasy, you can. If you want to delve into the deeper topics of beauty, power, confidence, and truth, with your family, you can do that as well.
My only quibble, as an adult viewer, is that I felt like the writers, (screenplay by Marc Klein, Jason Keller, and Melisa Wallack) could have done more. Gone deeper, expanded ideas, and perhaps added more substance. There are comedic elements that could very easily have come off weak, or implausible, but I have to give credit to the actors in this film. They committed to their parts, and instead, they just made me giggle.
The only caution I have is for those kids who are easily frightened. I have a five-year-old who simply doesn’t like any movie with a “bad guy.” In Mirror, Mirror we have an evil queen, and a monster who frightens the villagers. I’m prepared to pull my daughter onto my lap and cuddle her tight, as she will likely be nervous.
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I’m excited for my girls to see the scene where the evil queen receives her unconventional beauty treatments. Bird poop, insects, and who knows what else? Listening to Julia Roberts’ infectious laugh as she goes through the horrific spa day made me laugh too.
Part of the genius of casting Julia Roberts as the evil queen, is how effortlessly she can move between that well-known, irresistible laugh that is her trademark, to cold, calculating baddie. There are some darker moments that embody the twisted mind of the evil queen, which are magnificently creepy.
Lily Collins plays Snow White just right. From the naive innocent, self-conscious princess at the beginning of the move, to a strong, confident, shining star of the court at the end. Stick around for the colorful, happy Bollywood number at the end.
Let me be honest. Armie Hammer is just so good to gaze at. He is quite simply, charming. Like the evil queen, I find I empathize with her entirely when he is shirtless. Aside from that, he showed his acting prowess in The Social Network, and brings those skills to Mirror, Mirror.
I must comment on the lush, mesmerizing costumes created by the late, great, Oscar-winner Eiko Ishioka (Immortals, Dracula). The colors she chose are all ones I would wish to find in my own closet. The vibrant shades used throughout the movie in both Ishioka’s costume design and set-design by Tom Foden, took my breath away.
Mirror, Mirror opens in theaters today.
So the real question is, are you the fairest of them all?
Cheers!
Mirror, Mirror press day, film images, and screening courtesy of Relativity Media. All opinions are my own.
