Gretel & Hansel Review (Film, 2020)
Gretel & Hansel is a horror spin on the “Hansel & Gretel” fairy tale. A pestilence has destroyed the farmlands, leaving Gretel and Hansel’s family in ruins. They are turned out to fend for themselves in the forest. They struggle to find anyone to trust or anything to eat. The dangers posed by the forest are only matched by the dangers posed by desperate adults willing to do anything to survive.
The focus of the film is aesthetics. These are beautifully crafted, haunting images of isolation and suffering. Every frame is planned out. The use of space, in particular, is effective. There is no comfort even in a fire, a meal, or family.
Color is particularly important. Shades of red or pink signify the central figures of a fairy tale. The film opens with the story of the girl in the pink bonnet. She is a tragic hero turned villain due to the misplaced expectations of the world upon girls. Her father brings her to a witch to cure her of an illness in infancy. In exchange, the girl is given tremendous magical powers and a strong sense of justice. Anyone who asks for her help has to pay, and the only acceptable payment is life itself.
Gretel and Hansel wear a faded red ribbon and cap, respectively. They are the children turned out of their only home to ensure the survival of their widowed mother. Throughout the film, they have to make choices to survive. They face monsters and demons in fairy tale and societal structures and have to rely on their own wits to survive.
The biggest issues with Gretel & Hansel is the reliance on narration. It’s beautifully performed and well written. It’s just an oversimplification of what is happening in the story. It’s meant to reflect reading a book of fairy tales, but it winds up narrowing the scope and intention of the film too much. It’s an act of misdirection that leaves you utterly unprepared for the greater themes and narrative structures that define the film.
Everything picks up when the film finally hits the source material in a meaningful way. The retelling of two children lured into a deadly house by the promise of sweets is excellent. The witch is undoubtedly capable of bad things, but she is the first person they encounter in their lives who is able to care for herself and others with open arms. There are no strings to her offer of food and shelter, no forced labor agreement or demand that children be adults far too young.
Gretel herself offers her services as a housekeeper to repay their debt. The old woman teaches them her survival skills and they’re eager to learn. Knowing the source story, we know what her actual motivation is, but at least she is capable of showing kindness without immediate demand for repayment.
A film like Gretel & Hansel is only as effective as your acceptance of its storytelling conceits. It’s technically well-made and makes great use of light and color for theme and tone. I think it’s a beautiful film with a great style, but the scares will only work if you buy into its approach to horror. It’s all disorientation and rebuilding the world right in front of you.
Gretel & Hansel is streaming on Hulu.
