The ladies of the moviegoing public are delivered a multipack of fairytale delights, care of this week’s major offering The Huntsman: Winter’s War. While there’s more than enough dwarf ‘n sword action for the guys, the prequel is notable for featuring a raft of great actresses.
Emily Blunt, Jessica Chastain, Sheridan Smith and the returning Charlize Theron fill the bill. And while male attendees won’t exactly be complaining about that, the rippling Chris Hemsworth is very much front and centre for the girls (and indeed guys) who fancy him more than a juicy apple from the Wicked Queen’s local greengrocer.
As it’s one of those rare occasions where women lead the blockbuster charge, let’s celebrate some of the most memorable female fantasy characters who worked their magic on the big and small screens. “Mirror mirror on the wall… I’m sorry I haven’t cleaned you for a few weeks but I need a favour. Who are the best kick ass queens of all…?”
SNOW QUEEN – Bridget Fonda
We sadly don’t hear much from Bridget Fonda these days. But her last performance was as the title character in this 2002 Hallmark Entertainment miniseries, an adaptation of the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale.
Verging on the bizarre at times (unusual for Hallmark and its telemovie fare), the plot involved Fonda’s attempts to make Winter the only season and encompassed such perennial elements as turbulent romance and talking polar bears!
Snow Queen was an original interpretation of the source story and now Andersen’s mythic creation has been resurrected for Winter’s War, this time in the shape of Emily Blunt.
RED SONJA – Brigitte Nielsen
Legendary muscleman Arnold Schwarzenegger had ploughed a mighty furrow in the Conan The Barbarian movies, so it stood to reason that a similar franchise might be found in another Marvel Comics character, Red Sonja (created by Robert E. Howard and Roy Thomas).
Brigitte Nielsen made her movie debut as the scantily-clad blade-wielder. Set within the Conan universe, it followed the heroine’s quest to destroy a deadly Talisman and generally knock some sense into the male population. Schwarzenegger appeared as a different character.
While the end result didn’t exactly nail its feminist colours to the mast, the film stands out today for its sheer novelty value, and as a fantasy flick that doesn’t rely on pectorals and testosterone to drive the action forward.
ARTEMISIA – Eva Green
Comic scribe Frank Miller had some fun bringing historical events to hysterical life in 300, with his Peruvian Wars saga being turned into a highly-stylized movie. More carnage ensued in 2014’s Rise Of An Empire.
Making sure the conflicts in Artemisium and Salamis were sufficiently bloodthirsty was Eva Green as the formidable commander Artemisia, who manipulated Rodrigo Santoro‘s Xerxes into opening old wounds and settling scores with Greece.
Her appalling treatment at the hands of her own people led her to become a dark angel of vengeance. In Miller’s world everyone is a bastard, which gave Green free rein to go medieval (well, Ancient Persian) on the butts of her opponents.
QUEEN MAB – Miranda Richardson
The second Hallmark entry on our list is the classic miniseries Merlin from 1998, starring Sam Neill as the wizard. He faced off against Miranda Richardson, who played Queen Mab, a creation boldly parachuted into the Arthurian mythos from Romeo and Juliet.
Mab was the mystical and twisted sister of the Lady Of The Lake. She brought Merlin into being in a bid to restore the ways of magic, which were in danger of being obliterated by the rise of Christianity.
Being the versatile performer she is, Richardson took on both the villainess and her ethereal sibling. The production became one of the most effective of the pre-Game of Thrones era.
MALEFICENT – Angelina Jolie
A striking addition to the roster of fairy tale females was Angelina Jolie, who horned up as the epitome of a Disney witch in 2014’s Maleficent, a wicked take on animated favourite Sleeping Beauty.
With the enemy now the focal point of the story, it fell to Linda Woolverton to adapt the narrative (derived from Charles Perrault‘s story) to fit Jolie’s talents. Maleficent turned from black-hatted hiss target to broken-hearted tragedienne who had her wings amputated by her darkly ambitious former lover.
The House of Mouse has mined its back catalogue for live action resurrection, and this entry really cast a spell on the box office. Jolie doesn’t often get it right as a Hollywood star, but this was a wise, high profile choice for her.
RAVENNA & FREYA – Charlize Theron & Emily Blunt
Tinseltown is putting its faith in fantasy once again for our latest release, a star-studded, storm-weathering chronicle of family rivalry on an titanic scale. The movie’s called The Huntsman, but the subtitle is key: Winter’s War.
Just as Chris Hemsworth‘s chiselled warrior shared top billing with Kristen Stewart‘s Snow White in his first outing, so he now makes room for an impressive line up of actresses – chiefly Charlize Theron as Ravenna, the mirror-consulting mistress of malevolence, who has competition in the shape of her own sister Freya (Emily Blunt).
Having been transformed into a frosty force of nature, Freya has raised an army of hunters (including Hemsworth and Jessica Chastain as Eric and Sara), who she ruthlessly manipulates. The stage is set for the Huntspeople to go rogue. Meanwhile a final battle between Ravenna and Freya draws ever closer.
If you’re in the mood for a sprinkling of fairy dust on your popcorn, the Grimm/Andersen-inspired mash up is out in cinemas now. It also stars Nick Frost, Sam Claflin, Rob Brydon and Sheridan Smith. Read our review here.
