Summaries

A twist on the Snow White fairy tale that is set in 1920s Seville and centered on a female bullfighter.

A band of bullfighting dwarfs save the life of a young woman with amnesia. They end up taking her under their wing when they find out that she has seemingly natural skills as a bullfighter, upon which they can capitalize not only for their act but for her own personal gain. As she does not know her name or background, the dwarfs coin her Blancanieves, after the famed fairy tale. What they are all unaware of is that she is really Carmen, the daughter of the once great matador, Antonio Villalta. On the day Carmen was born, her father suffered a career ending accident, and her mother died in childbirth. Her father quickly remarried his nurse, the evil Encarna. Although raised by her grandmother during her early years, Carmen, following the death of her grandmother, went to live with Encarna while an adolescent, Encarna who treated her as a slave. Carmen eventually found her disabled father, who was hidden away and treated poorly by Encarna. In the meantime, Encarna was cavorting with the household chauffeur while living off her husband's riches. Antonio did pass along to Carmen the art of bullfighting. As Blancanieves teeters on the brink of fame as a matador, her life may be placed in jeopardy if Encarna learns who she is, as Encarna believed Carmen was dead since she was the one who ordered her murder at the hands of the chauffeur.—Huggo

In 1920s Andalusia, the once-intrepid and much-lauded Spanish matador, Antonio Villalta, is lured into marrying his scheming former nurse, Encarna, after the tragic and premature death of his beloved wife, Carmen de Triana, in childbirth. As a result, after years of mistreatment in the unloving household, Antonio's beautiful daughter, Carmen, summons up the courage to run away from home, seeking refuge in the gloomy woods. There, in the unwelcoming and unforgiving wilderness, a troupe of wandering bull-fighting dwarfs take pity on the poor girl, and as if by a mystical fate, Carmen decides to follow in her father's footsteps under a new name: Blancanieves, or Snow White. Then, disaster strikes. Will Blancanieves ever escape from the clutches of the evil Encarna?—Nick Riganas

Details

Keywords
  • female protagonist
  • snow white character
  • reference to snow white
  • absent father
  • modern day adaptation
Genres
  • Fantasy
  • Drama
Release date Sep 27, 2012
Motion Picture Rating (MPA) PG-13
Countries of origin United States France Spain Belgium
Language Spanish
Filming locations Sevilla, Sevilla, Andalucía, Spain
Production companies Arcadia Motion Pictures Sisifo Films AIE Nix Films

Box office

Gross US & Canada $279735
Opening weekend US & Canada $25264
Gross worldwide $2585522

Tech specs

Runtime 1h 44m
Color Black and White
Sound mix Silent
Aspect ratio

Synopsis

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