First of all, I'm a fan of Sigourney Weaver, but even putting that prejudice aside and examining the film critically, I can honestly say that it was only her performance that saved this film.
Snow White (Lilly) was frankly an annoying, wooden, two-dimensional character and I found myself genuinely hoping that Claudia (Sigourney Weaver) would succeed in destroying her.
In fact, the only character really drawn with any care and attention is that of Claudia. I found myself believing that she'd been driven mad and to murder purely through the unpleasant behaviour of Lilly and therefore found her character to be realistic, sympathetic and attractive. All the other characters were ciphers: Sam Neil, who plays Lord Hoffman, barely had a role at all in the film; although it was a starring part, he played it very much like a tired cameo role in a B-movie.
The film is apparently set at the time of the Crusades, but there were a terrible number of gaffes:
Costumes ranged from 14th to 16th century and even early 17th century, whilst the furniture ranged mainly from 15th to 18th century.
Mention was made of a globe showing the countries of the world, something impossible at a time when the flat-earth theory was firmly established science.
Lilly somehow managed to pick an apple from an obvious oak tree near her mother's grave - and it was the ONLY apple visible - which made the entire scene rather forced and unnecessary.
When Claudia told Dr. Guttenberg about the "disease" afflicting the servants, he said "The Black Death!", something which took place quite a while after the Crusades had been forgotten.
Nevertheless, the film on the whole is fairly well-crafted, although very uneven in places. The castles and ruins used as backdrops were good choices, although not quite appropriate to the Crusades period, but that's probably just me being pedantic.
I think that the true horror could have been wound up a few notches, since the film has an R rating anyway and is definitely not suitable for children. Otherwise, I found it an extremely entertaining film with plenty to engross one's attention.
Snow White (Lilly) was frankly an annoying, wooden, two-dimensional character and I found myself genuinely hoping that Claudia (Sigourney Weaver) would succeed in destroying her.
In fact, the only character really drawn with any care and attention is that of Claudia. I found myself believing that she'd been driven mad and to murder purely through the unpleasant behaviour of Lilly and therefore found her character to be realistic, sympathetic and attractive. All the other characters were ciphers: Sam Neil, who plays Lord Hoffman, barely had a role at all in the film; although it was a starring part, he played it very much like a tired cameo role in a B-movie.
The film is apparently set at the time of the Crusades, but there were a terrible number of gaffes:
Costumes ranged from 14th to 16th century and even early 17th century, whilst the furniture ranged mainly from 15th to 18th century.
Mention was made of a globe showing the countries of the world, something impossible at a time when the flat-earth theory was firmly established science.
Lilly somehow managed to pick an apple from an obvious oak tree near her mother's grave - and it was the ONLY apple visible - which made the entire scene rather forced and unnecessary.
When Claudia told Dr. Guttenberg about the "disease" afflicting the servants, he said "The Black Death!", something which took place quite a while after the Crusades had been forgotten.
Nevertheless, the film on the whole is fairly well-crafted, although very uneven in places. The castles and ruins used as backdrops were good choices, although not quite appropriate to the Crusades period, but that's probably just me being pedantic.
I think that the true horror could have been wound up a few notches, since the film has an R rating anyway and is definitely not suitable for children. Otherwise, I found it an extremely entertaining film with plenty to engross one's attention.