The Snow Queen (2005 film)
Encyclopedia
The Snow Queen is a 2005
BBC
television movie
that is based on the Hans Christian Andersen
fairytale of The Snow Queen
. Directed by Julian Gibbs
, it stars Juliet Stevenson
as Gerda's mother and the voice of Patrick Stewart
as the raven.
This film was originally conceived as a vehicle for music composed by Paul K. Joyce. A set of operatic songs had been written by Paul K. Joyce for a concert at the Barbican Arts Centre held in 2003. The songs narrated the fairytale of The Snow Queen and featured Sydney White as the lead girl soprano, Juliet Stevenson
as the narrator and the London Symphony Orchestra
providing instrumentals. Due to the success of the concert, a full-fledged film was developed around the original songs, and in which Sydney White and Juliet Stevenson
returned to contribute as actresses.
The songs written by Paul K. Joyce are central to the film, providing main narration throughout the story. Actual dialogue is sparse, and most notable is that the Snow Queen herself has no lines. The story also focuses entirely on Gerda's journey, with all others, including Kay himself, acting as supporting characters. However, the character of the Raven (voiced by Patrick Stewart
) was given more prominence as he follows Gerda throughout her entire journey.
One day, Kay goes sledding in the woods when he sees the Snow Queen. He hitches the rope of his sled to the Queen's own sled and travels off with her. He does not return and when his sled is discovered in the river, he is presumed dead. When Gerda mourns him by the river, she is visited by a talking raven who tells her that Kay is not in the river.
Gerda decides to find Kay, traveling a far distance and meeting many characters. One of the people she meets is a King, who tells her the story of the Devil's mirror. It is said that the Devil once made a mirror that would distort the image of anyone who looked into it, and the King suspects that it is a shard of that mirror that fell into Kay's eye.
Gerda eventually arrives at the Snow Queen's palace, where she finds Kay unconscious on a table of ice. The Snow Queen confronts Gerda, intent on destroying her, but Gerda's love for Kay gives her the power to defeat the Snow Queen outright. Gerda wakes Kay with her tears, and the pair escape as the Snow Queen's palace collapses around them.
in order to give the film a storybook feel. Live-action filming was carried out in Toronto
, Canada
, where according to Sydney and Juliet, the challenge lay in pretending that they were freezing cold while wearing multiple layers of clothing in a hot studio.
2005 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2005...
BBC
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
that is based on the Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
fairytale of The Snow Queen
The Snow Queen
The Snow Queen is a fairy tale by author Hans Christian Andersen . The tale was first published in 1845, and centers on the struggle between good and evil as experienced by a little boy and girl, Kai and Gerda....
. Directed by Julian Gibbs
Julian Gibbs
Julian Howard Gibbs was an American educator and the fifteenth President of Amherst College.Gibbs graduated from Amherst College in 1947. He earned his master’s and Ph.D. degrees in 1949 and 1950 from Princeton University...
, it stars Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, CBE is an English actor of stage and screen.- Early life :Stevenson was born in Kelvedon, Essex, England, the daughter of Virginia Ruth , a teacher, and Michael Guy Stevenson, an army officer. Stevenson's father was in the army and was posted to a new place every...
as Gerda's mother and the voice of Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
as the raven.
This film was originally conceived as a vehicle for music composed by Paul K. Joyce. A set of operatic songs had been written by Paul K. Joyce for a concert at the Barbican Arts Centre held in 2003. The songs narrated the fairytale of The Snow Queen and featured Sydney White as the lead girl soprano, Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, CBE is an English actor of stage and screen.- Early life :Stevenson was born in Kelvedon, Essex, England, the daughter of Virginia Ruth , a teacher, and Michael Guy Stevenson, an army officer. Stevenson's father was in the army and was posted to a new place every...
as the narrator and the London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
providing instrumentals. Due to the success of the concert, a full-fledged film was developed around the original songs, and in which Sydney White and Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, CBE is an English actor of stage and screen.- Early life :Stevenson was born in Kelvedon, Essex, England, the daughter of Virginia Ruth , a teacher, and Michael Guy Stevenson, an army officer. Stevenson's father was in the army and was posted to a new place every...
returned to contribute as actresses.
The songs written by Paul K. Joyce are central to the film, providing main narration throughout the story. Actual dialogue is sparse, and most notable is that the Snow Queen herself has no lines. The story also focuses entirely on Gerda's journey, with all others, including Kay himself, acting as supporting characters. However, the character of the Raven (voiced by Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
) was given more prominence as he follows Gerda throughout her entire journey.
Synopsis
One night in winter, a young girl named Gerda sees a young boy on the side of the street and shivering in the cold. Gerda gives him her blanket, and Gerda's mother eventually takes the boy in, feeding and clothing him. The boy, whose name is Kay, strikes up a warm friendship with Gerda. One night Gerda's mother tells the pair the story of the Snow Queen, who rules winter. As Kay looks out the window, something falls into his eye, and from that moment on he is cruel towards Gerda. Although Gerda is confused over Kay's sudden change of personality, she continues to try to mend their friendship.One day, Kay goes sledding in the woods when he sees the Snow Queen. He hitches the rope of his sled to the Queen's own sled and travels off with her. He does not return and when his sled is discovered in the river, he is presumed dead. When Gerda mourns him by the river, she is visited by a talking raven who tells her that Kay is not in the river.
Gerda decides to find Kay, traveling a far distance and meeting many characters. One of the people she meets is a King, who tells her the story of the Devil's mirror. It is said that the Devil once made a mirror that would distort the image of anyone who looked into it, and the King suspects that it is a shard of that mirror that fell into Kay's eye.
Gerda eventually arrives at the Snow Queen's palace, where she finds Kay unconscious on a table of ice. The Snow Queen confronts Gerda, intent on destroying her, but Gerda's love for Kay gives her the power to defeat the Snow Queen outright. Gerda wakes Kay with her tears, and the pair escape as the Snow Queen's palace collapses around them.
Cast
- Juliet StevensonJuliet StevensonJuliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, CBE is an English actor of stage and screen.- Early life :Stevenson was born in Kelvedon, Essex, England, the daughter of Virginia Ruth , a teacher, and Michael Guy Stevenson, an army officer. Stevenson's father was in the army and was posted to a new place every...
as Gerda's Mother - Sydney White as Gerda
- Patrick StewartPatrick StewartSir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
as The Raven (voice) - Kenneth WelshKenneth WelshKenneth Welsh, CM is a Canadian film and television actor . He is known to Twin Peaks fans as the multi-faceted villain Windom Earle, and has more recently played the father of Katharine Hepburn in Martin Scorsese's The Aviator.In 1984 he was nominated for a Genie Award as Best Actor for his...
as King - Pax Baldwin as Kay
- Tiffany Amber Knight as The Snow Queen
- Colleen WilliamsColleen WilliamsColleen Williams is a news anchor of KNBC Channel 4 in Los Angeles, currently serving on the 5 and 11 p.m. weekday broadcasts. She also reports on occasion for NBC News and MSNBC. Williams is one of the most-recognized anchors in the Los Angeles area, the second-largest media market in the United...
as Mrs. Neilson - Sasha Clements as Robber Girl
- Leah Cudmore as Princess
- Bradie Whetham as Prince
- Pascale Audrey as Robber Woman
Production
All live-action scenes were filmed in bluescreen, with backgrounds fully rendered by CGIComputer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
in order to give the film a storybook feel. Live-action filming was carried out in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, where according to Sydney and Juliet, the challenge lay in pretending that they were freezing cold while wearing multiple layers of clothing in a hot studio.
Soundtrack
A full album recording of the songs was released on October 31, 2006. The track listing is as follows:- Sonnet XXV
- The Snow Queen Overture
- Hear Next Of Winter
- The Mirror And Its Fragments
- She Walks In Beauty
- A Little Boy And A Little Girl
- The Cold Earth Slept Below
- Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep
- Remember
- The Enchanted Flower Garden
- Lullaby
- The Prince And The Princess
- In The Bleak Mid-Winter
- The Little Robber Maiden
- How Calm, How Beautiful, Comes On
- The Lapland Woman And The Finland Woman
- Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep (reprise)
- The Snow Queen's Palace
- The Snow Queen Suite