By Dave Montalbano

AdventuresOfCinemaDave.com

With science fiction becoming a big thread in popular culture, San Diego’s Comic-Con, held July 12-15, is as much a summer pastime as baseball, hot dogs and pecan pie. While predicting next summer’s blockbuster hits, (Iron Man 3, Pacific Rim), Comic-Con acknowledges the universe of Star Trek and Star Wars, Marvel Comics with ancient myths and legends. Last year, Snow White was the woman in the Spotlight.

A German oral tradition that was put to paper by Brothers Grimm, the retelling of Snow White usually involves these elements – seven dwarfs, a forbidden forest, a talkative mirror and an evil queen who wants to harm an innocent adolescent girl.

While the most iconic film has been Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, this young lady has worked steadily for 65 years and met The Three Stooges. This year, two Snow White flicks have been released, but the evil queen stole both shows.

Julia Roberts looked into Mirror Mirror in her guise as the evil queen. Directed by Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall), this rendition contains spellbinding visual composition and a vivid color palette. The emphasis is on humor and Roberts exudes broad comedic villainy. Mirror Mirror is over-the- top, but fun.

Snow White and the Huntsman features Charlize Theron as the evil queen. Seduced by her own beauty, this evil queen is more warrior than Robert’s evil queen. Therefore, she is more of a match for Snow White, portrayed by Kristen Stewart.

Given Stewart’s resume, Snow White and the Huntsman feels like an episode of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series. This time, Snow White is aided and abetted by Thor, oops, I mean actor Chris Hemsworth, as the Huntsman.

More grounded in “reality” than Mirror Mirror, Snow White and the Huntsman will satisfy the medieval crowd until The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is released in December.