Oppressive, Body-Shaming, and down right cruel. These are just a few of the words that could be applied to the most recent rendition of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." In the freshly dropped trailer for the newest Chloe Grace Mortez movie, the original form of Snow White has been adapted to suit the story line of a parody cartoon that has received backlash since its drop.
The trailer for the film features two dwarfs who have found themselves in Snow White's home. When Snow White initially shows up, we see her slim form waltzing into the room on red high heels. In a strangely sexual turn of events, the elves go from overly interested to completely disgusted. Upon removal of her red high heels, Snow White transforms from slim to plus size in the blink of an eye. The next shot of the trailer shows her chugging some type of drink of out a glass, laying out in a chair, where she promptly belches after finishing her refreshment. The burp seemingly added insult to injury. Possibly the most outrageous and offensive piece of this marketing campaign was the slogan that was tacked on: "What if Snow White was no longer Beautiful?"
As a plus size woman who comes from a long line of women that have struggled with their weight and body image, this movie trailer has been a most unwelcome reminder of the judgmental world we live in. The fact that this is a cartoon marketed toward children is upsetting at the most basic level. What are we trying to teach the children of this generation? Fat means you cannot be beautiful? My own niece, at the age of 7, has already told her mother that, "she did not want to be fat." If the movie follows the same lines as the trailer, what message would my niece receive? We should be embracing our bodies, in whatever form they come. Body positivity in and of itself is about accepting your body as it is, whether you are a size 00 or 26. It is not about glorifying obesity or encouraging dangerous diets. It is meant to encourage you to embrace the body you have, regardless of weight or shape. This is something the movies trailer seemed to have missed completely.
In light of the outrage, the team behind "Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs" has tried to cover their tracks. According to the movies team the message in total is said to embrace the nontraditional form Snow White has, however those that have viewed its questionable trailer have reasonable doubts in regards to this. Chloe Grace Mortez herself posted on Twitter following backlash saying she was as "appalled and angry as everyone else." Given the fact that the actress still chose to voice the character gives some hope to the movie as a whole. Hopefully upon release audiences will see the promised story line of body acceptance. Currently however, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is off to a disgustingly offensive start.
