Herakut: "My What Big Tales You Have!"

"The little giants & the goddess of dreams" - 2nd mural in Lexington KY, USA

Herakut are taking their new fairy tale to the streets, then leaving it there, one chapter at a time...


 The Giant Storybook Project by German street artist-duo Herakut is one of my coolest discoveries of late. The artists are creating a new children's book (chock-full of fairy tale themes), wall by wall around the world.

Waking the Giant from The Giant Storybook Project - Montreal, Canada

The project began in September 2012 and is continuing throughout 2013 so we can watch as the story of Lily, Jay and two giants unfolds (if you're lucky and live in a town they will be painting in - literally!) in murals and on buildings (from warehouses to monasteries) around the globe. Check HERE for some very cool pics on the development of a few different paintings. There is also a fantastic and beautiful promo video below which shows some of the process too.

The Giant Story Book Project - Trailer

If you aren't familiar with Herakut here's a little background from Inspire Me:

1st mural "Lily & the silly monkeys" also in Lexington, KY USA

Herakut is comprised of Hera, a classically trained painter who “creates gestural, emotional figures in a freestyle manner using numerous tools including spray cans, brushes, and her hands.” and Akut, a completely self-taught yet skilled painter, creating hyper-realistic images of animals and flesh using only a spray can. 

Their pieces range from traditional canvases to urban decay art installations / murals and can be seen clear across Europe. Their pieces are loaded with symbolism and context and you’d be hard pressed to stand before their work and not feel a piece of you reach out in appreciation or possibly discomfort. (More on their work, book releases and projects at the Inspire Me link above.)

I've also created a Pinterest board dedicated to their artwork - which includes a number of The Giant Storybook Project pieces - and chose pieces that display their use of symbolism, metaphor, animal people and fairy tale themes in images and words, painted in unexpected urban places. You can see that board HERE.

Miami FL, USA - 8th mural of The Giant Storybook Project

You can follow The Giant Storybook Project (and Herakut) on Facebook HERE, on Pinterest HERE and on Tumblr HERE.

Here's their description from Facebook:

"I am different" painted on side of a monastery in Eresing, Germany

We are Giants and Children and Monkeys and Chameleons. Come along and see our story...

The Giant Storybook Project will follow the creation of a new children's book being created by the internationally-renowned street artist duo Herakut. Launched in September 2012 and continuing through 2013, the project follows the artists as they introduce the story's characters on murals that they are painting around the world. If you're in one of the cities where we're painting, come on by! If not, follow the progress through this (Facebook) page. Either way, get to know Lily, Jay (her brother), the giants, and the other interesting characters as they reveal more of themselves over the coming months!

Jay's Creative Spirit - The Giant Storybook Project installment in Leslieville, Toronto, Canada

And here's an excerpt from Chapter 1; the first draft, of Herakut's Giant Storybook:

They were also involved in the (crazy-popular music event) Coachella, teaming up with Poetic Kinetics Inc. this year in April with their giant (seriously giant!) snail Helix, to help promote their project and spread inspiration.

Helix in the sunset at Coachella 2013

Currently they have completed eleven storybook page murals (I believe Helix's paint does not count as a storybook page) and are working on fundraising projects (via some truly beautiful looking prints, among other things) before they continue traveling, painting, storytelling and inspiring...

"Will power always consume the ones that seek it?"
Possible children´s-book-version of our wall in Rochester, NY.

Here's a list of where the The Giant Storybook Project murals are so far:

Lily & Jay meet up in Kathmandu, Nepal

• Lexington KY, USA (murals 1 & 2)
• Eresing, Germany (3)
• Montreal, Canada (4)
• Toronto, Ontario, Canada (5)
• Rochester NY, USA (6)
• San Francisco CA, USA (7)
• Miami FL, USA (8)
• Melbourne VIC, Australia (9)
• Kathmandu, Nepal (10)
• Lily at Coachella (on Helix) Indio CA, USA (no notes on where Helix can be seen sorry)
• Bad Vilbel, Germany (11)

Print of Lily for fundraising*

Oh and YES! 

There will definitely be a book of The Giant Storybook Project (on the various pages I've linked to, you can see Herakut making mock-ups of how a mural could be adapted for print as a page or double-page spread for a book). It is yet to be named although, really, The Giant Storybook Project seems just fine. :)

The release date is, understandably, yet to be announced. 

"How you do something reveals your talent. Why you do something reveals your character." Lily uses her gift to make gifts. June 2, 2013 - The Giant Storybook Project latest installment: Bad Vilbel, Germany

*The print is (adorably) titled "You know there is something wrong with you if you don't even get along with your imaginary friends."

"7D" - These Are Not the Dwarves You Are Looking For

 

With Snow White still being a buzz name in entertainment these days, Disney has dug into its archives and ordered a new animated series for Disney Junior based on its first feature film. But it's turning out to not be as reminiscent of the beloved film as you might think. This series was in development 2011 and production started about a year ago. With the 2013/2014 season program slate recently released (in March) and 7D firmly on the ticket, we should be seeing more from these guys soon.

Here's the premise, according to Deadline:

Described as a comedic take on the world of Seven Dwarfs in a contemporary storybook world, 7D takes place in Jollywood where Queen Delightful relies on the 7D — Happy, Bashful, Sleepy, Sneezy, Dopey, Grumpy and Doc — to keep the kingdom in order. Standing in their way are two laughably evil villains, Grim and Hildy Gloom, who plot to take over the kingdom by stealing the magical jewels in the 7D’s mine.

Dwarf fight - classic style

Knowing the popularity of Grumpy products is making quite a mint for the Mouse House these days, I would have been more interested in a series with him as the main character (the grumpiest dwarf with the biggest heart") and seeing various fairy tale tropes, obstacles and issues being played out through him and his seven companions.

That won't be happening.

The dwarf's names will remain the same but they've been completely redesigned. The new looks were unveiled some time ago and, well, call me old school, BUT.

Maybe I should make that bigger:

BUT:

!

This is not the incarnation of Snow White's legacy I was hoping for.

(And I'm not the only one).

Not everyone is having such a bad reaction, however, and there is some hope as Craig Shemin (Jim Henson Company staff writer) wrote the test episode, which has been described as sweet and whimsical. Unfortunately it feels very much like we're in for an(other) Enchanted Kingdom mash-up, of dwarves, fairies, magical items and other pop-fairy tale staples that have little to do with time honored märchen.

ABC's Once Upon A Time - Grumpy is "born"

I'd be happy to change my mind on this (please!) but it's going to take some excellent writing to convince me. (Please-don't-let-them-hatch-from-eggs-please-don't-let-them-hatch-from-eggs!)

At least we won't be inundated with even more princess stuff. (Or will we?)

The new series is slated to debut on Disney Junior in 2014.

* The characters were designed by Fish Hooks creator Noah Z. Jones; Tom Ruegger (Animaniacs) exec produces.

Snow White Drifts To the Dark Side in SWATH Sequel?

 Ah yes, Snow White the Trilogy. (Or is it SWATH the Franchise?) Either way, we've known from the very early on that Universal was eyeing Snow White and the Huntsman as the first (story?) in a three-movie deal and you'll be glad (? - yes there are a few question marks here) to know that the sequel is well underway and a release is planned for sometime in 2015.

So what do we know about SWATH 2?

We know Ravenna, the evil queen, (played by Charlize Theron) died - really died.
The mirror, however, did not. (Does that mean it was/is alive??)
But.
There is magic here so ya never know...
We know that despite the rumors a sequel would concentrate on the Huntsman instead of Snow White, Snow's character is confirmed as being front and center once again. (And it would make a lot of fairy tale sense if the queen became the mirror...)

But what do we REALLY know?

Both Kristen Stewart (Snow White) and Chris Hemsworth (the Huntsman) are confirmed as attached (and reportedly already gearing up for filming). The director is... still unknown (though it's definitely NOT Rupert Sanders*). The various design teams are still a question marks too (please come back Ms. Atwood!).

Fans speculate about SWATH 2

It would appear, however, that David Koepp is (still) the screenwriter (with a new, official IMDB credit and completed script tucked under his arm, just awaiting a director to add, change, approve it) and on May 1st, 2013, Mr. Koepp was reported as talking enthusiastically about the SWATH sequel to Vulture, saying:

"It's like The Empire Strikes Back. I felt like they had a really, really great idea that seemed like a natural extension of the story ... Snow White is queen now, but the mirror is still there. It doesn't bode well for our innocent little queen." Assuming even if she succeeds in vanquishing yet another evil in the second film, the fight is far from over: Koepp is already thinking past the sequel. "There's plenty to go," said Koepp, who has been pulling some of his new characters from Russian fairy tales*. "There's also a great idea for a third movie." Feel the Force, Snow.

Will Snow be whistling while she works to clean up the countrywide mess left by the evil queen? (Yawn.) Will she battle a new antagonist? (??) Or will she be her own worst enemy and become a reflection of the queen her (step)mother was?*** (I vote for this one.)

Fan-made SWATH 2 poster

The hype for the first Snow White and the Huntsman talked a lot about being more faithful to the darkness of the original (aka Grimm's) tale and was summarized very nicely by Empire Magazine (in an article well worth reading if you like the tale and/or movie.) The main push was that this was no pixie-dusted Snow White, that it was edgy and yet stayed true to the original character of Snow, both as described in the Grimm text as well as the more well known version animated by Disney. But with a sequel (and likely a third installment) on the way, will those all-important characteristics of the fairy tale heroine develop in a logical way or are we in for something completely different?

(And don't forget it was pretty clear that the story between Snow White and the Eric the Huntsman wasn't over, so there is plenty of room for romantic speculation as well.)

The only other thing we know for certain is that Ms. Stewart is "very excited" about the sequel or as she puts it: "Oh, it's gonna be f----n' amazing. No, I’m so excited about it, it’s crazy." (To which all at Universal were like "OMG Stop talking already!" so that was all we got.)

* Though The Playlist appears to be voting for Neil Jordan, [The Company of Wolves, Interview With A Vampire and the very beautiful and recent Ondine] which would be really interesting to see. I can't, however, find any whiff of that being a real possibility.

** But wait! Rewind to the Episode V hint - did you just read what I did? "New characters from Russian fairy tales"? -swoon- [If you've been reading the blog for a while you'll know I adore Russian fairy tales. From Baba Yaga to Koschei the Deathless and all the Ivans and Vasilisas in between.] I can actually see how that would fit with the direction the first film took.

*** I wanted to write something about "apples" and "giving in to temptation" but the mixed metaphor thing was getting ridiculous!

Hmm, well, Kristen could be on the road to becoming the next Evil Queen. She could also end up battling the remnants of Charlize’s magic-infused reign. But which is it?! - See more at: http://perezhilton.com/2013-05-03-kristen-stewart-evil-queen-snow-white-and-the-huntsman-sequel-villain#.UblAr-uA0hd

Hmm, well, Kristen could be on the road to becoming the next Evil Queen. She could also end up battling the remnants of Charlize’s magic-infused reign. But which is it?! - See more at: http://perezhilton.com/2013-05-03-kristen-stewart-evil-queen-snow-white-and-the-huntsman-sequel-villain#.UblAr-uA0hd

A New Journey Into Fairy Tale Films From Fandor

Traditions of folklore and fairy tale inspired the earliest of filmmakers and it didn’t take them long to discover how to visualize the miraculous via trick photography and special effects.

Yet who could have predicted just how “special” those effects would eventually become in the present day, when CGI-engorged new versions of old favorites like Snow White emerge yearly? Fairy tale-derived titles do, however, stray from the well-beaten commercial path and the best delight and terrify with their quirky imaginative breadth...

(continue reading on the Journey into Fairy Tale Films HERE)

Attention: fairy tale fans, film buffs, special effects people

and cultural history detectives! 

Welcome to a new online fairy tale film collection from Fandor: Journey Into Film (The Fairy Tales Edition), curated by longtime film critic (Variety & San Francisco Bay Guardian) Dennis Harvey!

I wasn't quite able to get the blog up and running again in time for the launch (so sorry!) but this is a not-to-be-missed, brand new and  extremely cool resource for fans of fairy tale and film. We are so fortunate to live in a time when resources like this are made available to us (where before we had to have special access to film archives and more) so please go take a look, let Fandor know we are truly excited to see this and that it was worth the effort (and that we'd love to see even more!).

Journey Into Fairy Tale Film, isn't your average, random, (or dry) collection either. The films within  are carefully chosen to be shown together. They're related via theme (and other insights the curator reveals as you go "on the journey"), go from the older films to the very recent and the presentation is designed specifically to help you "connect the dots" between them. 

 

Mr. Harvey*, was kind enough to give Once Upon A Blog an additional statement regarding curating the collection:

"Choosing films for this particular "Journey" was especially easy because fairy tales surface in many types of film that Fandor offers, particularly silent cinema and animation. 

Dennis Harvey - Film critic for Variety & SF Bay Guardian

Some of the later films in this "Journey" tap Fandor's sizable collection of camp and exploitation movies. "Cinderella 2000" is one of many erotic films from the 1970s that send up (and sexed up) childhood fables, while the completely nuts Hong Kong kung-fu fantasy "Deadly Snail vs. Kung Fu Killer" draws on their  Chinese equivalents.

The most recent films in the series illustrate the popular trend in recent years of taking legendary tales and figures (not least 20th-century ones like Batman and Superman) into "darker," more adult directions. The 2008 Korean "Hansel and Gretel" plumbs the macabre and disturbing qualities of a "children's story" the way Angela Carter or Gregory Maguire have in the literary realm. Then there's "Sita Sings the Blues," which puts a very modern and playful spin on primary piece of epic Indian mythology."

- Dennis Harvey (on curating Fandor's Journey Into Film - Fairy Tales collection)

 It's online, accessible to everyone (even without a Fandor "online cinema subscription") and just very cool to look at and move around in (no special skills required).

 

It's also interactive so you can choose to read a quick overview (with big beautiful pics), view clips or even view whole films.

Excerpted from the announcement in my mail:

Today (May 30, 2013), Fandor.com — the streaming source for indie film — launched a new series called Journey Into Film.  Each Journey Into Film theme is curated by a respected film critic or Fandor film buff, and offers viewers a behind-the-scenes look at specific films and genres through interactive visuals and expert insight.

...This collection of folklore and fairytale favorites utilizes trick photography and special effects  to bring fantasy to reality. 

OK - no more online time here. Instead, go to Fandor's Fairy Tale Journey and check it out. I hope the collection stays available in the long term but even if it doesn't, they have lots of fairy tale (and fairy tale influenced) films to browse through - especially if you're a real film buff. 

Take advantage and enjoy!

 

* To read more about Variety film critic Dennis Harvey and his work, click on the link to read an interview in which he speaks about his time at the University of Michigan (of which is an alum) and the changing nature of film criticism. You can also click HERE.

Henson Facts For Fairy Tale People

Making the rounds on Facebook and other social media sites is this recent - and lovely - article about the late and much beloved man behind the Muppets: 35 Things You Didn't Known About Jim Henson.

With a Henson-devoted gallery in the works (expected to open in Winter of 2014-2015) and the Muppets coming back to the theater again next year, lots of people are once again curious about the behind-the-scenes of one of the biggest creative forces of our lifetime.

I expect we will see more books like Imagination Illustrated: The Jim Henson Journal (yes please!) and more articles around the web but for now, here are some interesting tidbits about the man behind the Muppets that will interest fairy tale people:

 

• The Wizard of Oz was the first movie Henson ever watched and remained his favorite until his death. (References to the classic film appeared in several Muppets projects.)

• Rumor has it that Henson wanted to direct a film based on the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, with Tom Cruise playing the prince afflicted by a curse that turns him into a monster. Unfortunately Disney was planning their version of the story for a 1991 release, so Henson backed down from the idea. The fairy tale inspired several Muppets sketches, including one with Lesley Ann Warren.
  
  
  

• In the 1960s, Henson — along with Sesame Street writer and producer Jon Stone and TV screenwriter Tom Whedon (Joss Whedon’s father) — created a Cinderella television pilot that never aired. It eventually became the 1969 hour-long TV special Hey, Cinderella!.

• Henson loved to read. His favorite children’s books were Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne and The Thirteen Clocks by James Thurber. 

 In case you haven't read it, The Thirteen Clocks is a wonderful little fantasy book that contains a lot of fairy tale motifs and is a must read for students of folk and fairy tales.



What this article doesn't say is that fairy tales were a huge influence on Henson and inspired much of his creativity, whether directly or indirectly. Not only does much of his work have that fairy tale spirit of fantasy, down-to-earth, Jack-like fun and solid truth core, but time and time again he returned to telling his own versions of well-known tales and quite a few forgotten ones too. (I count The Storyteller series as being one of his great achievements for so many reasons!)

Henson's influence is obvious in the Sesame Street News Flash segments - not just in the use of muppets but in the way humor is used to freshen a familiar story and twist the tropes a little so you viewers actually think about what they're watching. Sesame Street's fairy tale news mix-ups and flash-fables were my first exposure to fractured fairy tales, teaching me a lot about elements of story, fairy tale motifs and fairy tale logic (not to mention giving me that bug to go find out more!).

That The Muppets - with that signature Henson humor - keep popping up as fairy tale characters in film, comics, TV sketches and books, even after their creator has passed on, is taken as par for the course but it wouldn't have happened without Jim's insistence on returning to the tales.

The way he worked with, told and used fairy tales is very much in keeping with their nature. True fairy tales can't be pinned down to a single text in a book somewhere. They are alive and mutable and as a community of fairy tale students, researchers, writers and aficionados, we have much to thank Jim Henson for in keeping fairy tales alive and well today. The Muppets, their creator and fairy tales will be forever linked.

We will always miss you Jim.

Thank you for helping keep our tales alive and well.

(You can read the whole article HERE.)

Fifty Shades of... Little Mermaid?

Breaking news from ComingSoon.net:

Fifty Shades of Grey and Saving Mr. Banks screenwriter Kelly Marcel has signed on to adapt the (FTNH edit: first English language live action feature film version of) Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale The Little Mermaid, Deadline reports. The Working Title Films production will be directed by Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice, Hanna, Jane Eyre).

The project was announced back in 2010 with Abi Morgan the screenwriter attached at the time. Apparently things are back on track for the fairy tale film and this time around Ms. Marcel will be retooling the script.

As much of the information appears the same, I'll quote from the July 2010 announcement on Collider.com:

Per Variety, the pic has been adapted by British writer Abi Morgan [FTNH edit: Now Ms. Marcel and the notorious Fifty Shades of Grey connection] and was inspired by a puppet-production... of the tale by The Little Angel Theatre Company based in London. While Andersen’s tale has been adapted numerous times around the world and across different media platforms (including a 1976 Russian live-action film and a 2005 Danish ballet), Wright’s take will be the first live-action adaptation of the story to be made in English.   

While I can't find mention of how true to Andersen's tale the Little Angel Theater's production was, to give us any indication of what sort of film this will be (although the image above is of some of their puppets and looks rather Little Mermaid-ish to me), all seem to be in agreement that even if it is kid-friendly, it's still going to be  darker than Disney's version (and very unlikely to have singing sea life). I just wonder how much pressure there will be to give an already dark story (if you're looking at Andersen's original) an even darker edge, now that the Fifty Shades screenwriter is attached? 

Either way, we're likely to see lots of tail puns in the coming headlines (and that necktie on the Fifty Shades cover looks an awful lot like grey scales if you tilt it just right... O.o). 

At least it will help this fairy tale adaptation get lots of attention!

Once Upon A More-Than-Just-A-Blog!

Gypsy Thornton aka InkGypsy aka Fairy Tale Newhound updating everything!

That's right.

There's more going on here than just blog posts! 

OUAB on Facebook

(And I've been doing a little updating/cleaning house here too as you may have noticed if you look around the tabs on the menu above.)

I also have accounts on Facebook (both a page for Once Upon A Blog on which I post fairy tale news headlines and more, and my personal one, Gypsy Thornton). There's also a Twitter account (@inkgypsy) which sends out fairy tale news headlines and links too. 

OUAB on Twitter

What I'm most excited to share with you is that I have a very active (and super shiny!) Pinterest account, set up as an extension of Once Upon A Blog, with LOTS of fairy tale goodies to discover. (At the time of posting I have 227 separate boards and over 21, 000 images pinned!! *faints*) I already have a separate and permanent page here at the blog site (see menu bar at the top of the blog) to link you to all the fairy tale art boards by tale name and will update it as I add new ones.

227 boards to browse on Pinterest so far!

I am a visual thinker and Pinterest has been a wonderful way for me to explore myth, fairy tale and other related things I love, do research and to generally fill up my "creative juices jar".

I have many (many!) different boards that are fairy tale, folklore and/or myth based, either by story, aspect or theme, so there's a lot (a lot!) to explore. Think of it as a labyrinth of wonders that includes an "exit" button you can use at any time... should you really wish to leave... ;)


I've been creating boards for specific fairy tales for a while now, the purpose being to collect a variety of art styles (photo, illustration and more) and various/unusual representations of a tale. Seeing different ways a story or story moment has been captured (by artist, photographer and/or writers) helps me think about the tales in a fresh way. It's a good way to make unusual connections and get inspired to go make my own art or stories and I hope it will do the same for you.

A few of the OUAB Fairy Tale Mood Boards on Pinterest

The list of tale specific boards is very long (and only going to get longer!) so I'm going to just leave it all on the dedicated page for you to browse there.

With so many tales to choose from this will be a work in progress for, possibly, ever. No board is ever really "complete" and there are always more tales to explore. I tend to add fairy tale images almost every time I'm on Pinterest, either to existing boards or to new ones, so there will be new things to find every week (pretty much!).

Go check the page OUAB Fairy Tale Boards on Pinterest on the menu at the top of the blog for a list of all the tales I have created boards for so far, as well as other fairy tale related goodness. There is a LOT to explore!

Go! Explore! Enjoy!

"Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" on DVD/Blu-ray Today (& a sequel on the way)

Today is DVD & Blu-ray release day for Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters. Sad to say, I don't know anyone who went and saw this film. There was a lot of buzz, then it disappeared for 10 months (10!) to accommodate other films (among other things) and when it finally premiered the shine had pretty much gone for a lot of people.

Movie critics called it gratuitous, "a weak story" and violent. Interestingly, horror critics were far more positive (and these guys can be pretty harsh), declaring it to be "unpretentiously entertaining". It went on to become a commercial success overseas and there is now a sequel in development.

Preview of The Witching Hour featurette (behind-the-scenes)

I know a few adults who admit this is either their favorite fairy tale as a child or the most memorable. It's clear it resonates a lot with kids (and the memories stay strong as they grow up too). I completely understand why. This is a dark, dark fairy tale - even a very sanitized version (like the Disney one in which it's clear the witch is pushed into a COLD over and is taken out and sent to jail later - ugh!) makes little eyebrows rise. I recently read one of my favorite illustrated* versions, The Diary of Hansel and Gretel ("by Gretel" and Proved to be Authentic and Real by the Authority of Kees Moerbeek) to my son's Kindergarten class. We always have question and comment time after each book and boy were there a LOT of questions! This version doesn't shy away from some hideous parenting, how dangerous the oven was and or that this witch ended up dead. Or as we said in class "dead-dead-not-pretend-dead-and-will-not-become-a-zombie-dead". They were reassured that there was no chance of this particular nasty person ever making a reappearance. (They also all - boys and girls - adored the little picture of the dead mother in the locket tucked onto the first page and completely approved of Gretel drawing a hideous scary-looking portrait to represent the awful stepmother.)

But back to the movie.

If you (like me) missed a few of the fairy tale related things about this film along the way, here are a few things you may not know:

• Norwegian filmmaker, Tommy Wirkola (who co-wrote and directed) said: "I have a strong memory from my childhood of just how dark and gruesome their tale was and I wondered what would have happened to the two of them when they grew up? They had this dark past and this intense hatred of witches. So as I thought about it, it made sense to me that of course they would be fated to become great witch hunters..."

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters - preview of "Reinventing Hansel and Gretel"

• In Wirkola's original treatment, Gretel developed an eating disorder, but that idea was dropped.

• They made some effort to not use stereotypical witch designs, instead trying to communicate the idea that they were "the spawn of the dark places of nature" and tried to have them feel "animalistic". Concept art by Ulrich Zeidler was released around the time the movie premiered. You can see that HERE - worth a look if you're writing or working with witch characters, to see some of the concepts explored here. Some of these actually DO feel they're from fairy tales from different parts of the world. (Others are just a bit ridiculous.)

I honestly wish I had more to share but clearly this film isn't meant to be anything more than an fast-paced and somewhat silly B movie (which is perfectly valid entertainment for people who like that stuff).

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters - Making of Edward Troll

The Blu-ray contains the theatrical release version, an uncut-unrated version and three featurettes: Reinventing Hansel and Gretel,  The Witching Hours and Meet Edward the Troll.

I still surprised there's going to be a sequel.

* My favorite retelling remains Donna Jo Napoli's The Magic Circle. I haven't been able to think of the tale the same way since I first read it.