Gretel & Hansel

The story of ‘Hansel and Gretel’ as told by The Brothers Grimm, first published in 1812 in the collection Grimm’s Fairy Tales, clearly depicts patriarchal dominance and strongly suggests women are the weaker and more troublesome sex. The story of two young children, abandoned in a dark and frightening forest who fall into the hands of a cannibalistic witch, is full of perpetuations of the gender stereotypes that place women as either subservient and feeble minded or destructive and irrational. In stark contrast, the 2020 Orion Pictures adaptation of the tale, Gretel and Hansel, confidently flips these gender stereotypes by retelling the story with the focus on the female led narration and Gretel’s journey to accepting her abundant female strengths.

The fact that the title of this century told tale sees the characters reversed is a bold statement that this film is Gretel focused. The opening narration by the film’s protagonist makes a scathing reference to the female helplessness depicted in fairy tales, as typically fair maidens await the arrival of some prince to save them. Throughout the film, it is Gretel who leads the action, suspicious of men and refusing to submit to their dominance. The original tale finds Hansel assume this position as he is consistently the figure of saviour. When Gretel is weeping bitterly as they wander the forest, Hansel is the one who tells her, ‘Don’t worry. I’ll find a way’. Gretel takes no decisive action but repeatedly questions their fate with pessimistic haplessness, ‘How will we ever get out of the forest’ confirming her position as damsel in distress. Hansel is comforting, assuring her that they just have ‘wait a while’ proving himself as confident and brave, pragmatic and rational, telling her not to cry. Hansel is the archetypal prince, authoritative and in control, whereas Gretel is an emotional liability, submissive, weak with no agency within the story. While Gretel looks to Hansel for answers, it is Hansel who is depicted as the thinker as The Grimm Brothers convey how ‘He thought’… In stark contrast, throughout the Gretel and Hansel adaptation we find that young Hansel is thoughtless, constantly questioning where they will go next and how they will find food. He is accepting, taking answers and circumstances at face value with no ability to read between the lines. This presentation of the male as single minded and lacking depth is employed to contrast the immense power of Gretel’s intuition. Whereas in the original tale, The Brothers Grimm portray a weak and whimpering Gretel to highlight the stable and dependable Hansel. The patriarchal influence in the original tale is entirely challenged in Gretel and Hansel film. Gretel shows determination and pragmatism as a steadfast, practical and strong young woman.

Throughout the movie adaptation, the subject matter deviates from the original tale and, with Gretel’s self-discovery and acceptance of her womanhood, clearly highlights and celebrates the power of female intuition. Gretel and Hansel’s mother is depicted as a mad woman, presumably because she remains obedient and vulnerable to men. However, in contrast to the original, the witch is depicted as enlightened and powerful, albeit an evil cannibal, she recognises the female gifts of second sight and intuition within Gretel, telling her that ‘all men should fear’ her. An encouraging and empowering mentor, the use of the witch to make a statement about the power of female qualities is completely opposite to the way the witch is depicted in the original. Simply classified as evil and destructive it raises questions about how women have been misunderstood and feared by men for centuries.

The witch herself challenges traditional stereotypes and clearly isn’t waiting for a prince to arrive. When questioned by Gretel about marriage the witch smirks and immediately quips, ‘Why would I want that ball and chain?’. Typically, it is men who refer to their wives as ball and chain within the context of marriage. These reversals of gender stereotypes are strong depictions of where women are in the 21st century. A long way away from The Brothers Grimm original.

And the typically understood concept that women hold back men has been explored in the original text. The father is portrayed as weak and dutiful to his evil wife, easily manipulated and prevented from keeping his own children. Here the male is depicted as held back, stifled by a woman and unable to realise his potential as father. The opposite shift is true in Gretel and Hansel as the witch implores Gretel to abandon her brother who will only keep her from becoming who she is meant to be. The suggestion that males cut short the potential of women is the driver for the feminist movement against patriarchal dominance and in that sense the film adaptation is very much a movie for growing feminists.

The climax of the film is Gretel coming to recognise and trust her inner voice. In the original text, Gretel has no voice of her own. In the scene when she tricks the witch, Holda, into the oven, the Brothers Grimm don’t linger on the subject and it is ambiguous whether or not Gretel unwittingly and unthinkingly pushed the witch and her incarceration was a fluke, or if Gretel was indeed smart enough. This lack of clarity in contrast to Hansel’s definite decision making suggests the subservience of the female within the fairy tale. The affirmative emphasis usually on the dependable male saviour.

However, within the original text there is a nod to female intuition as it is Gretel who sees through the witch’s evil plan, Hansel oblivious, just as in the movie. Misogyny is present in the film but despite it being a celebration and exploration of female power, Gretel finds herself vulnerable to a sexual predator.

The shift in focus from the widely accepted Hansel and Gretel tale to a feminist perspective is inspired and powerful. By introducing a fresh female perspective, the Gretel and Hansel movie adaptation provokes thought of how women are represented through the eyes of the patriarchy in the most significant tales passed down through the ages, highlighting the power of literature to realign thinking and crush misconceptions.