Year: 1987
Runtime: 85 mins
Language: English
Director: Michael Berz
A prince on a quest for the greatest treasure discovers seven dwarfs guarding a coffin. They recount the tale of Snow White, a radiant princess driven into exile by her jealous step‑mother, who orders her death. Snow White finds refuge with the dwarfs, while the step‑mother, learning she survives, plots to eliminate her rival once and for all.
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Read the complete plot breakdown of Snow White (1987), including all key story events, major twists, and the ending explained in detail. Discover what really happened—and what it all means.
In a wintry forest, a striking young prince travels with his men and comes upon a glimmering scene that will set the tale in motion. In a quiet glen, Snow White is found sleeping inside a glass coffin, and the many-flavored past of her life unfolds through the memories of the seven kindly dwarves. The opening frames soon give way to a broader history of a royal family, a jealous stepmother, and the long arc of Snow White’s fate.
A noble King Douglas Sheldon and his devoted Queen Dorit Adi rule a peaceful realm with care and integrity. One harsh winter, the Queen tends to her sewing when a single drop of her blood stains the snow outside the window, and the King proclaims a daughter with hair as black as ebony, cheeks as red as blood, and skin as white as snow. The Good Queen’s passing soon after her child is born leaves Snow White in the new king’s care, and the kingdom hopes she will grow up under their benevolent gaze. Yet tragedy shadows the crown, and Snow White’s young mother dies, leaving the realm to be ruled by the new Queen, whose vanity and jealousy begin to shape the course of the story.
The Evil Queen, driven by a relentless need to be the fairest of all, consults her ever-watchful magic mirror and learns that Snow White has surpassed her in beauty. The mirror’s verdict fuels a murderous plan: the huntsman Amnon Meskin is ordered to take Snow White into the forest and kill her, bringing back her liver as proof of death. In the woods, Snow White is spirited away, but when she realizes the Queen’s intent, the huntsman’s resolve falters. A vital messenger—a goat—claims the Queen’s intent, and Snow White escapes into the tangled wilderness.
There, the young woman stumbles upon a quaint cottage inhabited by seven gentle dwarves. The dwarves—Billy Barty as Iddy, Mike Edmonds as Biddy, Ricardo Gil as Kiddy, Malcolm Dixon as Diddy, Gary Friedkin as Fiddy, Arturo Gil as Giddy, and Tony Cooper as Liddy—offer Snow White shelter, and the pairings of warmth and danger begin to unfold through her days with the dwarves. The King’s heart breaks when news reaches him of Snow White’s supposed death, and his sorrow deepens with the realization that the realm’s stability has been shaken by the Queen’s schemes and the forces of war.
Years pass, and Snow White returns as a graceful young woman. The Evil Queen, still fixed on control and supremacy, asks her magic mirror the same question again and again, and the mirror’s answer confirms Snow White’s survival. The Queen makes three bold, deceitful attempts to end the young woman’s life. First, she disguises herself as a gypsy and uses a tightly laced bodice to send Snow White into a dangerous sleep, but the dwarves return just in time to cut the lace and wake her. Next, she dresses as a Japanese geisha and offers Snow White a poisoned comb—an oriental toxin that strands Snow White in a deep slumber until the dwarves remove the offending item. Finally, she disguises herself as an old peddler and offers Snow White a split apple. The two share the halves, and Snow White falls under a deadly sleep once more. The dwarves place her in a glass coffin, hoping for a miracle that might yet restore her.
The narrative now returns to the present, where the dwarves permit a curious fate to unfold. As Snow White is being moved to a more fitting resting place, the coffin is jolted free by a collapsing tree during a fierce blizzard, and a fragment of the poisoned apple dislodges from her throat. The sudden jolt revives Snow White, and the Prince—enchanted by her miraculous return—asks for her hand in marriage, a proposal she warmly accepts. Invitations ripple across the land, reaching even the Evil Queen, whose keen eyes see the unfolding wedding as a final test of her claim to supremacy. The mirror, once a trusted oracle, shatters under the Queen’s anger, and with that, she ages rapidly in a fit of rage, rushing to the church in a desperate, scrambling attempt to witness Snow White’s union.
In the church, the long arc of vengeance collapses as Snow White and the Prince are wed. The Evil Queen’s rage erupts, but the force of the Queen’s blindness and the power of true love prevail. The Queen disintegrates, aged and defeated, as a fierce wind carries her remnants away before she can reclaim her carriage. Snow White and the Prince celebrate a union that restores peace to the kingdom, and they begin their life together, the tale ending with the promise of a happily-ever-after that echoes through the ages.
Note: The first-time mentions of principal characters have linked references to their respective actors:
Snow White
The Prince
The Evil Queen
The King
The Good Queen
The Huntsman
Iddy, Biddy, Kiddy, Diddy, Fiddy, Giddy, Liddy
The retelling keeps the original’s core beats—jealousy, escape, apprenticeship with kindly dwarves, repeated poisonings thwarted, a dramatic revival, and a royal ending—while expanding the narrative threads to emphasize character choices, stakes, and the emotional undercurrents that drive Snow White toward a hopeful, lasting union.
Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 14:20
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