Grimm Pictures

Though Grimm’s Fairy Tales was published about 200 years ago, the revered collection of folk stories remains one of the most iconic pieces of children’s literature and has had significant influence in modern pop culture. This work examines the many ways that recent films have employed archetypal images, themes, symbols, and structural elements that originated in the most well-known Grimm fairy tales. The author draws similarities between the cannibalistic symbolism of the Grimm brothers’ Little Red Cap and the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs and reveals Faustian parallels between Rumpelstiltskin and the 1968 film Rosemary’s Baby. Each of eight chapters reveals a similar pairing, and film stills and illustrations are featured throughout the work.

Walter Rankin is Deputy Associate Dean and an affiliate associate professor of English and German at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. He lives in Broadlands, Virginia.

Walter Rankin
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 217
Bibliographic Info: 16 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2007
pISBN: 978-0-7864-3174-8
eISBN: 978-1-4766-0479-4
Imprint: McFarland

Preface      7

Introduction

Branding the Grimm Brothers

From the Black Forest to the Hollywood Hills      11

1. The Path of Beast Resistance

“Little Red Cap” and The Silence of the Lambs      17

2. A Rose by Any Other Name

“Brier Rose” and Scream      40

3. The Hand That Hawks the Cradle

“Rapunzel” and The Ring      60

4. The Object of My Reflection

“Little Snow White” and The Talented Mr. Ripley      81

5. Mother of the Pride

“Cinderella” and Aliens      100

6. The Devil in the Details

“Rumpelstiltskin” and Rosemary’s Baby      118

7. Off the Eaten Path

“Hansel and Gretel” and What Lies Beneath      142

Conclusion

The Writhing on the Wall

“Mother Holle” and Misery      168

Notes      193

Bibliography      203

Index      211