If I were to produce a version of Hansel and Gretel, I would set it in a European forest, most likely somewhere close to the
As for the father and the (step)mother, I believe that the woman would be thin and petite, and the father, small and lean. I would portray them in the film like this to show that they are not necessarily bad people, and that they are just behaving in such a way to give their children an opportunity that they can not provide them, and/or uphold European standards of the time.
The main problem that would feed into the Hansel and Gretel story would be that the children need to be sent forward and become independent due to some illness, most likely the bubonic plague. It is not necessarily the parent’s choice to send them away, but they want what is best for their children.
The woman/witch that they encounter in the movie could be an outcast from society who was deemed a witch and ran away. One possible situation is that she befriends them and tries to teach them her sorcery, and they run away. When they come back, the plague is gone and has killed the mother, and the children and father live together in good health.
i think it's an interesting idea that you have the children being sent away for an illness such as the bubonic plague rather than starvation, are you saying that the parents send them away so the children do not catch the plague, or the children have the plague and the parents want to get rid of them so they themselves don't get sick?
ReplyDeleteYou make a really good point about what the age of the children should be and how that makes the "abandonment" more acceptable for the time. The plague is also an interesting idea. Do Hansel and Gretel come back from the "witch" with money? They certainly don't have to. If they do, (because of the death of the witch), she too could die of the plague, keeping with the theme.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Holly - the parents send the children away so they do not become sick, however, when they return home, their mother has died due to the plague.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Chester - I left that part of the story out; the reunion was meant to be more sentimental and that they are united with their father, rather than them living happily ever after with money from the "witch."