Why was the depiction of the town changed at the end?

During the course of Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters the town of Augsburg is repeatedly depicted in a rather rural style, with half-timbered clay houses and dirt streets, as seen on this screenshot from Mina's trial at the beginning: enter image description here

Yet at the end (and only there), when Hansel and Gretel get their pay for returning the children, it shows a much higher developed part of the town, with large stone buildings and cobblestone streets, as seen here: enter image description here

Is there any information if this change of depicting the town at the end was done on purpose? And if yes, what is the meaning of this (was it maybe just to emphasize the effect of the happy ending)?

(Of course it could also be that there wasn't much more to it and it was just a natural consequence of them being at a different part of town, but the difference to the previous depictions of the town struck me as pretty significant.)

analysis hansel-and-gretel

Best Answer

I think you are looking at two areas of the same town - the village parts where regular people live and work, and the city center/ market square - where the wealthier business people, government and church would be, and where the heroes would be honored for their great deeds.

Some interesting links about the sets:

http://carlyreddin.com/Hansel-Gretel-Witch-Hunters Click through to the next two pages to see hand drawings of the village sets

http://whatculture.com/film/set-report-hansel-gretel-witch-hunters.php Explains (with photos) how they transformed the castle square in Brunswick into a medieval market for the film

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bondbulletin/sets/72157626395815566/ More photos of the market place where the witch burning was filmed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoaqIapj0dI Video of the village settings from the Babelsburg film studio

Pictures about "Why was the depiction of the town changed at the end?"

Why was the depiction of the town changed at the end? - Distant person on labyrinth path

Why was the depiction of the town changed at the end? - Unrecognizable African American activist in golden Anonymous mask standing near building on street in town and looking at camera

Why was the depiction of the town changed at the end? - Unrecognizable black man in stylish clothes and Anonymous mask standing in local market in city and looking at camera in sunny day

What happens at the end of The Town?

In the cut of "The Town" that made it to theaters, after the big heist at the end of the movie goes south and everyone else in Doug's crew is killed, he manages to get away with a big bag of cash. In getting ready to leave town, he makes a last-ditch effort to see if he can get away with Claire (Rebecca Hall).

Why was there an orange at the end of The Town?

Doug put the orange in there as a sign that he is still wishing to see Claire. The ball now is in Claire's court. In the beginning of the movie, Doug also mentioned Tangerine which is a real place in Orange County, Florida.

What is the alternate ending of The Town?

The Alternate-cut has the same changes as the Extended-cut except it uses the novel's ending. When Doug goes for the car, Alex, the gangster that got sandbagged in the apartment shows up with two of his accomplices. He shoots Doug dead.

Is The Town extended cut better?

As such, the extended cut of The Town adds a great deal of depth to the film. It's not that the original was shallow or anything, but there's a lot of little additions which add up to a much more.

The Beginning Of The End

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