In both the MGM version and the original Grimm tale, it follows the tale of Hansel Gretel and showing their journey into the woods and finding the gingerbread house of the witch. In both versions, you can see the closeness of the siblings and how they want to make sure each other is safe. In the end, Gretel ends up saving them both from the witch. In both versions, the mother sends them away in the forest but with completely different intentions. In the tale, the stepmother sends the siblings away to make food last longer in the household. In the film, she tells the children to pick berries and to not come home empty-handed. The children wandered into the woods and followed the voices to the house of the witch.
Some differences between the two would be how many times Hansel and Gretel went into the woods. In the tale, the stepmother attempts to get rid of them twice. The first time, Hansel uses the pebbles from outside of the house and returns to the house during the night. The second time, Hansel uses the breadcrumbs to try to remember the pathway back home, but the birds ate the crumbs. This also appears in the film when Hansel attempts to use the cookie crumbs that Gretel received from the baker to remember the pathway back home. In the film, they incorporated gingerbread men, which were the children that she captured before them. In the tale, it doesn’t mention the children she captured before, but it talks about how she can smell the children that approach her house. 
