Synopsis
Walt Disney Pictures’ magical animated classic “Beauty and the Beast” captures the magical journey of Belle (voice of Paige O’Hara), an independent and intelligent, modern-day heroine who’s taken prisoner by a hideous beast (voice of Robby Benson) in his castle. Despite her precarious situation, Belle befriends the castle’s enchanted staff—a teapot, a candelabra and a mantel clock, among others—and ultimately learns to see beneath the Beast’s exterior to discover the heart and soul of a prince.
I usually don’t gush over movies and their visuals until after talk about the film itself, but I have to after witnessing this Blu-ray beauty. Walt Disney Studios, who has been known to transfer some of its classics over to HD nearly flawlessly, even the older classics like Pinocchio (it was transferred so well that in some scenes you can see the pencil marks), went and pulled off yet another beautiful transfer with Beauty and the Beast. The picture is so clear and free of flaw that you’ll probably swear up and down it was digitally recreated. It’s positively stunning to watch on Blu-ray. It’s truly another classic in the Disney Blu-ray visual vault.
Anyway, enough gushing, let’s talk film.
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The story of Beauty and the Beast is one of the best of the Disney bunch from the 90s. The movie is so incredibly powerful, brutal at times, and endearing, especially when the Beast and Belle realize how important they are to one another. The movie does a great job with presenting a strong three-act structure that does a phenomenal job of developing main characters, while catering to and feeding a strong story with visuals and emotions. It’s basically a nearly perfect film.
The movie starts by explaining the Beast’s origins. His refusal to give an old beggar shelter in his castle in exchange for a rose lands a him one-way ticket to Beast-ville by the hands of the beggar, who is secretly a sorceress. Humiliated, humbled and bitter, the Beast holes himself up in the castle, destined to live alone away in his shame. Fast-forward a few years, a bookworm named Belle, who refuses to be the prize of any man — especially Gaston the village brute, finds herself at the mercy of the Beast when her father accidentally finds shelter in the Beast’s castle after being chased by a pack of wolves. The Beast, who doesn’t appreciate visitors, ends up trapping Belle’s father in the castle, refusing to let him go. When Belle shows up to retrieve him, she has to make a deal with the Beast to stay forever in the castle in exchange for her father’s freedom.
Brutal stuff to end act one.
The first act of the film is beautifully written with the perfect amount of exposition to develop the main characters, the situation and the world which both Beast and beauty live within. Even with the songs attached, the movie flows smoothly and just feels very balanced from the get-go. Again, everything is just so darned balanced and perfect in terms of characters and script. The visuals don’t hurt either.
If the situation in act one didn’t feel sad and uncertain, the relationship build between the Beast and Belle in act two will just up the ante to drive those things home. The second act begins with Belle’s father trying to convince the villagers that there is a Beast that has his daughter, which no one truly buys, even Gaston. From that point, the story shifts focus to Beast and Belle and their back and forth banter from their personality friction. The Beast demands things his way, while the independent Belle doesn’t give ground. Both personalities clash in a horrifying crescendo when the Beast erupts into a ball of uncontrollable anger when Belle tours a side of the castle, which contains the Beast’s rose, that the Beast warned her not to explore. The Beast chases Belle outside of the castle, which leads her into the paws of hungry wolves. The Beast fights the wolves off and the pair begin to understand each other. Finally on the same level with each other, and without the brutish anger or defiance, a romantic evening between the couple buds, which sadly ends with Belle seeing a magic mirror that reveals her father dying. The second act concludes with Belle being allowed to save her father, but given a short amount of time to do so by the Beast.
The second act is absolutely stunning. It treats the shift in tone so well. You get well-developed tension between the main characters with well-placed resolve. In between there is some beautiful music that is addictive (you’ll be singing it) and the first taste of CGI in an animated film. It’s a complete package that fits perfectly with the first and third act.
The third act starts with Belle helping her father home, only to find out that Gaston wants to lock him up for being ‘crazy’. After finding out that the Beast is a real thing, Gaston convinces the villagers to go kill him and a great fight at the end ensues. I don’t want to reveal the final moments of the movie, though you could probably guess — it is a Disney film, but the third act is just as amazing as the rest of the movie. It ends on a tension filled fight and the characters stay true to their form — almost. It’s just a great way to end an epic story.
Overall, Beauty and the Beast is one of the darker tales in the Disney vault. It’s not quite The Black Cauldron, but it certainly has some frightening moments that travel right to and through the Beast. The dark tone is helped out and lightened up by the exquisite soundtrack, which features some of the best songs of any Disney flick. It’s the full package and definitely one of my favorites.
If that wasn’t enough for you, the Blu-ray is loaded with features, which include two additional versions of the film. Here’s what to expect in the full package:
Film versions:
– Original theatrical version
– New advanced sing-along version
– Extended version with “Human Again” song sequence
Features:
– Menken & Friends: 25 Years of Musical Inspiration
– #1074: Walt, Fairy Tales & Beauty and the Beast
– Always Belle
– The Recording Sessions
– 25 Fun Facts About Beauty and the Beast
– “Beauty and The Beast” Sneak Peek
It doesn’t seem like a lot is there, but the features are darn good compliments to the movie. Lots of great value added with this list. You won’t be disappointed.
Anyway, onto the summary!
