Disney is making
gold out of its animated classics
like The Jungle Book and now Beauty and the Beast, a glorious, live
action remake featuring a captivating performance by Emma Watson who has grown
leaps and bounds from her Harry Potter
years.
Once
upon a time, a girl, Belle (Watson), has dreams beyond her village and is
desired by a narcissistic Gaston (Luke Evans).
When her father (Kevin Kline, always a delight) disappears, she searches
for him and finds an obscure, cursed castle ruled by an angry beast (Dan
Stevens) with a haunted past that only her love can redeem.
This
is a dream supporting cast (Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson, and
Audra McDonald) among many more who spend a good portion of the story as animated-inanimate objects who are given emotional
poignancy. Josh Gad almost steals the film as Gaston’s feisty companion. (The
film also makes a point of integrating its entire cast to reflect a real, inclusive
world.)
Director
Bill Condon (Dreamgirls) knows how to
make a good musical, and he takes the
hallowed ground of the beloved, animated
feature and embellishes it into a gorgeous production enhanced by creative sets
and costumes with stunning visual effects. Aside from a few tweaks to characters
and subplot, nothing much has changed, and the two major set pieces in the
original are given a grand reenactment:“Be Our Guest” and the title song. Alan
Menken has adapted his original songs (written with the late Howard Ashman and
Tim Rice) and score to great effect.
Beauty and the
Beast has (with La
La Land ) resurrected the movie musical, and despite its legendary
pedigree, this lush version is a joy. “Be our guest!”
****
of **** stars
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