Beauty and the Beast – Film Review

Rating: PG
Running time: 129 mins
Release date (cinemas): 17th March 2017
Genre: Fantasy / Romance

The film version of Beauty and the Beast is one that has been eagerly awaited. Both by myself and the world over. The story of Beauty and the Beast has been one I have loved since I was a child and I read my first Ladybird edition of it. The Disney cartoon and accompanying soundtrack has always been wonderful.

I had to wait patiently to be able to see it at the cinema, and managed to take my children to see it over Easter. The film had a lot to live up to, the hype over it was pretty huge and Disney have been pushing the marketing on it months prior to release, giving us all little snippets to wet our appetite. I sometimes find when a film is over-hyped I am disappointed when I finally see it at the cinema. I needn’t have worried.

I think it’s fair to say I loved the film. It’s visually stunning and overall enchanting. Everything I loved about the animated version of the film has recreated beautifully. The film played homage to its predecessor and took it up to a new level. Emma Watson was wonderful as Belle, strong, independent and bookish – of course. I had serious library envy let me tell you.

There were elements of the film that were darker and more sinister. From the spooky ominous castle, to of course the wolves. I took both of my children to see the film – my son who is 5 and my daughter who is very nearly 3. I had seen some people discussing as to whether the film was ok for younger children, and I have to say there are a couple of scary moments my daughter didn’t like and asked for a hug and buried her face in my side. She was ok and she still really enjoyed the film, but she did tell me that she found the wolves scary afterwards.

As an adult viewer, I loved the slightly more gothic elements. It’s not very feminist of me, but I enjoyed the romance with a rescue scene too, the beast rescuing the defiant beauty. The romance itself was lovely, as this classic tale teaches us about falling in love with the person inside and that it’s about outward appearances.

As well as the fabulous aforementioned library, the ballroom scene is equally stunning. The combination of the music and costumes was spellbinding. I’ve seen reviews on IMDB and I have to admit I’m dumbstruck by why some of them are so low. I left the cinema thinking if I had it on DVD I would go home and watch it all over again.

I should of course make a mention to some of the cast from the superb Ewan McGregor as the candlestick Lumière, to Ian McKellen as Codsworth the clock and Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts the tea pot. Dan Stevens as the Beast was a relative unknown to me as was Luke Evans as Gaston, but they were both excellent. Luke Evans in particularly hammed up the part of Gaston with finesse. There’s no one like Gaston after all!

Verdict:

A wonderful remake of a classic film that was enchanting, visually stunning and fully submerges you into this well known fairytale. I can’t wait for it to be out on DVD.