Theaters were made for the movies such as “Beauty and The Beast,” as it must be seen and experienced on the huge screen.
With a production price tag of $160 million, this is the most expensive musical ever made. But it is the story telling that is the winner here, even with a known plot.
With all the additional background stories, character developments, and new songs, it was perfect for me. Those additions made Belle and Beast’s love story even more believable.
Emma Watson was a huge fan of the original, Beauty and The Beast. She released that she would be playing the role of Belle before it even went on record. She told her fans that her “6-year-old self is on the ceiling — heart bursting.”
In this film, Belle is the inventor, instead of Maurice. The reason behind this is because Watson wanted Belle to get her own backstory, about why she is treated differently by the villagers.
Even still, the movie highlight is the glamor. Belle’s ballroom gown required 3,000 feet of thread and over 12,000 designer hours to complete. It was accentuated with 2,160 Swarovski crystals. This is every girl’s princess dream.
As a live-action remake of the much loved, classic, animated film, Beauty and the Beast lives up to the hype. Most of the songs from the animated version are in the film and sound quite similar to those in the animated film. All this makes viewers nostalgic for the old film.
The acting is what one would expect from such a huge cast. — Luke Evans as Gaston and Josh Gad as LeFou, are especially spectacular, as they add humor to their already well-developed characters.
The songs and the music are prodigious, and live up to Disney standards. The cinematography is also pronounced, with long sweeping shots during the musical sequences. The shots of the setting and of the castle are amazing.
No description can do justice to the amazing design and the spectacular use of CGI. I was worried about what the Beast and the objects in the castle might look like in a live-action movie, but Disney outdid itself, which is easy to do with amazing imagination and an unlimited budget.
The new characters add diversity as well as humor. As a princess movie with a lot of clichés in it, it’s awesome to see some variety.
Alan Menken is a living miracle. He does things with a musical score and songs that defy emotions. The new songs are brilliant, especially Beast’s song of pain over losing Belle. This movie dazzled me visually, musically, and emotionally. Go see it on the big screen.
By Teri Bayus
