Beauty and the Beast (2017) - Loved It

I underestimate the power of technology these days. Going into the theater, I was a little worried as to how they were going to portray an enchanted castle with talking, inanimate objects for the entire movie. I was actually impressed with that way that it turned out, I should have known. Lumiere and Cogsworth were wonderful, and their friendship in the movie was spot on with how it was in the original, maybe a little better. All the effects were good in this movie actually. The “Be Our Guest” scene was a little outrageous, but isn’t it supposed to be? The singing wardrobe and the effects used while she’s dressing Belle I think were my favorite. The feather duster was my least favorite, not really sure why she was portrayed like that. Maybe it’s just a disconnect on my end.

I was also surprised that they didn’t stray from the original animated film too much. Yes, there were some added musical sequences and some added scenes (like her going to the windmill she lived in when her mother was still alive), but it didn’t really differ from the original movie that much. I’m not sure if I wanted something different or not. I bet if they had changed a bunch of stuff, there would be outlash across the globe!! Either way I think I still would have enjoyed the film.

Emma Watson as Belle was good. Her reading books and being amazed at a huge library is nothing new to us (ahem.. Hermoine Granger) but still, she sold herself as Belle. Pretty much every actor/actress chosen in this movie sold themselves. Gaston for instance. He really wants Belle to marry him, even though he is a chauvinist pig who only cares about himself. The two character’s interactions in this film were perfect. Him asking and asking, and her shooting him down left and right. It was amusing. There were actually many parts in this movie that were funny.

The music in this film was good, again nothing different from the original other than maybe one or two songs. Catchy songs too, I think I was humming them the rest of the day after seeing it. And I liked how the castle was slowly beginning to become what they were turned into permanently, it was put together and shown well on screen. Especially their reactions to each day passing and each thing becoming more permanent.

One thing that made me made while watching this movie (which isn’t really about the movie) was the fact that there were literally ten trailers that we had to watch before the movie even started. I don’t know if it’s because this was a big billed movie, or because of the fact that it’s a Disney movie, or if it was the theater that I chose. But seriously, I was getting really frustrated with this. Who wants to sit through a more than 2 hour movie and on top of that sit through 20 minutes of trailers? A tad ridiculous.

Overall this movie was wonderful. I liked everything about it. I’ll give this movie a “Loved It” rating, but not as strong of a loved it as I’m sure everyone else is giving it. I’ll watch it again, purchase it when it comes out, and recommend it to all.

Comparison

This remake is literally a remake. A lot of the same dialogue, characters all of the same, and a lot of the same musical numbers. Obviously the only difference is one is animated and the other is live action. I think Disney has a good thing going with the live action remakes. I for one am excited for The Lion King and all the other ones that are slated for the future.

Here are some comparison pictures for your enjoyment: