by William Kriescher
Who isn’t a fan of Disney? We all love them. However, when I heard they were making a live action movie of Beauty and the Beast I couldn’t get hyped; I’d seen the cartoon so many times. One of the reasons I did go and see the film was because it supposedly contained some ‘controversial’ homosexual themes. Would Disney really address the 21st century topic of gay love? Sadly, Disney went with the PG version.
Beauty and the Beast is a loyal adaptation from its original. The high-quality acting from a cast consisting of actors like Emma Watson and Ian McKellen made every second a pleasure to watch. The sheer talent on screen takes your breath away.
What about those iconic scenes from the original? My biggest fear going in was that these scenes would not live up to my expectations. Fear not, they remain as fantastical and stunning in live action. We all know the ballroom scene from the original movie – Belle’s yellow dress swaying as the couple dance around the floor to one of the most perfect songs in Disney movie history. This film did not make $357 million dollars in its opening weekend by disappointing fans.
The biggest issue with Beauty and the Beast is the singing. For 90% of the songs the singing is superb. However, during the quieter moments it is possible to hear the grind of auto tune that makes a musical feel slightly more mechanical than it should. If noticed, it can be a very big distraction from the superb acting that (for example) Luke Evans puts into Gaston.
This is a film that will not disappoint even the most hardcore fans of the original, it is well and truly worth going to watch. If you’re going to procrastinate this exam season, you might as well do it at the cinema.
