I’m not gonna lie. Going into this movie, I was kind of expecting the worst. But my negative expectations were debunked (not completely but mostly) and I, honestly, thoroughly enjoyed sitting through the live action re-telling of one of Disney’s most beloved classic animated films, Beauty and the Beast.
The story is a tale as old as time. The live-action feature film did not deviate that much from the old storytelling but gave it an aged yet modern (Is there such a thing??) twist that made you remember what it was like to dream of castles, far-off places, and princes in the disguises.
It was a fantasmical visual treat, CGI and reality blended seamlessly together that it made you sort of wonder where one started and ended in the first place.
What I Loved:
- All the musical numbers! The “Be Our Guest” and the “Gaston” song & dance numbers, though very different from each other, provided most of the entertainment. It was extremely vexing not to sing along!
- The costume design! I’m a sucker for period films and it seemed like this film was set in Baroque France? It reminded me of that Kirsten Dunst “Marie Antoinette” movie, what with the powdered faces, rouged cheeks, and tall, white curled wigs, HAHA. But even more so, just the simplest of tunics on Belle, up to the frayed royal coat of Beast, the attention to detail on the costumes was dazzling!
- The substance. One noticeably great thing about this live-action film, and how it greatly defers from its animated predecessor, is how they provided a backstory not only for Belle, but for Beast, and a little bit for Gaston, as well. Now, it’s not just some conceited prince going on a beastly rampage, it’s not just a daughter’s deep love for a father, it becomes much more than that.
What I Didn’t Love:
- You can all hate me for this but. The autotune. All the goddamn autotune. Please, someone, just stop Belle from singing. The audio quality of the voices (save for Gaston’s and Le Foo’s) was really sub-par for a Disney Princess movie.
- Emma Watson’s face. Though I didn’t love the original animated version of Beauty and the Beast, I did like how expressive Belle was. You could clearly see her feelings through her eyes, her eyebrows, and her facial expressions. Emma Watson, for me, spent half of the movie with her brows furrowed with concern and the other half with the barest amount of emotion on her face.
- The less than orgasmic yellow ball gown, haha. Need I say more?
- There’s something… lacking. I won’t deny that this move is a beautiful one. It really is! But I felt it lacked the glitz and glamour that came with a Disney Princess movie. Maybe because the characters were on the big screen and they didn’t need to exaggerate movement or emotions? I don’t know. But I didn’t have any hair-raising, goosebump-worthy moments. Even for Be Our Guest, huhu.
All of you know I’m a sucker for Disney Princess films. Heck, if I could be one, I’d choose to be one in a heartbeat. LOL. But Beauty and the Beast didn’t really resonate within my wannabe Disney Princess soul. IDK why. Maybe it was the furries involved. HAHA.
This movie was extremely entertaining and I would tell people that it’s “maganda” (beautiful) but it still didn’t turn my heart to really “love LOVE” Beauty and the Beast. It did, however, give me a nostalgic reminder of how Disney has always been in the fondest places in my heart.
It’s a great movie to watch, there’s no boredom at all, the pacing is quite fast and you don’t really get enough room to breathe or blink, but that’s fine! So go ahead and be their guest, it still really does deserve that seat in the movie house.
P.S. Thank you to Globe Telecom for the tickets to their screening last March 17! #LoveThatMoves
*Images from IMDB.com
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