Beauty and the Beast

I went with friends to tonight to see the "new" Beauty and the Beast, a nearly shot-for-shot remake of the 1991 Best Picture nominee Disney animated classic. I have to admit that this is not my favorite Disney animated musical, and I wasn't all too excited for this live action version.

Going in with low expectations helps. It also helps seeing a film with a group of friends. I think if I had seen it by myself I would have liked it less. But with a bunch of my friends I enjoyed myself, even if the film is less than perfect.

The story of a bookish girl with dreams outside of her small town who eventually falls in love with the beast who has forced her to stay with him works a lot better when the characters are animated. It helps me suspend disbelief. The CGI beast, even voiced by Dan Stevens, seemed slightly ridiculous. The animated film is wonderfully colorful. The live-action film is lacking in color, most notably in the "Be Our Guest" segment.

It was great hearing the familiar songs again, but I didn't like any of the new songs. Backstory for characters was pointless.

This all sounds very negative, but I did actually enjoy the movie. Surprisingly, I enjoyed Gaston the most. In the animated film he is clearly a jerk. He's still a jerk in the live-action version, but he seems less treacherous and more preening as played by Luke Evans.