1991
·84m
Beauty and the Beast
Summary
Follow the adventures of Belle, a bright young woman who finds herself in the castle of a prince who's been turned into a mysterious beast. With the help of the castle's enchanted staff, Belle soon learns the most important lesson of all -- that true beauty comes from within.
Director
Gary Trousdale
Director
Kirk Wise
Novel
Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont
Screenplay
Linda Woolverton
Story
Joe Ranft
Story
Kelly Asbury
Story
Brian Pimental
Story
Roger Allers
Story
Brenda Chapman
Story
Burny Mattinson
Story
Chris Sanders
Story
Robert Lence
Story
Tom Ellery
Story
Kevin Harkey
Story
Bruce Woodside
Reviews
Geronimo1967
March 28, 2022
This is a magical animated interpretation of the Jeanne-Marie de Beaumont fairy tale. A handsome, but vain and selfish, Prince finds himself on the wrong end of a curse - and is condemned to live a life of solitude, hideously disfigured - until someone falls in love with him and breaks the spell. Meantime, "Belle" is living in the village trying to avoid the endless amorous attentions of local beefcake "Gaston". Her father is travelling through the forest when he becomes caught up in a storm and seeks shelter in the Prince's castle - but he picks a rose and is duly imprisoned. When "Belle" discovers he is missing and follows his horse back to the castle, she manages to get the Prince to agree to swap; they gradually get to know each other and... He has an array of servants who all shared his curse and were transmogrified along with their boss - "Lumière" the butler/candlestick rules the roost with "Cogworth", "Madame de Garderobe" and the wonderful "Mrs. Potts" (Angela Lansbury) as the teapot/housekeeper with her little "Chip". All of these characterisations fit the mood perfectly and as the story develops each one becomes more engaging and sympathetic to their poor inflicted master's predicament, as we build to the really quite tense, but satisfying denouement. The songs - and the singing - are superb; the artwork and colours bring it all to life and the script is fast and funny. It's a thoroughly enjoyable demonstration that looks aren't everything...
