Movie Review: Beauty and the Beast (2017)

Normally, I will go into any kind of remake with apprehension, and let's look at this:  It's a remake of an adaptation of a commonly-adapted fairy tale.  Using that logic, there really should be nothing new they can bring to the story, right?  So why am I so full of anticipation?  WHY?  Why am I more hopeful than anxious?  Because it's my favorite Disney movie being made with two of my favorite current actors?  Yeah...yeah, that's probably it.  So, I'm definitely prepared for everything to completely suck, but I'm crazy-excited about it in spite of myself.  Here's what I got:

You're immediately sucked in with an elaborate ballroom that speaks to both fairy tales and the fantasy genre in general.  You know what's going to happen, but because they start it off with something you've never seen before, it's already magical.  It's natural and fun and it sets the tone for the rest of the film.  Even though most of the tale takes place in a foreboding, crumbling castle or in an eternally-snowing forest, it never gives off a horror vibe.  It stays firmly in a hopeful/enchanting territory with some poignant scenes throughout.  When it comes to atmosphere-it's very close to the cartoon it's based on.

Okay, characters.  Everyone's talking about the characters.  Do we like them?  Yes, yes we do.  So, as I'm walking into the theatre, I find myself being the most concerned with how Belle will be portrayed and whether she would live up to my expectations.  She's my Disney heroine-how else am I supposed to feel?!  You care about her because she's the everyman.  She walks to the beat of her very own drum and doesn't even notice how people see her.  She's really comfortable with who she is even as she's feeling like an outsider.  I can relate to that and I'm sure I'm not alone there.  I didn't know if I'd identify with her the same way and Emma Watson knocked. My. Socks. Off.  She was brilliant and kind and shrewd and she just brought so much personality with her!  To go above expectations when you're nervous about a well-known character...that's a great actor.

There wasn't a chracter in here that I didn't love...truly.  I knew Dan Stevens (The Beast) was going to be excellent, but Gaston and LeFou were both surprises!  Everyone knows Gaston...he's a cheeky, full-of-himself bastard and Luke Evans did an amazing job!  I was enthralled every time he was on-screen.  LeFou was even more unexpected as they decided to fully flesh his character out.  He's more than just a henchman, yo; and I adored every second of it!  All of the castle characters were brilliant!  I probably enjoyed Lumiere/Plumette and the Madame Garderobe (the wardrobe) the most out of that lot.  They were the most over-the-top and um...showy?  I don't know...so good.

Why else should you watch (or perhaps not watch?) this film?  They kept everything that I wanted to see from the cartoon adaptation.  Everything.  I did not feel at any point that something I was looking forward to was cut out to make room for something else.  There's a bit of genius behind that.  At the same time, there are new songs.  NEW.  There's new character development, particularly in the Beast, Belle, LeFou and Maurice.  They added some things to make it more like the original fairy tale...not much, but enough.  I'm just so freaking impressed!  As one of those folks that has BatB as her go-to favorite animated Disney film, they rocked my world with this remake.

So, to wrap this up, if you hate remakes and hate it when they do everything exactly the same or hate it when they change anything at all or hate it when they try or hate it when they don't try, just don't bother.  This is not the movie for you and I'm sure there's a really great arthouse film that will blow your mind somewhere out there.  On the other hand, if you enjoy fairy tales and magic and your head is firmly in the clouds, check this out.  It'll make you grin from ear to ear.

MEMORABLE SCENE:
The scenes they re-did stright from the cartoon that you're waiting to see (Be our guest, the Beast getting ready for his dance, the wardrobe fight scene...etc)  The Beast's song, maybe?  I don't know man, the whole damn experience was magical!

FAVORITE CHARACTER:
Well, I'm going to have to go with Belle and Gaston.  Belle because she's my most-favoritist-Disney-princess and Emma Watson owned.  Gaston because Luke Evans just played the part so well.  Impressive, truly...


QUOTE:
Cogsworth: "You know she will never love him."
Lumiere: "A broken clock is right two times a day, Cogsworth, but this is not one of those times."

RATING:
5 out of 5 hearts/stars...whatever!

RECOMMENDATIONS:
I would say...Edward Scissorhands, Twilight, The Labyrinth, Willow and The Neverending Story off the top of my head.  Basically, if it looks like it should be creepy, but it's actually supernatural and romantic...it's kind of like this!

EXTRAS:
Have you seen some of these behind-the-scenes photos?  They had an absolute riot filming this and that shows in the film every time.  I'm glad this one falls into that category!