Just not perfect and too cheesy in parts

Rating: 8/10 (20 May 2017)

I wasn't sure how this movie was going to go at first. I thought it was a little cheesy in parts, which Disney usually tries to avoid. I believe the Character of Gaston was overplayed by Luke Evans to the point that I found him irritating (and not in the way he was supposed to). He was just too Westend-like and he was clichéd in his characterisation. He turned into Michael Ball every five minutes and over-enunciated his English. For a movie set in France, everyone was, well, not French. We had Cockneys, an American, and absolutely no French actors. I felt this took away the mystique. Having an English actor playing a French candlestick was a bad move, the accent was off a lot. Why producers think films like this can't be a hit without well known actors is beyond me. Emma Watson was natural and not cheesy. Ian McKellern spoke, as always and never tries anything more challenging. The songs were okay, but I've watched it five minutes ago and I can't remember a single one of them, but for the melody of the closing song. For a movie, essentially about Bestiality it makes a good yarn. I did enjoy it, but this could have been made extraordinary with a little better attention to detail, which is Disney's forte and casting. It will do better in the USA, because it will pander to their stereotyping - will we ever get a movie with an English person, who isn't a Cockney? or a non-existent posh stuffed shirt? I thought the CGI of the beast to be clunky and not natural at times, particularly when walking, I think that could have been so much better done. The facial features were also a bit too unrealistic. The story is a good one, the script very good and when Gaston wasn't on screen, it immersed you in it. Then the mystique disappeared as soon as he spoke, or even stood in his West End clichéd stance. He was a mistake in my view. Taking away that Stuffy, cheesy West End style would have served the movie better and although no one else really dropped to his standards, it was still a bit cheesy in parts. If you are going to have a foreign actor in a movie please God cast one from that country, or at least someone with a faultless accent. Emma Watson carried this movie completely, along with Kevin Kline and Emma Thompson, who is always brilliant. They had to get one American in there and he was very good. All in all, I'd watch it again, but will forever hate the badly miscast Gaston and I'd definitely recommend it. Was it worth the hype? just!