Gaston and LeFou

Rating: 4/10 (13 April 2017)

This movie should have been called Gaston and LeFou because they share more chemistry than the titular characters. I'm convinced that the casting of Emma Watson had more to do with cashing in on name recognition than acting ability. After all, the generation that grew up with Beauty and the Beast also grew up with Harry Potter. Unfortunately, Watson seems to have graduated from the Kristen Stewart school of acting that entails keeping the same blank expression with her mouth slightly agape. I could forgive her auto tuned singing if she had brought some interesting characterization to Belle but she didn't. It doesn't help that a lot of the dialog in this film is directly copied from the script of the 1991 animated version because it leads to unfavorable comparisons. Also, the Beast's CGI looks terrible. They should have stuck with practical effects. Speaking of the Beast, he doesn't show the same range of emotions that the animated one does and is completely forgettable. The only musical number in which anyone looks like they are having any fun is "Gaston." Speaking of musical numbers, the only thing more disappointing than Emma Watson's singing is Emma Thompson's singing. The entire ballroom scene falls flat because of her. Why not cast Audra McDonald as Mrs. Potts?
TLDR: Don't waste your time, just watch the animated film