Breathtakingly Beautiful

Rating: 10/10 (11 April 2017)

Beauty and the Beast was by far my favourite Disney film growing up. So, naturally, I approached this live action version with some trepidation. I was worried they would ruin a classic, destroy a cherished childhood memory. Luckily they did not. Far from it in fact.
Director Bill Conden and Co have treated it with respect and love. The film they produced is gorgeous in it's nuances and beautiful in it's imagery. The cast do a stellar job of bringing the characters to life, developing their backstories and adding little twists and nods that enhance our understanding of them.
Even if some of the casting choices seemed a little unorthodox (Ewan McGregor as Lumiere and Emma Thompson as Mrs Potts) at first they grow on you and charm you as the film goes on. Indeed, the most unorthodox bit of casting, Emma Watson as the princess of the piece, proved to be the perfect choice for the role. Yes, admittedly, her singing could be better but it was not as auto-tuned as the media claimed it was and actually it sounds both lovely and sweet. Watson, herself, is lively and charismatic shouldering the weight of the film, as Atlas shouldered the world, with grace and delicacy. There was enough of Hermione in her characterisation which were already parts of Belle's character (the love of books, kindness of heart and her yellow dress moment being a grown up deja vu moment of the Yule Ball staircase scene in Goblet of Fire)
Another area of contention for the film, largely exaggerated by the media, was the introduction of Disney's first openly gay character in LeFou. In my opinion he always was gay, anyway, so I didn't see the big deal about the live action version of him. The gay moments, of which there are actually quite a few, are subtle and sweet and funny. A moment in the battle with LeFou's future love is really quite risqué by Disney's standards (Stanley loving how he looks in the fabulous dress) but it, and the other moments, are treated with great gentleness by the actors.
I will admit that I was somewhat disappointed with the Be Our Guest scene. That song is the showstopping moment in the cartoon version but here, although it does its best and is a whirlwind of colour, has something missing. They crammed several references to other Disney and musical things within it and it rushes through without really taking a breath.
The boys steal the film. Gaston is wonderfully butch and stupid, but also has backstory added with him being a war veteran. You can tell that he genuinely cares for Belle but as LeFou points out he is the real monster; hidden and now released. The Beast is magnificent. Again he has backstory and it was nice to see him a little before the curse; seeing how awful he was gives his character a good arc to redemption. I defy anyone, male or female, not to fall in love with Dan Stephens in this role. His rendition of Evermore is the highlight of the soundtrack and I shall lose all faith in the awards panels if they do not give that best song for every award going. Yes the Beast is cruel at first but you fall in love with him as Belle does. Their chemistry is wonderful and the moment after the transformation is heartbreakingly beautiful in the subtlety of their acting. In this version I did not prefer him as the beast to the prince, as I had with the cartoon version. In the live action version I loved both of them.
This is a wonderful film, both thrilling and uplifting. Just as Disney ought to be. I sincerely hope they continue in this fashion and remake many of their classics with the same love as they have with this Tale as Old as Time.