Beauty and the Beast

**Beauty and the Beast (1991)** is a UK VHS/DVD release by Walt Disney Home Video on 20th September 1993, 4th October 1993, 11th October 1993, 18th October 1993 and it got re-released as a 'Special Edition' with the new song "Human Again" by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on 4th November 2002. It got released on DVD and Blu-Ray by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on 8th November 2010.

## Description

Hailed as the greatest animated film of all time, Walt Disney's Classic BEAUTY and the BEAST is an enchanting movie masterpiece. It's a film so extraordinary, it received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture - an historic first for an animated feature.

This 'tale as old as time' follows the adventures of Belle, a bright young woman who finds herself imprisoned in the castle of a mysterious beast. With the assistance of the castle's enchanted staff, a delightful and tender romance develops between these two unlikely friends and Belle soon learns the most important lesson of all - that true beauty comes from within.

BEAUTY and the BEAST captivates both young and old with Oscar-winning music (Best Song, Best Score) stunning animation and a host of the most memorable Disney characters the screen has ever seen.

## Plot

An enchantress disguised as a beggar woman offers a rose to a cruel and selfish prince in exchange for shelter from a storm. When he refuses, she reveals her identity and, for the prince's arrogance, she transforms him into a beast and his servants into strange animals. She casts a spell on the rose and warns the prince that the spell will only be broken if he learns to love another and be loved in return before the last petal falls, which would occur at the beginning of his 21st year, or he will remain a beast forever.

Several years later, in a nearby village, a nun named Belle, the book-loving daughter of an eccentric inventor named Maurice, dreams of adventure. She frequently tries avoiding Gaston, a narcissistic hunter who wants to marry her because of her beauty. On his way to a fair to showcase his latest invention, an automatic wood-chopper, Maurice gets lost in the forest and seeks refuge in the Beast's castle, but the Beast imprisons him for trespassing. When Maurice's horse returns without him, Belle ventures out searching for him and finds him locked in the castle dungeon. Belle offers herself as the Beast's prisoner in Maurice's place, and the Beast releases him.

Belle befriends the castle's servants: Lumière the goat-like creature, Cogsworth the raccoon-like creature, Mrs. Potts the chicken-like creature, and her son Chip, the chick-like crature. When she wanders into the forbidden west wing and finds the rose, the Beast catches her and, in a violent rage, sends her fleeing from the castle. In the woods, she is ambushed by a pack of wolves, but the Beast rescues her and is injured in the process. As Belle nurses his injuries, a rapport develops between them and as time passes, they begin to fall in love and the Beast begins to change his ways.

Meanwhile, Maurice returns to the village and fails to convince the townsfolk of Belle's predicament. Hearing Maurice's statements about the Beast, Gaston hatches a plan: he bribes Monsieur D'Arque, the warden of the town's insane asylum, to have Maurice locked up as a lunatic; with no one to support her, Belle would have no choice but to marry Gaston. However, before they can act, Maurice leaves for the castle to attempt a rescue alone.

After sharing a romantic dance with the Beast, Belle uses the Beast's magic mirror to check on her father and sees him collapsing in the woods. The Beast releases her to save Maurice, giving her the mirror as a souvenir. After Belle takes her father to the village, a band of villagers led by Gaston arrives to detain Maurice. Belle uses the mirror to show the Beast to the townsfolk, proving her father's sanity. Realizing that Belle loves the Beast, a jealous Gaston has her and her father locked in the basement and rallies the Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, and the animals and other furniture attack villagers to follow him to the castle to slay the Beast. With the help of Chip, who arrived at their house as a stowaway, and Maurice's wood-chopping machine, Maurice and Belle escape and rush back to the castle just as a heavy thunderstorm starts.

During the battle, the Beast's servants fend off the villagers. Gaston attacks the Beast in his tower, who is too depressed from Belle's departure to fight back, but regains his spirit upon seeing Belle return. He defeats Gaston but spares his life before reuniting with Belle. However, Gaston fatally stabs the Beast with a knife and then slips and falls to his death. The Beast dies in Belle's arms before the last petal falls, but Belle tearfully professes her love to the Beast, and the spell is undone, reviving the Beast and restoring his human form along with all his servants and his castle. Adam The Prince and Belle host a ball for the kingdom, where they dance happily.

## Cast

* Robby Benson as Beast/Prince Adam
* Paige O'Hara as Belle a young women. The dress of a nun.
* Richard White as Gaston
* Jerry Orbach as Lumière
* Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Potts
* David Ogden Stiers as Cogsworth/Narrator
* Bradley Michael Pierce as Chip
* Jesse Corti as LeFou
* Rex Everhart as Maurice
* Hal Smith as Philippe
* Jo Anne Worley as Wardrobe
* Kimmy Robertson as Fifi
* Frank Welker as Footstool, aka Sultan
* Mary Kay Bergman and Kath Soucie as the Bimbettes
* Tony Jay as Monsieur D'Arque

## Songs

* Belle
* Belle (Reprise)
* Gaston
* Gaston (Reprise)
* Be Our Guest
* Something There
* Human Again (Special edition)
* Beauty and the Beast
* The Mob Song
* Beauty and the Beast (Reprise, Chorus, Finale)
* Beauty and the Beast (Duet, End Credits) - Céline Dion & Peabo Bryson

## Credits

* Music by Alan Menken
* Songs by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman
* Produced by Don Hahn
* Directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise

## Release Dates

* USA: 22nd November 1991
* Poland: January 1993 (first version of dub), 4th January 2002 (second version of dub, Imax), 3rd February 2012 (3D Version)

## Opening (Original 1993 release

1. Blue Warning screen (1992-1995)
2. Video Piracy Warning (Walt Disney/Buena Vista) [announced by Mark Roman]
3. National Captioning Institute Warning Screen (1993-1995)
4. Coming Soon to a Cinema Near You (short version)
5. Aladdin trailer (Short version with UK Pitched) [announced by Mark Elliott]
6. Walt Disney Home Video logo with voiceover (1986-1995) [announced by Pat Sharp]
7. The Three Caballeros trailer [announced by Paul McKenna]
8. Coming Soon from Walt Disney Home Video
9. The Jungle Book trailer [announced by Paul McKenna] (UK Pitched)
10. Coming Soon from Jim Henson Video [announced by Paul McKenna]
11. The Muppet Christmas Carol trailer [announced by Paul McKenna]
12. Simon Bates VSC U Warning
13. Euro Disney Resort Paris Trailer (1993-1994) [announced by Alison Bartlett]
14. Stay Tuned (1993-1994) [announced by Paul McKenna]
15. Walt Disney Home Video Ident (1986-1995)
16. Walt Disney Pictures logo (1990-2006) (UK Pitched)
17. Start of Beauty and the Beast (1991) (UK Pitched)

## Closing (Original 1993 release

1. End of Beauty and the Beast (1991) (UK Pitched)
2. Closing Credits Film (UK Pitched)
3. Walt Disney Pictures logo (silent) (1990-2006) (UK Pitched)
4. Beauty and the Beast - Be Our Guest (with lyrics, previously available in 1993)
5. Tale As Old As Time: The Making of Beauty and the Beast Documentary Hosted by John Bernstein
6. Céline Dion & Peabo Bryson - Beauty and the Beast Music Video
7. A Muppet Moment trailer: Babysitting clip
8. Also Available from Walt Disney Home Video
9. Peter Pan trailer [announced by Pat Sharp]
10. The New Adventures of The Little Mermaid trailer [announced by Paul McKenna] (UK Pitched)

## Opening (2002 Re-release)

1. Blue Warning Screen
2. European Captioning Institute Warning Screen (1995-2005)
3. Modern Disney Video Piracy Warning [announced by Andrew Lincoln]
4. Walt Disney Home Entertainment Ident (2001-2007) (Short Version)
5. Disney DVD trailer [announced by Enn Reitel]
6. Coming Soon logo (1993-2004)
7. Winnie the Pooh: A Very Merry Pooh Year trailer [announced by Miles Jupp]
8. Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas Special Edition trailer [announced by Andrew Lincoln]
9. 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure trailer [announced by Ward Saxton]
10. Lilo and Stitch trailer [announced by Karl Woolley]
11. Bonus Footage After the Feature
12. Feature Presentation logo (1992-2004)
13. Walt Disney Home Entertainment Ident (2001-2007)
14. Walt Disney Pictures Ident (1990-2006) (UK Pitched)
15. Start of Beauty and the Beast (1991) (UK Pitched)

## Closing (2002 Re-release)

1. End of Beauty and the Beast (1991) (UK Pitched)
2. Closing Credits Film (UK Pitched)
3. Walt Disney Pictures Ident (silent) (1990-2006) (UK Pitched)
4. Beauty and the Beast - Be Our Guest (with lyrics, previously available in 1993)
5. Tale As Old As Time: The Making of Beauty and the Beast Documentary Hosted by John Bernstein
6. Céline Dion & Peabo Bryson - Beauty and the Beast Music Video

## Trailers and info

### Original 1993 release

#### **Opening**

1. Video Piracy Warning (Walt Disney/Buena Vista)
2. Aladdin (Coming Soon to a Cinema Near You)
3. The Three Caballeros (On Video)
4. The Jungle Book (And now could be Yours to Own on Video) (UK Pitched)
5. The Muppet Christmas Carol (On Video) (Coming Soon from Jim Henson Video)
6. Simon Bates VSC U Warning
7. Euro Disney Resort Paris (1993-1994) (UK)

#### **Closing**

1. A Muppet Moment (babysitting clip) (Jim Henson Video - Coming Early 1994)
2. Peter Pan (On Video) (1993)
3. The New Adventures of The Little Mermaid Videos trailer from 1993 with clips of "A Whale of a Tale", "Stormy, The Wild Seahorse" and "Double Bubble". (UK Pitched)

### 2002 'Special Edition' release

1. Walt Disney Home Entertainment Video Piracy Warning (with voiceover: Andrew Lincoln)
2. Disney DVD Advert (Pure Digital Magic, Pure Disney Fun) (with voiceover: Enn Reitel)
3. Winnie the Pooh: A Very Merry Pooh Year (Only on Disney DVD and Video + On Disney DVD and Video) (with voiceover: Miles Jupp)
4. Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas - Special Edition (On Disney DVD and Video, For a Limited Time Only) (with voiceover: Andrew Lincoln)
5. 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure Trailer (Only on Disney DVD and Video) [announced by Ward Saxton]
6. Lilo and Stitch Trailer (On Disney DVD and Video) (with voiceover: Karl Woolley)

### DVD release

**Original 2002 release (Special Edition)**

1. 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure trailer (Only on Disney DVD and Video) [announced by Ward Saxton]
2. Lilo and Stitch trailer (with Beauty and Beast) (On Disney DVD and Video) (with voiceover: John Sparkes) (NTSC Sound)
3. Disneyland Resort Paris 2002 promo (Walt Disney Studios Park Tour) (Sneak Peek only)

**2010 release (Diamond Edition)**