I have to ask what was up with that ending but I guess that's leading to a story arc or at the very least a neat surprise for the next music movie. Still I enjoyed this one though I think some of the points you made about this movie were ones the Distressed Watcher also pointed out (why does Gaston go after Belle when he can have the three blond hotties? I guess for the challenge) but I did like pointing out why that added song didn't work as well as how the mob song had different tinges of darkness to it.
Beauty and the Beast
Written by Paw Friday, 26 August 2011 22:13
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Comments (138)
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08.26.2011 - 22:27 | Neo Ultra Mike
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08.27.2011 - 01:48 | TheMikkoPretty much just that, Gaston wasn't after her just because she was hot, but because she was something that made him even more excited, hard to attain. The whole character was about always getting his way and having life hand him all the best, so when he didn't get his way a darkness rose from his crooked heart.
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08.27.2011 - 13:00 | JoeCat
Exactly, my boy. Which, despite the general comical tones scenes involving his character were handled, actually made him a more deep and realistic antagonist than most any other Disney Villain. One of the few who simply weren't purely focused on obtaining revenge or expanding their power (aka every other Disney villain).
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Also probably the only Disney film to have an actual competent female lead, or at least one that didn't feel 'forced' to appear competent (Mulan?). Or a male lead who actually has to work to be the 'hero', not just naturally (every Disney prince up to this film) or 'suddenly' (Simba, Hercules) ideal princes/heroes/human- beings.
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Though, I don't feel the supporting cast aged well. They're all a bit 'too' cartoony. Though that may just be the result of years of physical and mental abuse (whether from Beast or Gaston), which is actually interesting to ponder.
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08.27.2011 - 11:04 | ladydiskette
lol "The Disney Lawsuit" rug, I love it.
"Ahhh yes and just put that next to 'Kimba The White Lion'and that should be good..."
Excellent review Paw.
That was a wierd ending...I wonder what it is and where it leads to, down the rabbit hole you go Paw. 0.0'
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Beauty and the Beast is a Disney classic and it is my second favourite film from the Disney renaissance, and I do have to agree that Human Again just doesn't fit into the film well. This was a great review and I hope there are many more Music Movies to come.
On a side note I really hope you do a review of The Nightmare Before Christmas. That is a film that would make a great Halloween or Christmas special(in my opinion).
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08.27.2011 - 00:00 | Gethenian
NOOOOOO I wanna know what's next! D:
Oh well. I love this series, Paw. Keep it up!
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08.27.2011 - 00:00 | LonerDreamer
Paw's reaction to Beast's human form mirrors mine EXACTLY when I first saw it... Anyways, great cliffhanger in the end! Can't wait what we're in for next time! :D
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08.27.2011 - 02:10 | BooRat
like a color palet switch of Disney's Tarzan!?
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08.27.2011 - 13:38 | JetstreamGW
Sweet Galloping Christ, Beasty was prettier when he was furry! Change it back! Change it back! I had forgotten how damn ugly he was.
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08.28.2011 - 02:06 | Moogleknight24
And Nostalgia Critic's reaction as well.
"And he turns from a beast into....whatever the hell this is." LOL
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08.27.2011 - 00:01 | PickPikminOOOOOOOOOOOO Story. Great Episode Paw
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08.27.2011 - 00:02 | Moon Spirit
Nice review, but even better ending to your show. Cliffhanger FTW!
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1. The castle is kind of like Stormwind in World of warcraft. There was a village behind or within the castle.
2. All the animals turned into objects too.
3. The enchanted objects with a face can control other objects. For example Mrs. Potts can control the sugar and cream to serve tea, or Lumier controls other objects to sing to add effect.
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08.27.2011 - 02:12 | BooRatAlso, i believe the curse pretained to his whole kingdom not just the residents of his castle. Castles didn't just excist out in the middle of nowhere they were normally surrounded by villages on the outside!
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08.27.2011 - 00:06 | CelestialEmpress
This movie makes me cry every time. Disney really hit a homerun with it.
Interested to see where that portal leads.
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Kinda had a Chrono Trigger effect pulled in there.
Great review Paw. Nver saw the broadway rendition of it though. Kinda through me off gaurd when you showed it Reminded me of Zazu's song "The morning report" from the special Lion King edition.
The effect seemed to be the same. (Shudders).
It bugged me that you didn't talk about the intro orchestrated music though, I know it's not a song and is practically heard again and again in the movie, but like Lord of the Rings, its what invites us into the movie out of reality and leads us to the lair of fantasy. Nitpicky, I know, but it's your show and everything I say is just...superfluous. Hope I spelled that right.
All in all, great review, hope to see more, and...yeah...having trouble in the redux of KQ3. Don't know how to get to the basement.
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Oh goodness, it was beautifully score movies like this that turned me into a band geek. My first sheet music was from the Beauty and the Beast score.
The only thing I hate about this movie is how it brings Belle to Beast in the beginning. Why Beast exchanged Belle for her father when he could have just imprisoned her too never made sense to me, they should have kept the original meet up where Belle goes willingly to keep her father's promise. :3 More romantic that way too and shows Belle's strength better.
I wonder when Paw will review Fantasia. . . . .
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08.27.2011 - 03:14 | LikaLaruku
I don't remember, but I think he wanted to stick with musicals that had original music.
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08.27.2011 - 21:50 | catanaitionRE: Beast trading them, I think we're supposed to infer that he is not a total jerkass because he allows the switch rather than just throwing her in the dungeons.
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08.27.2011 - 00:18 | LastCultist
One of the best Disney movies and one of my favorite musical movies. Great review Paw!
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You cannot grasp/comprehend the true form of Giygas's attack!!! Okay, probably not an EB/MOTHER 2 rip-off. But...you know.
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my school actually did this musical (not the movie the actual play) and the song "human again" actually does fit in. great review as always Paw!
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I'm curious to know what you think of "Little Shop of Horrors." I hope that it's on your dart board!
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08.27.2011 - 00:37 | TheKnightReaderI was taught as a child to never stick my head in an evil-looking mysterious hole in the wall...
Great review! I love this movie!
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08.27.2011 - 00:43 | secretsheikMy reaction to the human form was the same too! "GAH!" My mom and I both agree that the people (and the beast!) were much more charming as objects and creatures!
Sure, Gaston, the beast will kill everyone... never mind that that castle has been there near your neighborhood for who knows how long and NOTHING ever happened...
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08.27.2011 - 01:02 | Dark PaladinWait a minute. So if they've been under the curse for 10 years, and the deadline is his 21st birthday, then he was cursed when he was like 10 or 11. The "hag" damned all the people in the castle to an eternal hell because some kid was a brat to her.
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08.27.2011 - 06:33 | minor_fifthlol, my roommate and I came to this same conclusion while re-watching this the other day. That math has GOT to be off. And if he was eleven, why is there a portrait of him as an adult in the West Wing?
(We also had concerns much like Paw's over how many things in the castle are actually people, and how that happened, and whether the Beast has broken anyone in half accidentally, and how Chip exists even though he appears to be only around five and his mom has been a teapot for ten years... was there teapot sex, Disney? WHAT HAPPENED.)
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08.27.2011 - 07:51 | singitjohnny
In a version of the original story (there are several, but the one I read was apparently an English translation closest to the original French. I don't know French, so I can't be certain) the castle was trapped in a sort of time... thing. The castle and its inhabitants were under the spell for several years that passed more slowly within the castle gates.
As for Disney's version, I can only think that maybe the Beast ordered a portrait of what he would've looked like as an adult, just to destroy it? And that powerful sorceress was extremely strict about manners in young upper-class children? (Which brings about the question of where the little kid's parents were, why he was opening the door when there were servants to do that for him, and how he managed to grow up into a fairly adult state of mind if he was transformed into a Beast at such a young age.)
Aw, whatever. Disney screwed up by deleting a line of dialogue or something.
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08.27.2011 - 16:41 | minor_fifthAhahaha well, in the Special Edition, Beast can't read. So maybe he never did progress to an adult state...
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08.27.2011 - 01:12 | Heckfire
Huh...anyone else notice that the music when the Beast transforms sounds a LOT like one of the big orchestral pieces from "Gargoyles?" Thematic linking, perhaps?
Funny thing to note: the "GAH!" response to Beast's human form was apparently intentional. For some inexplicable reason, the production team wanted there to be a slight sense of disappointment when the audience first sees the Prince as compared to the Beast. I don't recall them ever explaining WHY they wanted that, but there you go.
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08.27.2011 - 03:13 | LikaLarukuAww, I thought you'd go with the 1987 live action musical. Which I saw on the Disney channel.
I think the reason that this was the best version of B&tB is because it added Geston. Outside of Beast himself the original story had no antagonist. Though I'm not sure why they changed Belle's father from a rich merchant with 3 daughters to a poor inventor with only 1.
Geston is a hunter. If Belle had pretended to be interested in him, he would have started losing interest in her.
Just remembered this had a bad sequel. Would you ever do a Worst Musicals series?
Will you accept this? Okay, the entire kingdom was enchanted, & then their homes fell into ruin & the woods took over, so they all moved into the castle.
As the mob song is one I never remember, I would have put it as worst. It's just not catchy.
Say, is that a Monty Python title I see on your board? :D
Dunno what to make of the end, unless he's reviewing a Portal soundtrack.
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08.28.2011 - 12:37 | Meiriona
Part of the reason to remove the two sisters and reduce the families means is to keep the Cinderella similarities to a minimum. Most of the old fairytales had the same basic setup with the family, if there IS a family, it's typically three siblings, with the youngest and purest being the lead, be it male or female, mother usually out of the picture (reasonably for the time they were written)
Giving Belle a different family setting (also a personality) helped to differentiate her.
Disney was able to add depth, and make this more than a story about arranged marriage and how the big hairy man your father sent you away to isn't that bad.
Gaston gives a visible antagonist, and I agree, he really made the story.Without him, you'd just be racing against time, and wanting the curse to be broken not for Beast, but for his servants, since they are the ones suffering. By adding a threat to his life, and someone who could take Belle away, will she or not, you add a lot to it.
I always loved the mob song, because I, as a child, would be pulling out my kitchen set of plastic dishes and the like and making my own little army,
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08.27.2011 - 01:14 | Catey
I love this movies beyond words to describe it. It makes cry at its beauty and its tragedy, even whilst watching only mere snippets of it, such as here. Just an amazing film and animation. Nice work :)
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08.27.2011 - 01:14 | Lundarigirlwhat were the other great Disney Four? i can think of more than four from the Renecance that were instant classics.
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08.27.2011 - 03:45 | The_Awesometeer
The Disney Renaissance is the late 80s to 90s movies. There are four. The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King
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08.27.2011 - 01:44 | Relaxo
Damn, that was trippy.
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08.27.2011 - 02:06 | Wookiee
I'm passingly familiar with the older versions of the tale which prior to being disnefied put even H.C. Andersen's horror-stories-passed- off-as-childrens- literature to shame.
Also, odd space-time portal and odd hats on the wall? YAY! LINKARA CORSSOVER!
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08.27.2011 - 09:30 | bethhigdon
Linkara crossover!?
you know what that means....
Camelot is next!
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08.29.2011 - 03:49 | sprezzatura
Yes, please! MAKE IT SO.
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08.27.2011 - 17:36 | singitjohnnyActually, the versions I read of Beauty and the Beast were a bit more tame than the Disney version in several respects.
Most notable being that Belle falling in love with the Beast was a lot less Stockholm-syndromy in the original. The Beast was, as Paw says, a fair sort of dude who really hated when people touched the roses in his garden; it's this that causes Belle's father to owe a debt to him, he returns to his house to explain it. Belle willingly trades herself for her father, knowing full-well that this is basically a marriage, because she doesn't feel that he father deserves imprisonment and also because her siblings are kind of douche-nozzles to her so she doesn't like it at home. When Belle arrives at the Beast's castle, he's very well-mannered and respectable and gives her pretty much anything she wants (even calls her the castle's "queen"), so it's a lot less like she's a prisoner and a lot more like someone involved in an arranged marriage who probably would've fallen in love with the guy anyway.
Also, no one dies in it. (Speaking of which: anyone else freeze-frame on Gaston's skull-pupils as he's falling from the tower?!)
Anyway, as far as fairy tales go "Beauty and the Beast"'s original is probably the least Nightmare Fuel-y I've ever read.
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08.27.2011 - 02:09 | BooRatI love to point you towards a Cracked article about the fact Belle in this classic animation shows all the signs of having an anti-socal dissorder and that the "Happy" ending this movie has would've actually been nightmarish to her in reallife. It's quite interesting.
I can see some great parody added animations to make this movie darker and funnier like at that scene where the Beast is feeding the birds the second Belle looks away he eats one. and at the end onc every one is normal like what would happen in a realistic setting, "Ok first order of buisness now that we're human is to mount an attack on that podunk village that just tried to kill us all. Spare no one! Kill every man, woman, and child!!!"
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09.01.2011 - 17:13 | BluesHaven't read the crack article but from what you've stated of it I'd say it makes no sense. The beast(if he's the one that's anti social) actually has plenty of people around him(his servants) and he didn't treat them badly. he mainly didn't like normal people that would judge him as he and the other enchanted were used to it their forms already. Though he was still bummed out all the time.
Also there's nothing holding Belle there. The curse is broken and the beast already relented to her leaving in the Disney version. So any time they spent together afterwards is just cause they want to.
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08.27.2011 - 02:16 | JackofAntics
I kind of wish I didn't knew there was a special edition version. Like how they redid the dub for 'My Neighbor Totoro' but that's a totally different story.
Beauty and the Beast is one of my fave Disney films and I'm glad you reviewed it.
And yes, no matter how many times I've watched, the first time we see the Beast's humans form makes go 'Do not want!'. And then it's like '...Change back.'
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08.27.2011 - 02:25 | Harapeko4
great one paw ;)
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08.27.2011 - 02:33 | JaiCSC
Music Movies has story continuity?
This can only mean one thing. DARK PAW HAS RETURNED!
Dammit, Paw's right. I always forget that awesome orchestral piece at the end. It is utterly fantastic and the way it's framed and animated. It's a fine scene.
It may not be my favourite of the Animated Disney films but I'll always consider Beauty and the Beast to be their best.
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08.28.2011 - 12:40 | MeirionaI can't forget it, because it was in my push button sound book of the movie, who remembers those things? It is a beautiful piece, and I'm not positive, but isn't it a reprise from the prologue bits?
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08.29.2011 - 03:52 | sprezzaturaHahaha, I had the Little Mermaid push button book when I was little! Mine didn't have the soundtrack though, it just had really squeaky seagull and ship's bell kind of noises lol.
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08.27.2011 - 02:39 | neytari
Not just my favorite Disney, but tied with LotR and "Fight Club" as my favorite movie period. Love so much. We in my family have always wondered why the transformation music didn't get more recognition, so I'm glad you gave it some. Though the main motif does strongly resemble Saint- Saëns's "Aquarium."
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08.27.2011 - 02:40 | KNOLD INC.
is the ending hinting at the return of dark paw?
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08.27.2011 - 02:47 | Robert the Kid
This is apart of what I like to call the trinity of Disney's best animated films. Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and the Lion King.
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08.27.2011 - 13:40 | JetstreamGWThrow in "The Little Mermaid" and you have the "Big four" that Paw mentioned.
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