Beauty and the Beast (2017) review
If you haven’t noticed, Disney’s been remaking their old animated classics into live-action movies recently. So far their success has varied. I actually remember enjoying The Jungle Book from last year, but everything else has been pretty iffy. Enter Beauty and the Beast; unquestionably one of Disney’s best animated features, and a remake the world was unquestionably going to throw their wallets at before we’d even seen any footage. Judging by just how many wallets have already been thrown over the opening weekend, I’d say live-action Mulan, Lion King, Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Cruella De Vil standalone, Aladdin, Peter Pan, and Dumbo remakes are all probably gonna be shuffling out into theaters over the next decade. So how’s this one?…. Eh.
Look, I don’t care how hard you try, NO-ONE was going to convince me this movie was remotely necessary. If you’re gonna hide behind the excuse that Disney’s just “Updating this for a new generation” I’m gonna laugh in your face. The old Disney animated classics aren’t going away, they’re not falling out of fashion, and they certainly aren’t making Disney any less money in merchandising than they used too. No, this is just an excuse for more money by appealing to the general publics nostalgia for said Disney classics.
Welcome to 2017; where greed is king and your nostalgia is something studio executives can quantifiably measure.
The major gimmick at play here is that this one is probably the most faithful live-action remake/retelling to date. For reference: Alice in Wonderland was a Tim Burton movie, Malificient was a re-telling of Sleeping Beauty poising Malificient as the protagonist, I dunno what they did with Cinderella but I’m sure Kenneth Brannagh did SOMETHING, and The Jungle Book followed the basic framework of the original Disney film but actually added and updated it quite a bit. Beauty and the Beast basically follows the original beat-for-beat. There’s some new stuff added in to pad-out the runtime, mainly a lot of fleshing out of pre-existing elements, but nothing significantly changes the story or even adds much of a new lens through which to view it. Some of the new stuff kinda works, some of it doesn’t.
Now credit where credit is due, when Disney throws enough money at something, it’s gonna be at least entertaining. It’s a very pretty looking movie, filled with intricate production design, rich colors, and well-done music. The best parts of the movie are seeing just how they handle updating the classic songs. The musical numbers are bigger, beefier, and flashier overall, and they make for some really entertaining sequences. In particular the “Be Our Guest” segment ends up being a real treat for the eyes, and the most fun sequence of the whole movie as far as I’m concerned. The CGI is all pretty good too. I was a little annoyed at first by how human-like The Beast’s face looked from the initial trailers and promotional material, but it ends up working overall because it gives Dan Stevens more room to properly emote. Speaking of which, the cast is all great here. Emma Watson really is one of the best things to come out of the Harry Potter franchise, and casting her as Belle feels like the perfect fan-casting come true. There’s a lot of other great talent at work here too like Ian McKellen, Ewan McGregor, and Emma Thompson; but the standout for me is Luke Evans as Gaston. This guy’s been put in the ‘serious lead’ mold for far too long, and seeing how much energy he brings to the role of Gaston as he cuts loose is a joy.
Sadly the movie just never ends up solving or addressing the complaint I was always going to have going in; what’s the point exactly? The film is so purposefully embroiled in the aesthetic of the original that it can’t help reminding me that I could’ve just stayed home and watched that one instead. It’s missing a real hook to draw the audience in and vastly differentiate itself from the original. At times it seems like it almost has; there’s a new sub-plot involving Belle’s parents that kind of had me invested at times, and even most of the new original songs they’ve created for this version aren’t bad, but it sadly never amounts to anything significant. It’s understandable of course. If there were new elements added to the remake that drastically changed the story, die-hard Disney purists would be in a fit. We all saw how whiny and close-minded fans can be with that god-awful Ghostbusters controversy last year. Heck, Maleficent is about as bold and different a remake as you can do in terms of Disney movies, and I still probably wouldn’t like it very much if I took the time to re-watch it (though I can safely say I have a greater appreciation of what it was trying to do).
The only thing I can think of that this remake will be remembered for in the greater pop-culture canon is as Disney’s first attempt at officially portraying a member of the LGBTQ community on film; and it’s a rocky start to say the least. Having LeFou be the first canonically gay Disney character was always a TERRIBLE idea as far as I’m concerned. He’s a character that exists to be little more than the butt of jokes; a name that literally translates to “The Fool.” Attempting to expand his role in this specific way seemed like a no-win scenario. I’m at least relieved to report it doesn’t go nearly as bad or horribly offensive as it could’ve gone. There aren’t TOO many jokes that revolve around his sexuality or stereotypically ‘gay’ character traits; or more accurately, ones that portray it in an especially negative or mocking light. In fact there’s hardly enough of LeFou in the actual movie for him to register as much of a character. It feels weird considering they’ve cast Josh Gad, one of Hollywood’s newest and most vibrant comedic personalities. He’s practically THE guy you want to cast if you want to try and create a new, marketable personality for audiences to connect with, but I think there’s only really one specific standout moment that showcases his brand of comedy. But I guess as far as I’m concerned, this works out for the best.
If you couldn’t tell already, this movie’s not really meant for me. Beauty and the Beast is for die-hard Disney fans to get a kick out of, and it doesn’t mind being a perfectly safe, marketable movie that’s gonna slip out of your head in a few weeks. I didn’t mind it, but I probably won’t remember it.
The Media Fire gives this movie 6.9/10.
