Review: Beauty and the Beast

Most remakes, adaptations and updates are superfluous by nature and Disney's $160 million live-action re-staging of its 1991 animated classic feels more unnecessary than most. On paper, it's a savvy move by the venerable company to expand on its brand and reintroduce one of its most beloved crown jewels to a whole new generation of consumers. No doubt, this Beauty and the Beast will nicely fill Disney's coffers, but the inherent problem of this particular re-telling lies in the lyric of its title song.

This is "a tale as old as time" and if there's nothing especially done to improve upon the 1991 version, then why bother doing it at all except as a cash grab? Shedding light on the Beast's origin story, explaining what happened to Belle's mother, the addition of three new songs specifically written for the film by Alan Menken and Tim Rice, and "the first exclusively gay moment in a Disney film" as director Bill Condon has promoted do not justify the reason for this version's existence. If anything, these additions don't add anything of significance except more time to an already bloated film. Furthermore, to say gay characters or moments have never existed in a Disney film is beyond ludicrous; stating it explicitly feels more like pandering or straining too hard to be politically and socially relevant.

At least the 1991 version had the good sense to reimagine the classic story by cribbing almost everything from Jean Cocteau's 1946 gem and making it an animated musical. Condon's version is basically a shot for shot remake of the 1991 film, and it comes up sorely lacking. Curiously, this Beauty and the Beast feels as if it's been shot on sound stages. Even Belle's opening number, which culminates in Emma Watson resurrecting memories of Julie Andrews joyfully singing, "The hills are alive with the sound of music," is curiously flat and artificial. Whilst Watson makes for a passable Belle but one can't quite shake the feeling that her portrayal is more a reflection of her off-screen image than any actual characterisation that she brings to it. On the other hand, Andrews (and even Amy Adams, as she gloriously proved in Enchanted) would have made for a perfect Belle had someone had the good sense to do a live-action version during her heyday.

At least Watson isn't in the same situation as Dan Stevens, who spends about 95% of his screen time behind layers of make-up enhanced by special effects. Stevens is a fine actor but, unlike John Hurt in The Elephant Man and Eric Stoltz in Mask, his performance isn't skilled enough to overcome the prosthetics. The central story may be of a prince cursed to remain a beast until someone loves him for who he truly is, but the film only flickers to life when focus is on the supporting characters. Luke Evans reveals a wonderfully rich baritone and slyly self-aware humour as the vainglorious Gaston. Josh Gad, carrying the rainbow flag for Disney, is an absolute delight. Their performance of "Gaston" may be the film's undisputed high point.

Elsewhere, there's excellent vocal work, both spoken and sung, by the likes of Ewan McGregor (Lumière, a candelabra), Ian McKellen (Cogsworth, a clock), Emma Thompson (Mrs. Potts, a teapot), Stanley Tucci (Cadenza, a piano), Audra McDonald (Garderobe, wardrobe), and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Babette, a feather duster). If anything, one is more invested in their fates than the Beast's, which is never a good sign. Kevin Kline, as Belle's father, is criminally underused.

The production is undeniably lavish, but the breathtaking moments are few, if any. Even Belle's appearance in her iconic yellow ballgown borderlines on ho-hum, especially when compared with Lily James' heart-stopping entrance in the far more entertaining live-action execution of Cinderella.

Beauty and the Beast

Directed by: Bill Condon

Written by: Stephen Chbosky, Evan Spiliotopolous

Starring: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Kevin Kline, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci, Audra McDonald, Adrian Schiller, Hattie Morahan, Sonoya Mizuno