Beauty and the Beast

Gary Trousdale (1991)

91min

U Certificate

Review

Our Score

by David Parkinson

The first feature-length cartoon to be nominated for the best picture Oscar, this is one of the most ambitious films ever produced by Disney. Three and a half years in the making, the movie was one of the first animations to include computer-generated imagery - seen to best advantage during the ballroom and Be Our Guest sequences. With visuals based on such French artists as Fragonard and a storyline inspired by Madame Leprince de Beaumont's famous fairy tale, the film also boasts the vocal talents of Angela Lansbury (who sings the Oscar-winning title song) as Mrs Potts, Paige O'Hara as Beauty and Robby Benson as Beast. It's cartoon Cocteau, but just look at the children's faces as they watch it. Re-released in 3D in 2012.

Summary

A bookish woman agrees to take her father's place as prisoner of a fearsome monster living in a castle deep in the forest. She gradually grows to see a gentler, more human side to her hideous host, and comes to realise she may be able to break the curse that turned him into a beast in the first place. Disney animated fantasy, with the voices of Paige O'Hara and Robby Benson.

Cast & Crew

Belle Paige O'Hara

Beast Robby Benson

Maurice Rex Everhart

Gaston Richard White

Le Fou Jesse Corti

Mrs Potts Angela Lansbury

Lumiere Jerry Orbach

Cogsworth / Narrator David Ogden Stiers

Chip Bradley Pierce

Wardrobe Jo Anne Worley

Director Gary Trousdale

Director Kirk Wise

Other Information

Language: EnglishColourTheatrical distributor: Buena VistaAvailable on: video, DVD and Blu-rayReleased on: 4 May 2012

Drama

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Gary Trousdale (1991)

Review

Summary

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