Beauty and the Beast (1991)
A key entry in the Disney revival of the 1990s, Beauty and the Beast retells the old French fairytale, originally written centuries before, to a new generation. Paige O’Hara voices Belle, a provincial French woman graced with beauty and intellect, the latter of which the townspeople seem less ready to accept about her. Nevertheless, she gains the interest of the handsome but fatally arrogant Gaston, with whom she would prefer nothing at all to do. Maurice, Belle’s inventor father, gets lost traversing through the woods, eventually getting trapped in the massive, eerie castle owned by the Beast of the title, himself a prince who was once handsome but arrogant, and turned into a hideous creature after spurning a witch.
Belle goes out to look for him, encountering the Beast, who immediately becomes enamored of her, willing to part with the father in exchange for her presence. Both end up learning a great deal about each other, and with the help of the Beast’s magical, anthropomorphic castle-ware servants, the two make time in order to avert the witch’s curse that will leave Beast permanently in his current state if he does not get a woman to love him before he turns 21 years of age.
Most people will remember the Alan Menken-composed songs from Beauty and the Beast above all else, working with The Little Mermaid lyricist Howard Ashman for over a handful of songs that remain in the mind days, if not years, after first hearing them. “Be Our Guest” would get used by Disney in some of their advertisements for their theme parks, and the title ballad is one of the more exquisitely presented in the entire Disney song catalog. But those songs would not be nearly as grand without the talent of the vocal work, with Robby Benson, a true surprise as the voice of the Beast, being a natural for the part in both song and regular conversation.
Although a romance at its core, it’s more of a heartwarming one than overly sentimental, especially as we come to see the two main would-be lovers as something more than just pat stereotypes, who are able to live, learn and love as they mature in their views through continued exposure to one another. Belle is given a more modern feminist spin, a woman who is shown as intelligent and independent, though also kind and caring enough to make for a sympathetic hero. Previously unknown Paige O’Hara is a true find in giving Belle the sense of spirit and dimension necessary to make her a Disney protagonist who stands out.
Beauty and the Beast would be a rare animated feature that would go on to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards (losing out to a film that is just about its polar opposite, Silence of the Lambs). With beautiful hand-drawn animation, it’s a classic film, and very much cherished by all Disney-philes, whether young, old, with children, or without.
— The 91-minute special edition, released in theaters in 2002, adds the splendid song and animation sequence, “Human Again”
Qwipster’s rating: A
MPAA Rated: G, suitable for all ages
Running Time: 84 min. (special edition runs 91 min.)
Cast (voices): Robby Benson, Paige O’Hara, Jesse Corti, Rex Everheart, Angela Lansbury, Jerry Orbach, Bradley Michael Pierce, David Ogden Stiers, Richard White, Jo Anne Worley
Director: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise
Screenplay: Linda Woolverton