(PHOTO PROVIDED VIA GOOGLE)
WARNING: ALL MOVIE REVIEWS MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS...SORRY
STARRING:
Emma Watson as Belle
Dan Stevens as Beast
Luke Evans as Gaston
Josh Gad as Lefou
Kevin Kline as Maurice
Ewan McGregor as Lumiere
Ian McKellen as Cogsworth
Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts
Nathan Mack as Chip
Stanley Tucci as Maestro Cadenza
Beauty and the Beast is a timeless classic that touches everyone's hearts no matter if they are man, women, child or adult. I am a week removed since I have seen the movie with my wife and daughter and I can honestly say that we really enjoyed it. My daughter did fall asleep half way through but woke up just at the right time towards the end, but that was due to a lack of nap and not the movie itself.
I am not going to go into what this movie is about or give a synopsis. The movie overall has pretty much all of the scenes and music from the 1991 animated version, but the film makers did add elements to it. I guess they wanted to flesh out the story more. My favorite addition to the story was Belle's back story about her mother. I felt that this added more depth to Belle and Maurice as characters. You really get to see Maurice's love for his daughter more here. Emma Watson and Kevin Kline had amazing chemistry as father and daughter. I actually would have been happy if that was the only thing that they added.
Josh Gad is always a great addition to any cast as he did well in the role of Lefou. In the 1991 cartoon, Lefou was more of a bumbling and super cheery best friend to Gaston. Gaston could do no wrong in his eyes. For the new movie, Lefou did end up seeing through Gaston and he had a limit as to what he would be supportive with. This version of Lefou had a little more of a "spine" and ultimately stood up for what he believed in and would not cross the line like Gaston had. Please don't misunderstand me when I say what I'm about to say because I did enjoy what they did. None of this change for the character was actually needed. The film still would have been great. Did I want to see the character portrayed as he was in the 1991 cartoon? Yes. Am I happy with what they did instead? Yes. Was it needed? No. But I'm okay with it, I just felt it needed to be said.
Luke Evans is also the perfect Gaston. The guy just pulls off the part and he really makes you hate him. It's also like Luke Evans was born to play Gaston.
The entire cast did a great job with this film and you get the impression that they really enjoyed making it. The effects were amazing. The characters all looked real and were well designed. Everyone involved in this production deserve a lot of credit for accomplishing what they have with this film. A lot of hard work went into it.
I give Beauty and the Beast 4.5 out of 5 stars. It's not a perfect movie, but they got pretty damn close. Plus, it brought a smile to my daughter's face. Thank you for that.
