Beauty and the Beast (1991)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Directors:

Gary Trousdale
Kirk Wise

Writers:

Linda Woolverton (animation screenplay)
Roger Allers (story)

Release Date:

22 November 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Drama | Family | Fantasy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

The most beautiful love story ever told.

Plot:

Belle, whose father Maurice is imprisoned by the Beast (really an enchanted Prince), offers herself instead and finds the prince inside the Beast.

Plot Keywords:

Beast | Love | Prince | Castle | Village

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Paige O'Hara	...	Belle (voice)
Robby Benson	...	Beast (voice)
Richard White	...	Gaston (voice)
Jerry Orbach	...	Lumiere (voice)
David Ogden Stiers	...	Cogsworth / Narrator (voice)
Angela Lansbury	...	Mrs. Potts (voice)
Bradley Pierce	...	Chip (voice) (as Bradley Michael Pierce)
Rex Everhart	...	Maurice (voice)
Jesse Corti	...	Lefou (voice)
Hal Smith	...	Philippe (voice)
Jo Anne Worley	...	Wardrobe (voice)
Mary Kay Bergman	...	Babette (voice)
Brian Cummings	...	Stove (voice)
Alvin Epstein	...	Bookseller (voice)
Tony Jay	...	Monsieur D'Arque (voice)

Also Known As:

Beauty and the Beast 3-D (USA) (promotional title)
Beauty and the Beast: Special Edition (USA) (longer version)

Runtime:

84 min | 91 min (special edition)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.50 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints) | Sonics-DDP (IMAX version)

Certification:

South Korea:All | Portugal:M/6 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Brazil:Livre | Chile:TE | Finland:K-8/5 | France:U | Germany:o.Al. | Ireland:G | Netherlands:AL | Norway:7 | Peru:PT | Singapore:G | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:U | USA:G | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Walt Disney Feature Animation - 500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Silver Screen Partners IV

Trivia:

Among the trophy heads on Gaston's tavern is what appears to be a frog's head, visible in the scene where Gaston spits.

Goofs:

Continuity: After Gaston has shot the beast, the arrows in the quiver on his back disappear and then reappear in the next shot.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, the prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. But then, one winter's night, an old beggar woman came to the castle and offered him a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Aladdin (1992)

Soundtrack:

Belle

One of my all-time favourite movies.

The only animated movie to receive a Best Picture Oscar nomination, and it deserved it.

Magic from the opening prologue to the final credit, "Beauty and the Beast" is the last real classic to come from the Disney crew before John Lasseter came along. This was one of the few movies I happily paid to see twice in the cinema, and sitting in a sparsely-populated Friday night audience (I was living in Barbados at the time, and it was hardly the most artistic place on Earth... it was a crying shame that there was hardly anyone there while "Home Alone 2" went through the roof) the second time, the magic remained.

You all know the story, so apart from pointing out the movie's one flaw (the prince's spell had to be broken before he turned 21 or he would remain a beast forever; so if it was cast ten years before the events of the movie, wouldn't that mean he was 11 when the spell was cast...?), let's look at how well the movie works. You have a monster who's more human than the movie's medallion-man villain; you have a heroine who's PC but engaging with it; you have a supporting cast of magic utensils who wisely never upstage the couple at the centre of this love story (and despite the Disney animated trappings, it IS a love story); and you have a captivating story, beautifully told.

The movie's also got wonderful design of its French setting and characters, with the ballroom scene a standout (the tiny but appreciative audience were impressed by the sight of the Beast and Belle in their evening wear - the only time I've ever seen cartoon characters get wolf-whistled in a cinema); and Alan Menken's score is his finest work for the Mouse, with matchless lyrics from the late and much lamented Howard Ashman - how many musicals can you name where ALL the songs are brilliant? But ultimately it's the movie's very real heart that makes it a keeper; the cliche "You'll laugh, you'll cry" is all too true in this case. A lot of movies called 'classic' don't deserve that appellation, but this one does.

I'll be slaughtered by anime fans, but what the hell... one "Beauty and the Beast" is worth a thousand "Akira"s. And "Shrek"s. And, I'm willing to bet, "Treasure Planet"s. This is a truly adult animated feature that's also one for the entire family. Forget "The Silence of the Lambs" - this is the real best picture of 1991.