There hasn't
been a better filmed version of "Beauty &
the Beast" either before or since this film.
((I know Disney did a film with the same
title, but it wasn't the real story.))
Most people ought to know the story -- the
well-to-do merchant who loses everything, his
one last chance to recoup that falls through,
the journey through the spooky forest that
leads to the magic castle, the rose the
merchant picks for his daughter, the angry
Beast who demands the merchant's life,
Beauty's return to the Beast's castle in her
father's place, ... and so on.
But you really don't KNOW the story till you
see this film and let Cocteau make it clear
for you.
Done on an obviously shoe-string budget,
brilliantly applied, with camera-work and
incredibly simple but effective "special
effects" that truly enhance the story without
calling undo attention to their own
cleverness, with beautiful costume and makeup
designs adding even more, this film is simply
a visual treat.
Examples of the simple-but-effective effects:
on Beauty's return to her father's home her
appearance in her room is visually amazing:
the actress stepped backward (off a stool
concealed by her gown) through a paper
"wall"... and they ran the film
backward. Another use of backward
filming is the merchant's first walk through
the castle, with the magical human-arm
candelabra that swing away form the walls and
light - he walked backward along the hallway
set, where all of the candles were already
burning, and as he passed each one, the person
holding that sconce turned their arm against
the wall and a jet of air extinguished the
candles, creating the effect seen in the film.
[This film is/was good enough that when the
cable "Faerie Tale Theatre" series did
"B&B", they basically did a 60-minute
remake in color of this film, including most
of the visual touches, especially the Beast's
makeup.]
Beautiful, dreamlike and entrancing.
(Additionally, for further appreciation of the
nuances of the story, one perhaps should read
Robin McKinley's two retellings, "Beauty" and
"Rose
Daughter" - read "Beauty" first, or if
you only read one, make it that one.)
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