Since Beastly, based on Alex Flinn's book, is coming out this Friday, I thought I'd take this week to look at some of the previous incarnations of Beauty and the Beast in cinema.
OMG, this is almost a straight-up rip-off of the Jean Cocteau film. I MEAN, this is La Belle et la Bete, on fast forward.I... can't say much else about it than that. From the costumes and settings, to the special effects, this is a direct nod to Cousteau. Watching them in such proximity was actually quite fascinating. The story was very close, so it was interesting to see what was cut for time. Only a couple of the confusing story elements were dropped--the bit about the random smoking beast (I mean like he was ON FIRE smoking) was still there.
Starring Susan Sarandon and with Angelica Houston in a bit role, this is a pretty fitting (timewise) entry in the Faerie Tale Theatre collection.
+JMJ+
ReplyDeleteI thought this was so magical, until I saw the Cocteau film. Yes, I know it's supposed to be a homage; but it didn't really bring anything else to the table. (Except Klaus Kinski's line about love making a beast look like a prince or a not-so-handsome man look like a handsome one--LOL!!!) Well, Susan Sarandon really seemed like a faerie tale princess, too . . . but on the whole, this isn't one of the Faerie Tale Theatre productions I will watch over and over, if only because I'd really rather put on La Belle et la Bete.