Beauty and the Beast

I've loved the original since I was a child, and I know every scene by heart, so maybe I was too critical the first time I watched this film. At its core, this tale has everything the original has, and then some. Let's start with the songs, Alan Menken created a musical masterpiece in 1991, his songs are captivating and immortal, listening to them always warms my heart. In 2017, he adds a couple of new ones that are also melodic, easy to remember, and that keep the spirit of the original songs. They also added some pretty good new scenes that explain a bit more about the main characters. As for the cast, I was very happy with Dan Stevens, he convinced me of his acting qualities a long time ago and he portrays the Beast beautifully, and they also did a great job translating his real facial expressions to the final beast form – but more of the visual effects later. Emma Watson seemed a bit too stiff at times, but otherwise she handled it well, including the singing. The best is perhaps Luke Evans, who physically and vocally resembles his animated character the most and his antics are very enjoyable. I'm incredibly ashamed that I didn't recognize Ewan McGregor – and I've listened to the Moulin Rouge soundtrack at least a thousand times – he handled the French accent brilliantly. The rest of the cast is just perfect, including Ian McKellen, who will always be a heartthrob of mine. Finally, I'll mention the visuals, which are a chapter in themselves. In the cinema I regretted not having my glasses with me to enjoy the wonderful effects sharply enough. The "Be our guest" scene was the one I was most curious about and it exceeded my expectations – what am I going to go into here, absolutely all the visuals were simply amazing, from the aforementioned Beast, to the village, to the castle decorations, to Bella's iconic dress, everything. (29/05/2017)

It will probably be a hit and little girls will like it, but I have a feeling that the world would function without any problems without the live-action version of Beauty and the Beast. Emma Watson is great, the special effects are opulent, and the production design is fantastic, but due to its excessive running time, the film starts to lose its breath in the middle and doesn't have much to tell. Yes, there are the familiar songs, but half of them are only there because they were in the animated version. And the cute talking furniture stops being entertaining after a few minutes, and when the candelabras, teapots, and clocks take up the entire space in front of the camera, it becomes quickly tiresome. A huge digital mess. But it is still a proper romantic fairytale that actually offers exactly what you expect from it. Cinderella has more likeable characters, The Jungle Book is funnier and more thrilling, but I probably never expected more from a live-action Beauty and the Beast than what we got in the cinema. So in the end, it's probably okay. And Luke Evans is amazing. (15/05/2017)

The work done in the fairy tale and musical aspects is absolutely outstanding, while the costumes, set design, choreography, and Emma Watson's eyes are captivating, and the music enchants the heart more and more. This film fulfilled everything that was promised during the long wait. (21/03/2017)

I can't help but feel that making a remake of an animated film that is already good and just giving it a visually stunning live-action adaptation isn't enough for me to be truly excited about the film. Beauty and the Beast is not a bad movie, but it's not a great movie either. Plus, the story just ends badly. He should have stayed in animal form. (05/06/2017)

Beauty and the Beast is the kind of musical in which the songs do not enhance the already very simple story, but rather slow it down. And there are loads of them. Visually, however, it is a really beautiful movie, with a retro charm in the style of the original The Wizard of Oz, and with the prettiest princess, Emma Watson, who looks like she was born for this role. A small spoiler: what I will remember the most from this film is the moment of shock when Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen and Emma Thompson appeared on screen simultaneously, and I realized that instead of their voices, I had been listening to song dubbed in Czech for two hours. It is hard to refuse a Prague's IMAX ceremony premiere invitation, but that was really the last time I will ever go to see a dubbed film. Nevertheless, the movie has excellent 3D animation (that snow!) and its format is also perfectly suited to IMAX. (15/03/2017)