As I finally handed in my last piece of university work, minus my impending exams, yesterday I decided that I needed to celebrate this occasion somehow. And what better way to do that than by going to the cinema to see a remake of a classic Disney film!
Being the crazy Harry Potter fan that I am, I was so excited when I heard that my childhood hero Emma Watson was going to be starring as Belle in the live action remake of Beauty and the Beast. And as a former Disney Princess fanatic that I am, I was super excited to see how she would bring Belle to life. Plus seeing the amazing creation of Cinderella with Lily James a couple of years ago made me all the more excited for what this film would have in store.
So, how was the film? It was bloody beautiful! The scenery, the costumes, the music, everything! Emma Watson especially took me by surprise with her singing, something that cinema has never seen her do before. Dan Stevens portrayed the beast wonderfully, Luke Evans and Josh Gad added great humour with their performance as the story’s dynamic duo, Ewan McGregor brought the utmost humour to the role of Lumiere and discovering the great actors Emma Thompson and Ian McKellan within the film also was an absolute delight! Furthermore the theatrics and CGI were all impeccable which made me feel as if I was really in France in the 20th century as opposed to a small independent cinema on Ashton Lane.
What struck me particularly were certain changes that were made to the storyline however. For instance the backstory about Belle’s mother with the inclusion of the serious historical pandemic of the Black Death plague gave a sense of realism to the narrative of the film, as opposed to the many Disney films that separate themselves from the real world. Moreover Emma Watson’s idea of developing Belle’s character, to follow in her inventor father’s footsteps, and invent a washing machine was a stroke of feminist genius. But could you really expect anything less from the strong inspirational actor?
As I walked home last evening, with Emma Thompson’s version of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ playing in my ears, and spring in my step and a huge smile on my face, I reminisced over the two hours of sheer delight that I had just undergone. And felt a huge sense of relief that this much anticipated film did not disappoint! So, I end this post urging all of you to watch it immediately with an 100% guarantee that you will not leave without feeling invincibly happy and ready to burst into song!
Aeries Darche 