

Here is a film that truly only has eyes for the 1991 Beauty and the Beast unfortunately, this reverence makes for a far unholier union. It’s perhaps no wonder, then, that Bill Condon’s new live-action remake is also a swooning romance. The studio’s 1991 film remains arguably the greatest of its animated works, somehow managing to adhere to a rigid musical formula while injecting atmosphere, deep characterization (especially for its heroine), and beautifully written, funny, and intelligent songs.

As such, it was virtually tailor-made for Disney.

The centuries-old fairytale of Beauty and the Beast is a story of transformative love, and of learning to see someone’s inner beauty, that ends in a blessed matrimony with a handsome prince.
