Film: Beauty and The BeastDirector: Bill CondonStarring: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci, Ewan McGregor, Kevin KlineRating: ★★★★

REVIEW
By GENEVIEVE THORPE

It's clear that Beauty and the Beast has a broad appeal, with an audience at this session including a group of 10-year-old girls, men in their 20s clad in muscle tanks, and chatty silver-haired women.

There is an air of excitement before the curtains are even drawn back.

Beauty and the Beast is a live-action adaptation of its 1991 Disney animation, directed by Bill Condon, with a star-studded cast.

The story follows a narcissistic young prince (Dan Stevens) who refuses to give an old woman (Hattie Morahan) shelter because of her haggard appearance.

The woman reveals that she is, in fact, an enchantress, and punishes the prince with a curse that turns him into an unsightly beast – a curse that can only be broken by true love, of course.

The curse also turns all who reside at the prince’s castle into living household objects, including a talking candestick (Ewan McGregor), antique clock (Ian McKellen) and teapot (Emma Thompson).

Belle’s father comes across the Prince’s castle during a storm, and the Beast imprisons him for stealing a rose from his garden. Belle finds her father and decides to save his life by taking his place, and from there a love story flourishes.

Emma Watson is a fresh-faced and refreshingly real Disney heroine, convincingly shedding her Hermione persona from the Harry Potter series. 

She has been expanded into a multifaceted character; not only does she keep her head in the books, she also teaches her fellow townspeople to read, easily finds new and efficient ways to complete mundane household tasks, and helps her clockmaker father.

Condon’s Belle is intelligent and determined, even more so than her 1991 predecessor. Disney has created a Belle fit for 2017.

Even in her captivity at the hand of the Beast, Belle refuses to shed a tear. She is unrelenting and persistent, always thinking of a solution, and certainly not the typical damsel in distress. Watching Belle refuse the brutish Gaston’s romantic gestures with such sassiness is beyond satisfying.

This modern iteration echoes its former in many ways, and will be a nostalgic experience  for many long-time fans of the 1991 classic.

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Emma Watson and Dan Stevens at the premiere.

Staying true to the original, however, has its downfalls. Despite evolving Belle in many ways and establishing her as a non-conformist heroine, she still falls in love with her captor shockingly quickly.

The progressiveness of the film melts away for a moment as Disney reverts to its usual head-over-heels, Princess-falls-for-Prince formula. After but one musical number, the Beast is already professing his undying love, rather unconvincingly.

As with any film, Condon’s Beauty and the Beast isn’t without room for improvement, but it certainly delivers on a number of levels.

Beauty and the Beast caters for all, whether that be undying Harry Potter fans, lovers of all things Disney, or even lost souls looking for a way to kill time on a Friday night. It is  a must-see, but prepare to leave the cinema with multiple musical numbers stuck in your head. You have been warned.