Fannish: Beauty and the Beast

I saw the live-action film because my youngest was all a-squee about it.
I hadn't really cared one way or the other.

Oh my.

SPOILERS BELOW THIS!


There were the usual problem with wolves. But wolves are always ravenous devourers in European fairy tales.

It was wonderfully beautiful. If this misses the cinematography Oscar, it's because someone is asleep. Everyone turned in brilliant performances. Emma Watson being brilliant and gorgeous. Emma Thompson, awesome as always.  Kevin Kline, brilliantly understated and funny. Ewan MacGregor, Sir Ian, unrecognizable, but perfect. All just glorious. I got wibbly when everyone died, even though I knew a happy ending was coming.

But it was Luke Evans as Gaston who stunned me. It's just a couple lines, but they make Gaston so much more than the local bully.

He went to war. He was happy in the fighting, as Le Fou says, where he excelled and knew what he was doing. But now he's home. he hunts, but it's clearly not enough. He no longer fits into the little town, as much an outcast as Belle. He has Le Fou, and the fear of the town. But he doesn't fit. When he leads the villagers against the Beast, he's back in his element. He's back at war, where he knows what he's doing.  "I'm afraid the wrong monster's been released," Le Fou sings.

My revelation was that it was Edward and Charlie, if they were French and evil. A war hero who still needs action, an adrenaline junkie who can't adjust to peace time, and his smaller, more reasonable conscience.

I was a bit horrified to be sympathetic to Gaston, but that just means there was some excellent writing added in.

And Josh Gad as Le Fou was wonderful. Yes, gay, but we knew Le Fou had a crush on Gaston in the animated as well. And even he got his happy ending with Stanley.

Definitely five stars.