A Tale As Old As Time...

My sweet littles and I went to see Beauty and the Beast on Friday and we couldn't resist telling you what we thought!

The movie is simply everything you could have asked for in a live-action film. The backdrop, the characters, the plot. Disney stayed true to the original story, adding only minimally to the original tale to enhance the plot. The actors who brought the story to life were purely amazing to watch, creating a real-life fairy tale for the viewers.

My oldest's favorite was Gaston, and, I have to say, Welsh actor Luke Evans nailed it. Not only did Evans look like the animated Gaston brought to life, he made the character interesting and funny. There is a scene where he is talking to himself in a mirror that had my older two laughing out loud. He may be a bit stalker-y, yes, but overall, Evans does a Gaston that makes you love the villain just a little bit.

We hardly noticed that the beast was a computer-generated creature. He almost seems real. He is creepy at first, just like in the animated fairy tale, but you quickly soften to him as the tale unwinds and his human desire to be loved bubbles to the surface. I worried my girls- especially my 3 year old- would be scared of him, but he really wasn't as scary as we anticipated.

That said, the movie was a bit scary for the little one. The dark woods Maurice ventures into early on gave my youngest the shivers. Luckily she fell asleep on my lap shortly thereafter and missed the scene where the wolves attack Belle and Pierre as she attempts to flee the castle, as that scene was a bit dark and probably scary for younger viewers.

Emma Watson was an elegant Belle. I have adored her since her Harry Potter days (can we say megafan?!), and, although I will always prefer her as Hermione Granger, she was fantastic and beautiful as the book-loving French girl who softens the beast.

Going into the movie, I was aware of the, um, controversy surrounding the film. Namely that Josh Gad, whom we all adore as Olaf from Frozen, plays LeFou, Gaston's goofy sidekick with a bit of a flare. Honestly y'all- don't make it a thing. My girls didn't say a word about LeFou other than Olaf! Olaf! Josh Gad is fantastic actor who creates sidekicks capable of stealing the entire show- and he did not disappoint as LeFou. Whatever your views, do not avoid this movie because of his character.

Can we talk about the setting for a minute? It was breath-taking! Some looked fake, yes, but the beast's castle is magnificent! So dark and ominous as the show opens and glittery and magical by the tale's end. The set designers on this film deserve major accolades for making the set come to life like it did.

Not to be discounted are all the walking, talking inanimate objects. From Lumiere to Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts (and Chip!), these lively little characters entertained and lit up the screen. The music was outstanding- although I absolutely missed Celine in the classic Tale as Old as Time.  Still, Beauty and the Beast has, in my opinion, the best soundtrack of any Disney movie.

Beauty and the Beast had a smashing opening weekend, racking up more than $170 million at the Box Office. A well-deserved success, in my opinion. Grab your kids, get your tickets and your over-priced popcorn and head to the theaters to see it. Don't wait til Redbox or Netflix. If you see no other family movies this year, at least go see this one. You'll thank me later ;)