Rating: 
Summary: The greatest film version of a fairy tale ever produced
Review: I must start off by quibbling with the reviewer who said that the longest he had seen a child sit through this film was six minutes. I quibble on two grounds: first, who said that this was a children's film, and that how long a child could sit through it was a criterion of its merits? It is very clearly intended for adults. Second, one of the great memories I have of my daughter's growing up was her sitting in my lap when she was five years old in front of the VCR, watching this film, with me reading her all the subtitles while we watched the film. She was entranced! And it was one of the greatest film viewing experiences we enjoyed together. This film is, by any conceivable standard, one of the most imaginative, beautiful films ever created. It is, to my mind, Cocteau's masterpiece. He made this film at a time when a number of filmmakers in England and the United States had been creating fairy-tale like films for adults (in particular, Powell and Pressburger in Great Britain, but there were a number of Hollywood fantasy films from the same period). But this one far outstrips the others in inventiveness and creativity. By today's standards, when computers can make absolutely anything possible, the special effects are crude. Yet, they remain more effective than many of today's state-of-the-art effects. For instance, the disembodied forearms holding candles in the entrance hall, or the striking way that the Beast is resurrected in Avenant's body near the end. I will go further in praising this film. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is easily the most artistically successful Disney animated film of the past few decades. Yet, I do not believe that it compares favorably with the Cocteau film. The Disney film has many virtues, but it lacks the extraordinary magic and wonder contained in the French film. Perhaps because it is not an animated film, one sense that at any moment something magnificent might happen in Cocteau's film, and the miracle is that he so frequently is able to delight the viewer. In animation, anything is possible, but using real actors and real objects, Cocteau is constantly able to produce utter magic. Jean Marais is marvelous in his dual role as the cold-hearted and cruel but incredibly handsome Avenant, and the externally hideous but internally beautiful beast. He throws himself enthusiastically into both roles. I once read an interview with Cocteau in which he marveled at Marais's performance. In one instance, Marais as the Beast throws himself prostrate in order to drink water on the ground. The water was dirty and scum covered, but Cocteau was stunned that Marais frantically drank from it nonetheless. With the possible exception of the title role in Cocteau's ORPHÉE, this is his greatest role. The wonderful duality of the title comes out not just in referring to the beautiful young woman played by Josette Day and the beast portrayed by Marais, but the moral beast Avenant and the morally beautiful Beast, both portrayed by Marais. It is needless to add that Marais was easily one of the most handsome men of the twentieth century. This is a must-see classic. It is one of the greatest fantasy films ever made, perhaps the greatest film version of a fairy tale, and the finest film made by Jean Marais. That the film was produced so soon after the War (1946) is yet one more of the film's miracles.
Rating:
Summary: Hauntingly beautiful
Review: What can I say? It's very difficult to find the right words to describe this mesmerising film. Firstly the disc itself - superb extra's and the print is remarkably clean for it's age; another top job by Criterion. As for the film...It is a true work of art, one of those films that are fantastic in every area in such a way that raises it above the standard of general excellence and makes it truly memorable. But it is the sheer sense of wonder that deserves the most praise, the magic that surrounds the Beast's castle will make your jaw drop to the floor with a near continuous myriad of sumptuous special effects and brilliant inventiveness. The performances are also wonderful and it is extremely moving as well as entertaining, with so many memorable moments...I really cannot fully express the delight this movie creates, you really have to see it. They well and truly do not make them like this anymore.
Rating: 
Summary: Thrilling.....
Review: At the beginning of "La Belle et la Bete" the wonderful film based on Marie Leprince de Beaumont's book of the same title, the director, Jean Cocteau asks the viewer to become as little children and engage in the willing suspension of disbelief. Fortunately, I believe in mystical and magical things, so I found Cocteau's instruction easy to follow and was rewarded with thrills of excitement. Criterion has performed it's usaual great service, restoring a masterpiece. The technical aspects--remastering of the 1946 black and white film appears to me to be very nearly perfect. But more importantly, "La Belle et la Bete" is truly a work of art. A documentary included with the DVD explains how Cocteau, in spite of wartime shortages, was able to create his fantasy using the paintings of Vermeer and the etchings of Gustave Dore as a point of inspiration. Many of the most spectacular scenes are animated Gothic wood block prints! In an age of dazzling special effects, it is wonderful to know that creative geniuses have existed and once upon a time movie-making was based on artistic genius, not just technological wizardry. Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale. In this version, Beauty is a convincingly good daughter and the beast is a convincingly bloody beast. Mornings after his nighly prowls little dead animals can be found in the courtyard. (He is unlike the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz). However, by the time the Beast is dying and Beauty rushes to his side, I am have come to care for him--if not love him. Jean Marais and Josette Day are very convincing. Cocteau's "La Belle et la Bete" is closer to the original European tale than many other dramatizations. The purpose of these "fairy" tales was to impart a distilled bit of wisdom from one generation to another. "La Belle et la Bete" teaches an eternal truth--one does not love someone because of their appearance. True love is unconditional. If it is not unconditional, it is not love. As my mother used to say, "You should not judge a book by it's cover" -- although many of us do.
Rating:
Summary: not scary.....wicked arty!
Review: producer jean cocteau was really arty..although less so then in his earlier film "Blood of a Poet"..He cast his partner jean marais as the star..and put stuff like long halls with billowy white curtains in them...and a fire place with human hand sconces over the hearth....nice job using dream imagery in a flick
Rating:
Summary: hot damn! flawless and masterfully well done
Review: cocteau pulls it off again with "beauty and the beast". even though i like his works of 'pure surrealism' better, this movie is a must buy if you're even slightly interested in the visuals of the surrealist movement. the part where beauty's father first goes into the beast's castle is absolutely incredible--watch for the clock with moving eyes and a somewhat sour facial expressions. (i'd be pissed too if i was a clock.) the ending is a bit puzzling and i'm not sure if iunderstood it properly, but i didn't really watch it for the story which is pretty trite and all too oft' told, but it doesn't really master since the rest of the film is so perfect and utterly captivating. whoever played the beast did a tremendous job and really became the character. a necessity!
Rating:
Summary: A Magnificent Film
Review: I first saw this poetic, fantasy film back in the '50's, when I was about six or seven years old. In those days, Channel 13, in New York, would run foreign classics. Cocteau's Beauty And The Beast stood out in my memory, because of its haunting, surreal images. Of course, back then, I wouldn't know what the word "surreal" meant. All I knew was that the film was a hypnotic, yet beautiful, experience. About a dozen years passed, until I saw Cocteau's work of art again, on a UHF presentation, emceed by film critic Charles Champlain. (I could somehow make out the images, through all the "snow" on the screen.) Up to that point, I wondered if what I saw, on that flickering TV screen, during my childhood, was in fact itself a dream. Later, when I was in charge of film activities at my college, I arranged for it to be shown there. So I was once again able to enter the magical world that Cocteau had created. This cinematic version of Perrault's fairy tale is far from pretty. In fact, it's downright scary in some scenes -- especially the ones in the Beast's house. So it's not something I'd recommend for young kids. Nevertheless, if you're a person who loves the mysterious beauty of shadowy B&W photography, and enjoys being transported into a Twilight Zone-ish world, where things aren't quite what they seem, this film is definitely for you. This version is for adults, or kids who are mature in their thinking (and can handle subtlety). For others, who can't get to that level, and who are geared towards Star Wars effects, and third-grade quality movies, Disney (Ugh!) will have to do. Criterion did a fantastic job in the restoration of the film. And the bonus features, including a superb commentary, make it a doubly worthwhile purchase. Plus, the subtitles are easy to read. So what are you waiting for? Don't waste any more time. Go get this DVD!
Rating: 
Summary: Early Beautiful Story Can't Compete.
Review: There are no shortage of Beauty and the Beast stories in cinema. King Kong, the Phantom of the Opera to ... well... Beauty and the Beast. The Poetic Jean Cocteau mounted this film version of the story and achieved an incredible level of creativity and beauty. The enchantment begins with the story but is carried through in the filmmaking. Offering extremely unique visuals (not so much by todays standards), the film is fun to watch and with the dialogue spoken in french and one of the most bombastic musical scores in the history of the world, its even fun to listen to. The story structure is as simple as a fairy tale. In fact, some of the story movements are taken for granted. Beauty is over her disgust for the Beast within minutes and begins to feel for him even when the viewer has not seen anything from the Beast but manipulation and anger. That stuff only flies in fairy tales (and some Julia Roberts films...) So, all in all, this story is nice story. But, the longest I've seen a kid sit through this film was about 6 minutes. And its not just the kids, many adults are also uneasy with the pacing and pretentiousness. Yep, this film will always be plagued by the far superior animated feature put out by the Disney Studio (There goes my chance for any helpful votes...). The DVD has a so-so transfer of the film, a pretty good audio commentary and a short making of documnetary. So, if you are a fan of this particular film, definitly buy this DVD... If you're looking for the storyline or something for the family, Disney's the way to go... Just Be our guest.
Rating:
Summary: A very wonderful and beautiful film, not to be missed!
Review: This is defintly one of the best films I've ever seen. If you buy this you defintly will not regret it. It's a truly beautiful film! I'd give it 20 stars if I could! It's a very romantic and tender film. I highly recommend this.
Rating:
Summary: A FAIRY TALE FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS
Review: We always should give a second chance to a movie. Two years ago, I wanted to see THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST late at night after a working day. 30 minutes later, I was ejecting the DVD and could swear that this film was only an antiquity reserved only to nostalgics ones. Now, a few days ago, tired of the standardized Disneythings, I decided to show it to my children and stay for a while in order to explain certain scenes to them. Believe me or not, they were literally hypnotized by the movie, rediscovering this fairy tale in a way unknown to them until then. I'm sure that the shadows of this black and white film are more suggestive than all the special effects of the world. The strangeness of the fairy tale comes from simple tricks already discovered in the first years of Cinema : clever editing, costumes and decors reminding the illustrated books of our childhood ( Gustave Doré, for instance ) , superb and disturbing slow-motions at the right moments and an impressive musical score. Jean Cocteau wrote a screenplay very close to the first version of this well-known tale but he added some variations of his own : allusions to other tales such as " The Sleeping Beauty " or " Cinderella ", the important role given to the Temple of Diana, an element entirely invented by the French director, and the character of the Beauty's real world lover played by un unmasked Jean Marais. This Criterion DVD also offers a very relevant commentary track, a 30-minutes TV show that unveils the multiple tricks used by Jean Cocteau in order to create the strange mood of the movie, the original text of THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST written in the XVIIIth century and a restoration demonstration. A DVD for your library.
Rating:
Summary: Childhood memories
Review: My brother and I were TV addicts as children. We watched everything that was on and especially liked movies on WNET, WPIX and WPBS. Living near New York City gave us the opportunity to view many different types of films. We LOVED this movie as children and I have been searching for it for 35 years. What a treat to stumble upon it on your web site. The most vivid memory I have is definitely of the hands holding the candle sticks that move as the Beast walks down the hallway. I can't wait to buy this and watch it again. I'll buy a second to give to my brother! Thanks.
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