BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

              Alright. A quick note before I start. My review will be quite different from most of the reviews you will see anywhere else. Why? Because I have not watched the original animated film. So, for me, this almost feels like a new film entirely, and hence my review will actually incorporate the story elements, too. I can't even compare the two, so it will be a pure review of the new live-action film itself.

              With that out of the way, I have to say I really loved this film. It very much feels like watching a great Disney animation film....the same way I felt after watching Moana or Tangled, and the like. The only difference, of course, is the fact that this is live-action. But even so, (for quite obvious reasons) it does feel like I'm just watching a Disney animation flick. And I enjoyed it for the most part, the music, the story, the characters...

               The tale as old as time works as an overall plot, but what really gets me are some of the funnier moments throughout. Most of all, I like the dynamic between Lumiere & Cogsworth, and there is a lot of fun banter between the two. And then the chemistry between the two titular characters is also really good. Perhaps one unexpected character I find to be very funny is Belle's dad, played by the brilliant Kevin Kline. These characters provided some really fun & touching moments throughout the film.

               Now, the songs. I have only heard the main 'Beauty and the Beast' song itself previously, but even that song feels great to hear when seeing it in the dance scene itself. And all the other songs are really good as well, and I really enjoyed them in the film. Although, it didn't really struck me that much as the likes of Moana or Tangled did where I ended up listening to the songs too, outside of the film. I didn't do the same with this film, but I promise you, the songs were really excellent within the movie.

                 And overall, I really enjoyed the film the way I would expect a Disney film. There is nothing to really complain about. I don't expect action sequences any way, so I'm not going to comment on that. And the visual effects were pretty good. And so are all the actors. They played the characters a bit over-the-top but that didn't bother me at all, because I was always feeling like watching an animated film, anyway.

               In the end, to simply put it, for me it was really like watching a great (and it really is great) Disney flick which I thoroughly enjoyed from start to end.

VERDICT: 85 / 100

                 I cannot comment really for those of you who have watched the original, but my sentiment is simple. This is a really good Disney film and I would recommend it to everyone, because its a nice feel-good story, anyway, and we all need a bit of that in our lives...