Beauty and the Beast
dir. Cocteau
Opens Fri Aug 23
Cinema 21
Anyone who’s seen this adaptation of Beauty and the Beast, appreciates its standing as a classic date movie. But not the first date. Although it is a fairytale most people in industrialized countries have heard during childhood, its themes are intense. Director Jean Cocteau does a magnificent job fleshing them out, easing the audience into the idea of empathizing with a character who looks like a high school mascot wearing Gene Simmons-sized shoulder pads.
Although it was originally released in 1946, the unabashed escapist aims are all the more effective when received by today’s audience–one that’s accustomed to pissing contests between special effects artists, and who pays money for increasingly realistic, nerve-wracking explosions.
The original print has been restored, flaunting its gorgeous, decadent sets and costumes. Josette Day (Belle) is a human testament to the virtues of eyebrow shaping. She could have cashed in on the saccharine and resent-worthy heroine routine, but instead demures to a more subtle and classier portrayal.
The film’s premise implies that it may be a cute but noncommittal date flick, yet it quickly envelops you in its seriousness. Which is not to say there aren’t any cracks in the mortar. Unintentionally humorous moments where the film shows its age occasionally break the spell. For instance, Jean Marais, the Beast, looks like the silliest man who ever worked up the gall to put on a pair of tights. Day’s incredulous, ogling reaction to him is distinctly pre-feminist in spirit, but charming and forgivable. According to relatively credible sources, Marais was Cocteau’s lover at the time, which provides a partial explanation for the lack of convincingly lustful fireworks between Belle and the re-transformed Beast. They both look like they’re about to laugh out loud during the final scene, with its high drama and total departure from portrayals of normal interpersonal behavior. Therefore, it ends on an upbeat note, comfortably ousting the viewer out of fantasyland and back home to the 21st Century, with all the sardonic humor and brutal adoration of convincing explosions.