Ah yes, a tale as old as time: Stockholm syndrome. Seriously, there isn't really another way to describe the plot of 'Beauty And The Beast (1991)'. The Beast straight-up keeps Belle prisoner and treats her awfully (after kidnapping her dad, too), but I guess it's okay because she soon falls in love with him? Obviously, that's a really weird and rather problematic message. Their dynamic closely resembles that of an abusive relationship, one that perpetuates that harmful belief that it's a woman's duty to put up with a man's bad behaviour and change him for the better. Yikes. The piece is supposed to be a story about how beauty isn't skin deep, about how you shouldn't judge a book by its cover; this theme is completely undercut by the fact that Belle is apparently the most beautiful person in France, that Beast is a dog of a bloke regardless of the fact that he's literally a dog of a bloke (I mean, is he really any better than Gaston?) and that the curse is completely undone at the end and the Beast transforms into a handsome man. Plus, the servants mention that they've not been able to serve someone in ten years and the curse specifically states that it will cement itself, symbolised by the wilting of the pink rose, on the prince's twenty-first birthday, which means that the prince was around eleven years old when the curse was first put on him. That means that the witch (?) decided to ruin a little kid's life because he refused to let a total stranger (who's pretending to be someone they're not, I'll add) into his castle. Bit of a bad move, if I'm honest. Having said all that, the movie itself is generally successful. It features a number of catchy songs and some wonderful animation. It's also generally rather entertaining. There's quite a bit to like if you can ignore its issues, and it seems most people can. Ultimately, it's a decently enjoyable Disney movie that's let down by some unintentionally dodgy theming. 6/10.
Review of Beauty and the Beast
