Beauty and the Beast: 25th Anniversary Edition - (BD+DVD+DIGITAL HD) [Blu-ray]

I absolutely adore this film for so many reasons but one of them is the immensely likeable cast. Belle is the perfect leading female for this film, and like all Disney 'princesses', she is gorgeous, has a wonderful singing voice, and is destined to live happily ever after! Paige O'Hara voices the character perfectly, from her rich speaking voice full of emotion, to that gorgeous singing voice which captures the innocence of Belle so well, and is now one of the iconic female Disney voices. There's nothing dislikeable about Belle, she's simply perfect and we love her all the more for it. In turn, Robby Benson voices the Beast, and his gruffness works so well with the softness of Belle, and he has a lovely singing voice too in 'Something There'. The fabulous Jerry Orbach voices the candlestick Lumiere, one of my favourite characters in the film, and is cast alongside the amazing Angela Lansbury as Mrs Potts... you'd know that voice anywhere, and she seems perfectly cast as the caring housekeeper-turned-teapot! Each of the cast take their turns in singing roles, and it all comes together to create one of the best Disney soundtracks.One great thing about this film is that there is no complicated meaning to find within it, it's just simply about teaching us that love can prevail when you look beyond the other person's appearance, as Belle is able to for the Beast. Beast is convinced that he is unloveable, and as such treats those around him disrespectfully and rudely. Belle is able to show him the error of his ways and through her attitude and friendliness is able to turn him around and show the gentle, loving side she knows is there. It's a tale of true love, and is extremely emotional to watch, even for an animated film. The gentle scenes involving Belle and Beast are so sweet, with the music accompanying them perfectly, and it is a joy to watch from start to finish. Yes, it's convenient that they start off hating each other and it turns to love, but that is part of the magic of Disney for me! Beast's lesson of learning to change for love is an important one - changing for the better, and as Mrs Potts sings... 'bittersweet and strange, finding you can change, learning you were wrong' - I'm sure we could all take something away from that line.The songs in this film are just magical, and it won't take long for them to be embedded in your musical memory forever! I found myself singing along quietly in the cinema while the main songs in the film played, and I loved them just as much now as I did as a young girl. The movie opens with the brilliant 'Belle', a fairly long musical number introducing us to Belle, Gaston and her village. It's such a happy song, and very iconic for the movie. The wonderful 'Something There' is a duet between Belle and the Beast, with other singing by Lumiere, Cogsworth and Mrs Potts, I particularly love the sequence in the movie for this song, it really shows the change in relationship for these characters. My favourite song, and favourite scene in the whole movie is the absolutely perfect 'Beauty and the Beast', sang beautifully by Angela Lansbury (Mrs Potts). The moment those infamous piano chords hit and Belle emerges in the iconic yellow dress... wow, that is movie history right there, and the audible of the little girls in the audience just made it all the more precious. 'Be Our Guest' is the most uptempo of the numbers, involving the enchanted household objects, and is so wonderful to watch on-screen, full of action, colour and is mesmerising for young children and adults alike... try to avoid singing along to that one!The animation in the film was flawless, and both Harry and I really enjoyed watching the whole thing. It is the traditional style Disney animation, rather than the CGI of their more modern releases 'Tangled' and 'Cars', but it's perfect as it is. Harry had reservations that it was a film for girls, but afterwards told me he loved the Beast and how Belle fell in love with him at the end. Everything about this film comes together to create a cinematic masterpiece, and became the first animated movie to nominated for the Best Picture Oscar... rightfully so too. There's something magical about watching the beautiful girl fall in love with the Beast, and the magic surrounding them both... no matter how old you, you can't fail to be moved by the movie, especially that tear-jerker of an ending. Every little girl will want to be Belle after watching this, and I could watch that famous ballroom scene again and again. I loved everything about this movie, and the fact it is still so popular 22 years after it's release speaks volumes - amazing Disney at it's best.

Very good film

Truly, truly an amazing movie. The story, characters and music that I fell in love with when I was a young child have been magically revived in this wonderful DVD.The story is a basic boy meets girl romance, but with a twist. Beautiful Belle (beautiful in French) is the classic Disney heroine - Intelligent, not getting what she deserves in her life and with an arrogant man after her, who gets trapped by a 'beast' in an enchanted castle after saving her father from the prison. Little does she know that with a little help from the residents of the castle, humans that have been turned into house hold objects by a curse, she will fall in love with the beast, who is a prince that was transformed by the same curse and her love will ensure he and all the residents of the castle turn back in to their original state.Each song is fantastic, with the highlight being of course "Be Our Guest" and "Beauty and the Beast" which gives me Goosebumps every time I hear it.What's more the three versions of the film on this DVD include an extended version of the film, and there is also a never before seen start of the film - so even if you have seen the movie it is sooo worth buying this amazing DVD.Ok, so it sounds stupid right? But you have to watch it to really appreciate the wonder of the story.I was so pleased with the service from amazon as well, not only did I purchase the DVD for less than half of the RRP, it arrived in perfect condition the next day.With the restored digital imaging, stacks of bonus features and the classic songs I just have one question....Why are you reading this, and not watching the movie?Off to watch it for the second time today now, no really.

`Beauty and the Beast' is one of those films that has stood the test of time and it still feels as well made and delightful as when it was first released. Now it is re-released in blu-ray splendour you can relive it's magic again and again.Belle lives in a French village and loves nothing more than a good book and when the local Casanova Gaston (who is odious and vain) tries to take her hand in marriage she can think of nothing worse. Her father stumbles across a deserted castle inhabited by a gruesome beast, who is really a prince under a spell, and when Belle goes to rescue him she ends up being held prisoner herself. Over time Belle and the beast develop a love for one another and when Gaston comes to kill the beast the story is brought to a head.Of course there is slightly more to the story than that, but that is the rough outline and gives an idea of what you can expect here. The animation is very well done in this film, as it's Oscar will attest to, and the backgrounds are rendered with a level of detail Disney films have lacked in recent years. The use of light is very good as well, especially in the castle where the shadows and pools of light are very well done.This has decent enough music and isn't too twee and the voiceover work is also very good. I especially enjoyed Angela Lansbury as the teapot and thought she matched the character perfectly.This has become a classic in the Disney stable for a reason and if you haven't watched this yet you should be pleased with the story and animation on offer. This has plenty of extras, most of which are aimed at kids, but the commentaries and `making of' featurette are of special interest to adults and give a deeper insight into the film. Overall this is a great package with excellent remastering and is another wonderful film to add to your Disney collection.Feel free to check out my blog which can be found on my profile page.