BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1946)

A.K.A.: La belle et la bete

Country: France

Genre(s): Fantasy / Romance

Director: Jean Cocteau

Cast: Jean Marais / Josette Day / Marcel Andre

Plot

In order to save her father’s life, Belle is held prisoner by the hideous Beast in his magical castle, but soon develops unexpected feelings for her captor.

What I Liked

My last entry was about a redefining exponent of neorealism.  Now we head in a completely different direction into a classic in surrealism.

I’m not much of a fantasy fan, but ironically what I enjoyed about this film were the elements most often associated with the genre: the sumptuous set design, dreamlike cinematography, elaborate costumes, primitive but elegant special effects, and dramatic musical score.  It all blends into an overall ethereal tone for “Beauty and the Beast” that always reminds the viewer of the story’s fairy tale origins.  Whether we’re in the gorgeous forest surrounding the Beast’s castle or inside of the foreboding castle itself, the sense of the magic, both light and dark, is ever-present.  Then there are the cinematic slights-of-hand that director Jean Cocteau and crew use to galvanize the eyes.  Just when all the histrionic drama gets a little too heavy, we’re treated to surprisingly quick special effect that probably amazed audiences of the time.  Even today, one can’t help but grin at these effects; we’re familiar with all of them and how they work now, but Cocteau’s timing and tastefulness in using them to their fullest effect is impeccable.  Even something as simple as cutting out the sound completely from some scenes, to where one can’t even hear footsteps or wind, adds to the film’s surreal

To me, George Auric’s music is indispensable to this film.  It’s every bit as lavish as what we see on the screen and in scenes where the emotional content lies under the surface, the music does much of the work in conveying the necessary feelings to the audience.  Most of all, the melodies are just plan gorgeous to the point where one wouldn’t really mind in just listening to the soundtrack alone.

What I Didn’t Like

Jean Marais seems to get a lot of praise for his dual-role performance, but I found him cheesy, one-dimensional, and not very creative in his portrayals of both Belle’s suitor Avenant and her captor, the Beast.  Granted, as the Beast, he does convey some of the anguish inherent in the character through his eyes and facial expressions, which are still easily seen thanks to the painstaking work of special effects designers.  However, his physical gestures and body language reminds one of a junior high school student trying to fumble his way through “Hamlet.”  And what does it say about an actor that his best work happens when there’s a mask over his face?

As a matter of fact, most of the male leads were disappointing; Michel Auclair and Marcel Andre don’t fair much better than Marais.  One could argue that he was a product of acting his time, but there were terrific actors in movies in the 1940s.  He just wasn’t one of them.

Most Memorable Scene

When Belle’s father first finds himself lost inside the Beast’s castle, we’re are transported from a fairly quaint reality into a convincing fantasy world in a manner not unlike “The Wizard of Oz” scene where Dorothy passes from black and white into color of Oz.  The castle scenes, like the rest of the movie, are entirely in black and white, but still dazzle the eyes with floating characters, disembodied arms, self-opening doors, living statues, and the constant presence of mist and smoke enveloping the characters in the same way the viewer in surrounded by a sense of mysterious splendor.

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5