Beauty and The Beast

John Winkler

12/12/11

Title: Beauty and the Beast

Language/Country: French/ France

Runtime: 93 min

Release Date: 1946 (France), 1947 (US)

Awards Won: N/A

Beauty and the Beast

“Beauty and the Beast” is a French film written and directed by Jean Cocteau. It was first released in France in 1946 and then in the United States in 1947. This is a romantic fantasy film, adapted from “Beauty and the Beast” a fairy tale of the same name written by Jeanne-Marie Le Prince de Beaumont. It is considered one of the greatest fantasy films of all-time. Cocteau took the fantasy film genre to a whole new level.

Richard Scheib’s article “Beauty and the Beast: La Belle et la Bete,” explains how Cocteau was able to transform “Beauty and the Beast” into one of the great fantasy films. This film was not the first adaptation of the “Beauty and the Beast” story, however it is what made it so popular. “As an artist/filmmaker, Jean Cocteau’s work is caught between French pseudo-intellectualism and a fascination with fantasy.” (Scheib) Cocteau was know for his passion for fantasy but with the past failures of “Beauty and the Beast” no one would of guessed this film to gain the acclaim it has. “The least that one expected to find was what is perhaps the greatest of all fantasy films. Given a straightforward storyline, Cocteau forgets about intellectual pseudo-profundities and simply allows visual poetry alone to carry the film. Unfettered by anything else, he creates perhaps the most extraordinary evocation of the fairy-tale ever put on film.” (Scheib) The films use of many different effects such as stop-motion and extremely well done make up give the film it’s real enchanting feel. Scheib explained it best when he said “Cocteau evokes a pure cinematic magic.”(Scheib)

“Though there were several early “Beauty and the Beast” films…it was not until Jean Cocteau conceived and produced his famous, if not classical, La Belle et La Bete in 1964. That “Beauty and the Beast” began making it’s mark in the fairytale filmic discourse.”(Zipes, 228) Jack Zipes book “The enchanted screen: the unknown history of fairy-tale films” explains, once again, the importance Cocteau had in making this film such a great fantasy film. Zipes explained that the film was not always critically acclaimed but eventually became recognized as great. “Gradually (the film) became such an important cult film that it influenced numerous directors…and has received more attention from scholars and researchers in the fields of literature and film then any other fairy-tale film.”(Zipes, 232) It was Cocteau’s take on the fantasy genre that transformed this film from ordinary to extraordinary. People began to realize how different this film was compared to other’s of it’s genre. The more awareness to the uniqueness of this film led to further research which revealed the true genius Cocteau put into this magical fantasy. “What is significant about Cocteau’s approach is that he has created a fairy-tale film that questions itself and questions the artificial fairy-tale thinking that had begun to promulgate in the 1930’s.”(Zipes)

 

The film opens with a written dedication from Cocteau: “Children believe in stories they are told. They have complete faith. They believe a plucked rose may bring tragic consequences to a family. They believe in the smoking hands of a man-beast who kills in the shame he feels before the maiden who is his guest. They believe in countless other artless things. It is a little of that artlessness that I ask of you. So that the omens may smile upon all, let me pronounce that magic word, that veritable Open Sesame: ‘Once Upon a Time’.” “It is this patient, almost overly polite, asking of our permission to suspend our disbelief for him.” (Scheib) This film is considered to be one of the greatest fantasy films ever, mainly because it calls to the audience to get lost in the magic of the movie just as children get lost in fairy tales, while still keeping the edge of being adult. The film takes the fairy-tale/fantasy theme and gives it a deeper meaning. It shows themes of despair and hardship and loss of hope, while still giving the happy ending. Even Disney borrowed many of the things Cocteau used in his film for their version of “Beauty and the Beast.” Although Cocteau would probably not be happy about this because of his desire to separate himself from the common fantasies like those produced by Disney; it was down out of homage and because his ideas were so great.

Overall, this film will go down as one of the greatest fantasy films of all time, and it’s all because of the brilliance Cocteau put into it. Cocteau strayed away fro the typical fairy-tale/ fantasy film and gave his film more depth. His use of different techniques such as stop motion and elaborate design and makeup gave his film and enchanting feel that few can match.

Sources

Scheib, Richard. "Beauty and the Beast (1946) (La Belle et la Bete). Director - Jean Cocteau. Stars: Jean Marais, Josette Day. Fairy-Tale. Moria - The Science-Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review.." Most Recent Additions. Moria - The Science-Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review.. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. <http://www.moria.co.nz/fantasy/beauty-and-the-beast-1946-la-belle-et-la-bete.htm>.

Zipes, Jack. The enchanted screen: the unknown history of fairy-tale films. New York: Routledge, 2011. Print.