Can you believe it’s been over 20 years since Disney’s Beauty and the Beast was first released?  On the one hand, over these years it’s become a timeless classic.  But to me it also feels like it was just last week I first saw Belle and her Beast on the big screen.

Oh wait.  It WAS last week.  But this time I saw them in 3D, with the Beauty and the Beast 3D release.  And lemme tell you, fans of this movie that wonder if they should shell the hard-earned for this version…yes, you should.  It’s a totally new way to see the film, and it’s a wonderful use of 3D.  Plus hey, tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme.  You know the drill.

What’s the diff?  Well, originally Beauty and the Beast was hand-drawn, with CGI only assisting in the process.  This version of the film takes the layers of artwork that was saved in the Disney archives and turns them into deeper layers that feels like 3D, but without the two cameras that usually bring about this illusion (’cause you know, animation doesn’t do two cameras.  That’s for the living & breathing.)

Can you tell the 3D is there?  Of course.  Don’t expect it to be in-your-face like it would be for Final Destination 5 or Despicable Me.  Then again Beauty and the Beast was created at a time when 3D was thought of as an old, out-of-tune gimmick best remembered in old exploitation flicks.  Also, this isn’t an in-your-face movie.  The story itself and the wonderful voice actors (hello, Angela Lansbury & thank you, Jerry Orbach!) are enchanting enough.  Think of 3D as the cherry on top of this fairy tale confection.

According to Disney stereographer Robert Neuman — the man who oversaw the addition of 3D — his idea was “to be able to tell a more immersive story for the audience”.  So expect to be pulled into the action rather than having the action jump out at you.  For Beauty and the Beast, this use of 3D works exceedingly well.  In the “Be Our Guest” number, it’s fun to see the Busby Berkeley-inspired action with a spiffy new 3D feel.  I found myself seeing things I hadn’t noticed before, and given the amount of time I’ve spent watching this film on DVD, that’s a pretty neat trick.  The 3D “wide screen shots” of the woods, the castle and the town really shine, probably because of all the initial detail that went into the original.  With all those layers, all that art, it’s no wonder there’s a feeling of depth when the computer wizards make each layer stand out.  The old “Computer Animation Production System” that was used for the original film was combined with the “pixel displacement” tools the new art team created is a blend that works well, giving the movie a new twist while keeping the feel of the original hand-drawn art.

A word of warning from someone who is used to watching this story unfold on the ol’ flatscreen tv; this movie does have it’s dark moments that really get spooky on the big screen.  Belle’s father is lost in the woods with wolves hunting him down.  Belle’s first encounter with the Beast isn’t exactly what you could call positive.  And the finale is some intense stuff (as all Disney fairy tale climaxes tend to be).  When this screened, a few of the younger members of the audience were unprepared, and were frightened (one little tyke no more than 2 or 3 years old left with his mom in tow, poor little sweetie.)  So if you’ve got kids and figure they’d love to see this?  I’ll bet they would, but keep in mind the age of your young ones, and their ability to deal with the scary.  Maybe a chat about make believe before heading to the multiplex?

At first, Disney wasn’t really interested in releasing Beauty and the Beast in 3D, but after the success of  The Lion King 3D, they gave it a whirl (even though Beauty and the Beast was given the 3D treatment before Simba got his paws on it).  I’m glad they did.

 

PS: Beauty and the Beast won’t be the only thing you see if you head to the theater for this film.  Disney’s short film Tangled Ever After, a story about Rapunzel and Flynn’s wedding day, is a bit of adorable slapstick that gets the 3D fantasy ball rolling.  Since this an entirely new film, the 3D is less layered and more intrinsic to the piece, but it’s the same ol’ Tangled crew you’ve come to know from the original film.  And it focuses on chameleon Pascal and horse guard Maximus, so what’s not to love?