“Beauty and the Beast” truly is a “tale as old as time” and it recently recieved a modern update. Disney’s live-action re-telling of its classic animated film came to theaters March 17 and has been the No. 1 movie in the world since its opening weekend. 

“Beauty and the Beast” is the story of a young woman, Belle, who dreams of adventure outside the small town she lives in. She finds this adventure when her father, an inventor, is taken prisoner in a castle inhabited by a beast and his servants. Belle courageously takes her father’s place and learns of the curse placed on the Beast, his servants and the castle. The story ends happily with the curse being lifted and the prince and Belle live happily ever after. 

The original Disney animation was released in 1991. For those who were born in the ‘90s and are Disney fans, this was probably on the list of movies  frequently watched. Iconic characters like Beast, Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, Chip and Belle, all brought the story to life in a magical way. 

26 years later, Disney has brought the movie and its characters  to life themselves. “Beauty and the Beast” is the latest in a series of live-action re-tellings of classic animated movies. I had high expectations for this movie because of my love for the original film and the character Belle in particular. Disney definitely did what they do best. The new film succeeded in meeting my, and many others, expectations. 

Highly recognizeable actors brought these well-known characters to life. Emma Watson (Belle), Dan Stevens (Beast/the Prince), Luke Evans (Gaston), Josh Gad (LeFou) and many others displayed talent and passion throughout the film. 

The  film  includes beloved songs, such as “Belle,” “Gaston,” “Mob Song,” and my personal favorite, “Be Our Guest.” The “Be Our Guest” scene is one of the most iconic scene in the movie. The live-action film brought this scene to life in a big, and very magical way. It did the original scene justice while also being unique in its own way. 

In addition to the classic soundtrack, new music was incorporated in the film. One song that stood out was the Beast’s song “Evermore.”  This song gave me chills as I watched the scene. Going into the movie, I did not know new music would be added to the originals, so I was a little skeptical. However, the new songs, especially this one, truly brought new magic to an already enchanted film. 

Quite possibly the reason the new music flowed so well with the old is because Alan Menken, musical theatre and film score composer, created the music for both the original movie and the new one. Memken is also known for creating the music for many other Disney classics and his talent was clearly heard in this film. 

The setting of this movie looked as if it might have been filmed on a Broadway stage. This kept the movie true to its original form, while also bringing the story to life. 

Disney knows how to bring magic to the big screen and it succeeded again with “Beauty and the Beast.” This film transports the audience to a brand new world. The characters are easy to fall in love with and the action keeps everyone on their toes, while also incorporating a lot of comic relief. 

This movie brought me back to my childhood, and  truly deserves the title of No. 1 movie in the world.