One of the standouts of the ten-year
‘Disney Renaissance,’ a period that saw the release of some of the
Disney’s finest and most enduring animated works, 1991’s animated
musical Beauty and the Beast rivals anything the studio
released during their venerated Golden Age.
For those in need of a quick refresher, the
protagonist is a free-spirited young woman named Belle (expertly voiced
by the Broadway singer Paige O’Hara). Something of an oddity in her
parochial hometown, Belle must continually refuse the advances of the
arrogant and dim-witted village hero Gaston, and cares deeply for her
father, the eccentric inventor Maurice.
When Maurice loses his way in the forest
late one evening, he stumbles across the castle occupied by the titular
Beast, who isn’t the sort of fellow to welcome in uninvited guests. The
hairy, razor-toothed fellow, who was once a handsome young prince,
imprisons Maurice, leading Belle to come rescue papa and break the curse
which ensnares the hapless Beast.
Along with Aladdin and The Lion
King, Beauty and the Beast is one of the hallmarks of
Disney’s entire century-long canon. It was the first animated film to
be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, and in addition to
several Golden Globes it also garnered Oscars for Best Music and Best
Original Song. The characterisations are excellent and the storyline,
based on a centuries-old fairy tale, is an engrossing one that deftly
counters weight with whimsy.
A true artistic and commercial triumph, the
film has truly been given the red carpet treatment with the current
three-disc Diamond Edition. In addition to a smattering of extras Disc
One contains stunning HD renditions of both the theatrical and extended
editions, this latter running almost a full half-hour longer thanks
mainly to an extended alternate opening act. Disc Two is absolutely
brimming Blu-ray special features, principally the superb, hours-long
‘Beyond Beauty: The Untold Stories Behind the Making of Beauty and
the Beast.’ Lastly Disc Three contains the DVD edition of the
film, with an audio commentary and singalong taken from the Blu-ray
version.
Overall the Diamond Edition stands as an
incredibly rewarding, eminently impressive and surely definitive release
of this animated classic. The feature itself looks breathtaking on Blu,
and for those looking for reasons to make the transition to the HD
format, surely this is it. Stunning stuff.
Audio & Video
There’s nothing beastly about picture
quality on this Diamond Edition; the HD transfer of this Disney classic
is, quite simply, the reason Blu-ray was invented. It’s one of the most
flawless, stunning prints we’ve ever seen, with impeccable vibrant
colorisation, impressive depth and a startling amount of detail aided by
a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, which is the perfect compromise between the
1.85:1 of previous editions and the 1.66:1 we grew up watching on
battered VHS editions.
Boffins at the House of Mouse evidently
felt a 5-channel surround audio mix simply wasn’t enough for to keep
pace with the magnificent visuals: the feature comes with a DTS-HD MA
7.1 soundtrack. This is probably overestimating the capabilities of
most home theatre setups, but it’s nonetheless the definitive
rendering.
Special Features
The 3-Disc Diamond Edition is positively
laden with supplementary material. As befits a release of this calibre
the bonus content is first rate, and much of the content, such as the
previously unseen short films included on the touted Beyond Beauty
featurette, is of genuine historical interest.
In addition to the Blu-ray and DVD versions
of the feature, included are two lengthy deleted scenes (including an
18-minute alternate opening), audio commentaries, conversations with
animators and composers, insights into all stages of the creative
process, games, music videos, animation tests, featurettes and a
comprehensive 6-act Making Of. All special features are presented in
1080p High Definition, and all up the set includes a vast amount (some
seven hours, by our count) of thrilling and well-chosen bonus content.
