Beauty and the Beast (1991)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Beauty and the Beast |
| Original title | Beauty and the Beast |
 | |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1991 |
| length | 84 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK o. A. |
| Rod | |
| Director |
Gary Trousdale Kirk Wise |
| script |
Linda Woolverton Roger Allers Kelly Asbury |
| production | Don Hahn |
| music | Alan Menken |
| cut | John Carnochan |
| chronology | |
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Successor → |
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Beauty and the Beast (original title: Beauty and the Beast ) is the 30th full-length animated film from the Walt Disney Studios and was released in 1991. It is based on the folk tale of the same name from France. There are two other parts of the film, which are located within the period of time that Belle spends with the beast in the castle (so-called midquels). These are Beauty and the Beast: Christmas Magic from 1997 and Beauty and the Beast: Belle's Magical World from 1998. In 2017, the real-life film Beauty and the Beast was reinterpreted.
action
One narrator tells of a superficial young prince who long ago lived in a magnificent castle. During one winter night an old beggar woman appeared at the gates of the palace and asked for protection from the bitter cold. As a thank you, she offered the prince a rose. But the prince only smiled at the present and sent the old woman away. She warned him several times not to be fooled by her appearance, but he remained ungracious until she turned into a beautiful sorceress. All attempts at apology by the prince failed: he had proven to the sorceress that he was heartless. So she put a curse on his castle , transformed all residents and turned the prince into a repulsive beast. However, he received an enchanted mirror, his only window to the outside world in the following years. The curse can only be broken if by his 21st birthday he can truly love a woman and win her love before the magical rose fades. Otherwise he would have to keep this terrible shape forever.
It fades to the beautiful girl Belle , who doesn't feel comfortable in the midst of her narrow-minded village community. Lost in her books, she dreams of one day discovering the world. This meets with incomprehension, especially with the vain but highly respected Gaston , since he thinks women shouldn't read. Nevertheless, he would like to marry Belle because, in his opinion, she is the most beautiful girl in the village and he himself deserves “only the best”. Belle, however, finds his intrusive behavior and arrogance unbearable.
The only person who really cares about Belle is her father Maurice, a hapless and shabby inventor who most residents of the city think is crazy. His latest invention, a machine for chopping wood, works, however, and so he sets out to show it off at the market in the next town. But he gets lost in the dark forest and is attacked by wolves, whereupon his horse runs away. On his escape, Maurice discovers a gloomy castle in which he seeks refuge. There, to his astonishment, he quickly made the acquaintance of the enchanted castle residents, now living household items and furniture, who took great care of him. As he is about to warm himself in front of the fireplace , the beast appears, which Maurice irascible seizes and locks him in the dungeon.
In the village, Gaston has already prepared everything for a wedding with Belle before he even proposed to her. Belle ignores him but disgracefully.
After Maurice's horse returns without him, Belle is very worried about her father and finally lets the horse take her to the castle. Once there, she found Maurice in the dungeon, who pleaded with her to flee immediately. But the beast has already noticed Belle's presence and is talking to her from the shadows. She begs to let her father go free, but the beast will not be softened. Finally, against the will of her father, Belle offers herself for an exchange and promises the beast to stay in the castle forever if her father lets go. Then the beast steps into the light and Belle sees its terrible form. Nevertheless, she confirms her promise and surrenders to her fate, while her father is forcibly removed from the castle.
Meanwhile, an offended Gaston sits in the tavern and complains about the loss of face. But the men of the village, who all want to be as strong, tall and respected as him, cheer him up again so that he can return to his usual vanity. Shortly afterwards, Maurice storms into the tavern in search of people who can help him free Belle. His descriptions of the beast only meet with mockery and so he is thrown out. While the other guests are making fun of Maurice, Gaston has an idea how he could make Belle his wife after all.
In the castle, the enchanted residents are in a state of excitement because they see in Belle the girl who could break the curse. They urge the beast to billet her like a guest and be a little kinder to her. However, the beast's irascibility still prevails and Belle is unwilling to get to know the lord of the castle better. Only at night does she leave her room and enter a room in the west wing that the beast had forbidden her before. In this ruined room she finds the magic rose that has already started to wither. The beast catches her and, furious with rage, throws her out of the room, whereupon Belle breaks her promise and flees the castle. In the forest, like Maurice before, she is attacked by wolves, but at the last moment the beast comes to her rescue and is injured in the fight. Belle brings it back to the castle and nurses it back to health.
In the following, the beast changes. Little by little, she falls in love with Belle and, to her enthusiasm, gives her the huge castle library. Belle, on the other hand, is impressed by his new, more charming being. Slowly the two get closer. On the day before the beast's 21st birthday, all castle residents are now trying to take this last chance. Belle and the Beast spend a romantic evening dancing together in the opulent ballroom . Before the beast can confess his love for her, however, she confesses that she misses her father terribly. The beast then gives her his magic mirror, in which Belle sees that Maurice has set out on her own to save her and is now wandering around in the forest, completely exhausted. The beast lets Belle go to her father out of love and thus loses what is probably the last chance to be freed from the curse.
Belle finds her father and takes him home, where Gaston is ready to carry out his plan: he has bribed the head of a mental hospital to lock Maurice up for his mad talk about the beast, unless Belle becomes his wife. Belle refuses and uses the magic mirror to prove that her father is not crazy. The townspeople panic at the sight of the beast, which Gaston takes advantage of to incite them. Together with many armed men, he sets out to kill the beast and locks Belle and Maurice so that they cannot warn the beast. But thanks to Maurice's invention, the two manage to free themselves and hurry after the men.
In the castle, the residents are disappointed not to be freed from the curse after all. When the angry mob penetrates the castle, they defend it with all their might, only the beast does not want to fight, because without Belle it has lost all its hope. The residents can fend off all attackers except for Gaston, who fights his way into the west wing and finds the beast there. This does not defend itself against his attack until Belle appears in front of the castle and the beast draws new hope. Gaston and the beast fight each other on the castle roof. When the beast gains the upper hand, Gaston begs for his life and the beast releases him. When the beast turns to Belle, Gaston rams a knife in the back. When Gaston tries to stab a second time, he falls from the roof and falls into a deep ravine.
The beast, happy to see Belle at least once more, dies in her arms, whereupon Belle confesses her love for him, only moments before the last leaf of the rose falls. At this moment the beast is transformed back into the handsome prince and is unharmed again. Belle recognizes her beloved beast by his eyes and with a kiss all objects are transformed back into people. The castle will also be just as radiant and beautiful as it was back then. The story ends with a wedding in the ballroom, at which all castle residents and Belle's father are present.
Characters
- Belle
- Belle is the intelligent, beautiful daughter of an inventor. With her progressive thinking, her love of books and her thirst for freedom, she does not fit into the conservative urban community. At first she hates the beast, but then she manages to look behind the ugly facade.
- Beast / Prince Adam
- Because of his cold-heartedness, the prince is turned into an ugly beast as a punishment. This is bigger and stronger than a normal person and completely covered with fur. The beast finds itself so repulsive that it cannot imagine ever breaking the curse. Out of this hopelessness it is irascible, violent and cruel at first, until his love for Belle changes it. His real name - Adam - is never mentioned in the film.
- Maurice
- Belle's father, a cranky inventor who other townspeople think is crazy. Gaston even wants to have him sent to an institution.
- Gaston
- Gaston is a successful hunter, the most attractive, strongest and most manly man in town, so he is adored by all women and admired by men. He is extremely self-indulgent and vain and desperately wants Belle to be his wife, because for him the most beautiful girl in town is also the best. However, she does not like him and rejects his application, which hits him hard because he is not used to rejection. Later he wants to kill the beast out of jealousy.
- Lefou
- Gaston's constant companion. Unlike Gaston, Lefou is silly and ugly and therefore admires him very much (which only reinforces his vanity), although Gaston likes to vent his anger on him and otherwise does not treat him very well.
- Lumière
- The extremely charming three-armed chandelier was the castle's cook and servant before it was transformed. He is the prototype of the romantic French gentleman and in this role gives the beast many tips on how to win Belle's heart. Together with a feather duster (before the transformation, a maid), with whom he always had little tussles, he is the only person in the film who speaks with a French accent and also repeatedly makes references to French culture (good food, dance and music). Lumière is French and means “light” when translated.
- From balance
- The caretaker was turned into a small standing clock, but even in this form he still tries to give orders to everyone. Most of the time these are ignored by the other residents of the house because he is fearful and would never do anything that goes against the orders of his master, the beast. He is a little puffed up and often argues with Lumière. In the German version his name indicates a German or Austrian origin, but in the original he is a snobbish Englishman with the name Cogsworth (which is based on Clockwork - clockwork).
- Madame Pottine
- The teapot is the resolute ruler of the kitchen, crockery and cutlery. She takes care of Belle in a very maternal way and sometimes disregards a ban on the beast. Her son Tassilo, a small tea cup, later sets Maurice's invention in motion and frees Belle and Maurice.
- Tassilo
- Son of Madame Pottine. He's a bright little teacup that hides in Belle's pocket towards the end of the film to get her to return to the beast's castle.
synchronization
The German synchronization of the film was done by Berliner Synchron AG in Berlin . Lutz Riedel wrote the dialogue book and directed the dialogue, Andreas Hommelsheim took over the musical direction.
| role | English speaker | German speaker |
| Belle | Paige O'Hara | Jana Werner |
| beast | Robby Benson | Matthias Freihof |
| Maurice | Rex Everhart | Alexander Duke |
| Gaston | Richard White |
Engelbert von Nordhausen (language) Peter Edelmann (vocals) |
| Lefou | Jesse Corti | Santiago Ziesmer |
| Monsieur D'Arque | Tony Jay | Klaus Miedel |
| Bookseller | Alvin Epstein | Helmut Heyne |
| teller | David Ogden Stiers | Friedrich Schoenfelder |
| Lumière | Jerry Orbach | Joachim Kemmer |
| From balance | David Ogden Stiers | Manfred Lichtenfeld |
| Mdm. Pottine | Angela Lansbury | Ingeborg Wellmann |
| Tassilo | Bradley Michael Pierce | Timo Plümicke |
| Mdm. Dresser | Joanne Worley | Christel Merian |
| Feather duster | Kimmy Robertson | Dorette Hugo |
| oven | Brian Cummings | Tilo Schmitz |
reception
The film won an Oscar for Best Song and Best Score in 1992. Until 2010 ( above ) it was the only animated film ever to be nominated for an Oscar in the category of best film .
It grossed a total of 146 million US dollars in 1991, making it the third highest-grossing film of the year, beaten only by the summer blockbusters Terminator 2 - Reckoning and Robin Hood - King of Thieves .
In 2002 the film was included in the National Film Registry , which lists US films that are particularly worth preserving. According to the American Film Institute , the film is also one of the 25 most important American musical films .
background
- The film was adapted by Linda Woolverton from a story by Roger Allers based on the "Beauty and the Beast" version by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont .
- CGI was used to a large extent in this film . In particular, the dance scene in the castle and the scene for the song “Be here guest” consist almost entirely of CGI, whereby this technique was also used in the foreground in the song.
- After a conversion to Disney Digital 3-D format, Beauty and the Beast was due to return to the big screen on June 10, 2010. This date, however, has been postponed by Disney indefinitely. However, on November 10, 2011, the 3D version was released on Blu-ray in Germany. In the USA, the 3D version opened in cinemas on January 13, 2012.
Songs
- Belle's song
- “Our City”: The opening song of the film. Belle makes her way to the village bookstore, with the whole village joining in the song and describing Belle's feelings.
- Belle reprise
- Sung by Belle after Gaston proposed marriage to her. Belle excuses herself because she expects more from life than a provincial life like Gaston would offer her.
- Be a guest here
- (English: Be Our Guest) : A fantastic performance of the castle objects in the evening to entertain Belle.
- Gaston
- Gaston's henchman Lefou and the drinkers present celebrate Gaston in the village pub.
- Gaston recapitulation
- After Maurice fled the castle to seek help in the village pub, the townspeople only laughed at him. It is here that Gaston comes up with the idea of blackmailing Belle by sending her father to a mental institution if she does not marry him.
- Who would have thought?
- (Something There) : Sung by Belle and the Beast as they develop feelings for each other.
- To be human again
- (Only on the deluxe DVD) (English: Human Again) : The haunted residents of the palace prepare for the ball evening and dream of being human again. This scene was dubbed.
- Beauty and the Beast
- (English: Beauty and the Beast, also Tale As Old As Time) : Sung by Mdm. Pottine as Belle and the Beast dance in the ballroom of the castle.
- Death to the beast
- (English: The Mob Song) : Sung by the villagers on their way to the castle to kill the beast.
Awards
- 2002: Entry into the National Film Registry
- 1993: ASCAP Film and Television Music Award for Alan Menken and Howard Ashman for Best Song *
- 1993: golden canvas
- 1992: Grammy for Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson for Best Pop Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal *
- 1992: Grammy for Richard Kaufman and the Nürnberger Symphoniker for Best Pop Instrumental Performance *
- 1992: Grammy for Alan Menken for Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television *
- 1992: Grammy for Howard Ashman and Alan Menken for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television *
- 1992: Oscar for Alan Menken for best film music
- 1992: Oscar for Alan Menken and Howard Ashman for Best Song *
- 1992: Annie Award for Best Animated Film
- 1992: BMI Film Music Award for Alan Menken
- 1992: Golden Globe Award for the best / best comedy / musical
- 1992: Golden Globe for Alan Menken for the best film music
- 1992: Golden Globe for Alan Menken and Howard Ashman for Best Song *
- 1991: Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Animation
* for " Beauty and the Beast "
Video and DVD publications
- In 1997 a sequel with the title Beauty and the Beast: Christmas Magic was produced directly for the video market. A year later, a third part of the series was staged with Belle's magical world .
- For the re-release as part of the Platinum series on DVD on January 1, 2002, Beauty and the Beast was digitally edited and slightly re-cut. For this version of the film, in which a few animations were polished up, both technically and graphically, a new sequence to the exuberant song "Human Again" was added in the second act of the film. The scene was dubbed with a new cast, including Roland Hemmo as Herr von Unruh and Thomas Fritsch as Lumière, as the original speakers, Manfred Lichtenfeld and Joachim Kemmer , had already died at the time. The 2-Disc Platinum Edition was released as a special edition on October 8, 2002. This version contains the extras u. a. a making of, which is only included in this version.
- On November 4, 2010, the cinema version and the new version were re-released in a joint DVD and Blu-Ray edition as the Diamond Edition. This set contains 3 discs: “Main Movie + Extras”, “Bonus”, “Main Movie DVD” disc
- On November 10, 2011, the 3D version was released as the Diamond Edition on Blu-ray 3D, along with the film disc from last year's Blu-ray Diamond Edition. The “bonus” disc is not included in the 3D set. Similar to the Lion King , the theatrical version was converted to 3D, but the special edition with the additional scene was not. This is because the makers prefer the cinema cut, and the later re-performances also had the original cut.
literature
(in chronological order)
- Elmar Biebl, Dirk Manthey, Jörg Altendorf: Walt Disney. The magical world of animation. 2nd Edition. Publishing group Milchstraße, Hamburg 1993, ISBN 3-89324-117-5 .
- Michael Quandt, Yvonne Hoffmann: Beauty and the Beast. (= Part of the series The original Disney film comics ). Schneider book Egmont, Cologne 2012, ISBN 978-3-505-12815-8 .
- Disney (ed.): The great golden book of the princesses. Carlsen, Hamburg 2018, ISBN 978-3-551-28011-4 , pp. 99–128.
Web links
- Beauty and the Beast in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Beauty and the Beast on AllMovie (English)
- Beauty and the Beast in the online film database
- Beauty and the Beast at Fernsehserien.de
- Beauty and the Beast ( Memento from September 4, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) at Disney.de
- Beauty and the Beast on Disney Wiki
