Beauty and the Beast (1991).

Review #891: Beauty and the Beast.

Cast:
Paige O'Hara (Belle), Robby Benson (The Prince/Beast), Richard White (Gaston), Jerry Orbach (Lumière), David Ogden Stiers (Cogsworth), Angela Lansbury (Mrs. Potts), Bradley Pierce (Chip), Rex Everhart (Maurice), Jesse Corti (LeFou), Hal Smith (Philippe), and Jo Anne Worley (the Wardrobe) Directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise.

Review:
What is there to say about Beauty and the Beast that countless others haven't said over the past 25 years since it was released? Especially from someone who had never seen it before? I'll try to keep my words around the usual level of babbling for a movie like this. In any case, it's easy to like Beauty and the Beast. It's also easy to love it. Why is it so easy? Maybe it's the gorgeous animation, or maybe it's the wonderful songs, or maybe it's the characters that give the movie its depth. There is a certain kind of grace the film has, from the opening scene narrating the tale of the Prince's turn into the Beast, to a climax that is executed neatly. The ballroom dance sequence is a particular scene that stands out, from the waltz to the animation (with the background animated in CGI mixing with the traditional animated characters) to just how delicate everything is handled, which makes for a fantastic scene. There is never a dull moment in the movie, and it certainly looks like great care was taken in terms of how everything flows from scene to scene. The characters are enjoyable as well, exuding their own fair kinds of charm and depth. O'Hara does a fine job at portraying this main character with a good deal of wit and grace, and her scenes with Benson are as entertaining as one would expect, with the latter giving the character the right amount of conflict and presence. White is a fun villain (with his look certainly helping), conveying the right amount of arrogance and some form of charm within an enemy as delightfully evil as this. Orbach and Stiers certainly go well together, and they (along with Lansbury) contribute to making these songs so catchy and so enjoyable, especially "Be Our Guest", with the rest of the cast also doing a fine job. On the whole, this is a great film, complete with everything anyone of any age could enjoy, from animation to characters. At 84 minutes, it's an easy film to recommend to anyone, especially if you're in the Disney mood.

Countdown to 900 Reviews: 10, 9...

Overall, I give it 10 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Jumanji.

Review #322: Jumanji.

Cast
Robin Williams (Alan Parrish), Jonathan Hyde (Van Pelt and Sam Parrish), Bonnie Hunt (Sarah Whittle), Kirsten Dunst (Judy Shepherd), Bradley Pierce (Peter Shepherd), David Alan Grier (Carl Bentley), Bebe Neuwirth (Nora Shepherd), and Patricia Clarkson (Carol-Anne Parrish) Directed by Joe Johnston (#060 - Captain America: The First Avenger)

Review
In a way, this had been coming for a long time. I had first watched this over two years ago, while on my trip with my father to Oregon for the first time (the second trip would bring a cavalcade of reviews from #043-#058), but I didn't finish all of it, quickly forgetting it. So how was it? (and why did I even try to introduce this to the review?) All your questions (except that one) will be revealed. It's...okay. There, you got your answer, the review is-Oh okay, I'll elaborate (for whoever wants it) on this. It might be slightly interesting to know that this is yet another adaptation from the author Chris Van Allsburg (who had wrote the book The Polar Express which was later adapted into its own film). The acting is decent, Williams doesn't do a bad job (thankfully not doing what other could do, like shouting...), and the rest of the cast are good. (especially with Jonathan Hyde, who is entertaining along with Grier). The effects are okay, not bad for 1995. The story is okay, not too much (what, playing a board game that unleashes unimaginable stuff? Oh and some time travel). For a good part of the film I was asking a question: Why are they playing this game? I know, to finish the game, but they damage more things than if they could've stopped after they recovered Parrish. (Who was trapped in the game for 26 years....) This might be a spoiler (So skip this line if you don't want to know the ending), but why exactly do Parrish and Whittle time travel back to 1969? I suppose the board game is a TARDIS (that might've been a twist. For me anyways...). In the end, the film isn't bad, but there's something about it that keeps nagging at it being really good. Is it bad? No. Is it recommended? Depends on the person. But oh well.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: The Borrowers.

Review #287: The Borrowers.

Cast
John Goodman (Ocious P. Potter), Jim Broadbent (Pod Clock), Bradley Pierce (Pete Lender), Celia Imrie (Homily Clock), Flora Newbigin (Arrietty Clock), Tom Felton (Peagreen Clock), Mark Williams (Jeff), Raymond Pickard (Spud Spiller), and Hugh Laurie (Oliver Steady) Directed by Peter Hewitt (#022 - Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey)

Review
To begin with, this was based off the book of the same name (Which apparently had four more books after that) by Mary Norton. (Yet another review of a film adpated from a book) The acting is reasonably good, with John Goodman doing the best job (Last reviewed in #074 - Monsters, Inc.), along with Broadbent (Last reviewed in #87 - Robots and...#124 - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2.) and...Tom Felton...and Mark Williams. Huh- And Hugh Laurie. Probably just an odd, odd coincidence. Woah, I got way off topic here. Anyway, the effects are good enough, even being a bit imaginative at times. Its story is decent enough to run a (once again) decent length of 89 minutes. In the end, after nearly 15 years this a hidden gem.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.