A Bela e a Fera: O Natal Encantado

I watch this every year at Christmas, and I never grow tired of it. It is not as good as the wonderful original, but is actually one of the better DTV efforts, along with The King of Thieves. It is nowhere near as bad as some people have said, and one commentator gave it a low score solely on its continuity errors. Of course it has some, then again, so does every single movie in existence, even the original Beauty and the Beast. It is true that some of the animation falls a little flat,(most of it though is crisp, clean and smooth) especially with the dark backgrounds, but I liked the fact that it is darker than the original, and not at all mean spirited. Mostly the animation isn't bad at all, but I do think the computer animation stuck out like a sore thumb. The songs are well above average, and the score by Rachel Portman is beautiful. My favourite song is As long As There's Christmas, and Stories is charming. The other songs aren't as memorable, but bring a great character to the original storyline, about Belle (who was slightly changed) trying to bring Christmas to the Beast, and overcoming the many obstacles including the pipe organ Forte. The voice overs were generally very good indeed. Fife is a tad annoying, but totally bearable. Lumiere and Cogsworth are funny here, and I really admire the late Jerry Orbach. Haley Joel Osment was cute as Chip, and Angela Lansbury makes a welcome return as Mrs Potts, as well as Belle and the Beast. The real treat is in the newcomers though. Bernadette Peters is wonderful as the reluctant Angelique, and Tim Curry does an exceptional Annie-nominated voice over as Forte, song included. A perfect Christmas treat for Disney fans. 7/10 Bethany Cox

When I heard that there was going to be a direct to video sequel of Beauty and the Beast, I was appalled. But I took a chance and rented it. Using the original cast was an inspired idea! The animation is great (much better than most DTV sequels), but the CGI used on Forte (the evil organ) is distracting. The songs aren't wonderful. It's nice to explore the section of the original movie that was skimmed over. Christmas!

The thing that really hurts this sequel (other than the lackluster work from all the normally superb voice actors, and deflated story) is the fact that this is OBVIOUSLY an afterthought of a sequel. The main villain, as well as some additional characters, were not even mentioned in passing in the 1991 film. There is really no need for this movie at all.

The only exceptional thing about this sequel is Tim Curry's excellent voice-over work, and the CGI imaging of his character, even if it is misplaced alongside the traditional animation. I'd say skip this altogether if you really enjoy the classic 1991 feature, as I do.

For a direct-to-video special, this movie isn't really all that bad. The animation was crisp and clean enough that I wondered if the theatrical animation department worked on this. The CG animation of the villain, Forte, was pretty impressive, even though it kind of stood out like a sore thumb compared to the traditional animated surroundings.

All the voicework is back from the original movie, most notably Jerry Orbach as Lumiere and David Ogden Stiers as Cogsworth. New characters were well voiced by Tim Curry, Paul Reubens, and Bernadette Peters. One thing that is definitely lacking in this movie is the quality of the songs. Most of them are kind of corny, sappy, and disposable. Compare that with the original where all the songs were magnificent and memorable, and you'll realize that Howard Ashman was definitely missed.

As for the storyline, this movie provided a nice Christmas story. Recalling back when they were cursed, the characters detailed their struggle to bring Christmas back to the castle. I thought Forte was a very conniving and formidable villain. He added the conflict that made the story more interesting. It's not groundbreaking material, but it's sweet and nice enough around the holidays.

So, overall, this isn't Academy Award material like its predecessor, nor was it ever intended to be. It's a good Christmas story with your favorite B&B characters.

My IMDb Rating: 8/10. My Yahoo! Grade: B+ (Memorable)

Forte is a way better villain than Gaston. It would of been better if they made this a 30min short than a movie.