Movie · 2017 · Family, Fantasy, Romance · 2h 9m · PG · English
Curator score: 3.3/10 (1.2M ratings)
Be our guest.
Overview
A live-action adaptation of Disney's version of the classic tale of a cursed prince and a beautiful young woman who helps him break the spell.
Ratings
Curator score: 3.3/10
IMDb: 7.1/10
Letterboxd: 3.22/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 71%
Metacritic: 65
TMDB: 7.0/10
Director
Bill Condon
Production
Walt Disney Pictures, Mandeville Films
Cast
Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Kevin Kline, Emma Thompson, Ewan McGregor, Josh Gad, Hattie Morahan, Haydn Gwynne, Gerard Horan, Ray Fearon, Ian McKellen, Nathan Mack, Audra McDonald, Stanley Tucci, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Clive Rowe, Thomas Padden, Rita Davies, D.J. Bailey
Where to watch
Disney Plus, fuboTV
Curator Review
Verdict
A polished, lavish live-action remake with strong production design, a glossy musical presentation, and enough charm to satisfy fans of the original fairy tale. It’s most rewarding as a spectacle and nostalgia piece, but it can feel overextended, overproduced, and emotionally flatter than the animated classic it revisits.
Best for
Disney fans who want a faithful, big-budget retelling
Viewers who enjoy musical fantasy with ornate visuals
Families looking for a familiar fairy-tale comfort watch
Fans of romance and enchanted-castle spectacle
Skip if
You want a fresh reinterpretation rather than a reverent remake
You’re sensitive to heavy CGI or hyper-polished visual effects
You prefer sharper wit or deeper emotional complexity
You already dislike live-action Disney remakes
Overview
This is the kind of movie that arrives already carrying its own legend. The appeal is obvious: a beloved fairy tale rebuilt with glossy production design, elaborate costumes, and a cast that can sell the romance and the songs well enough to keep the machine moving. When it works, it feels like a theme-park dream of the story rather than a reinvention of it.
Worth noting
The problem is that the film often seems more interested in reproducing the iconography than in discovering anything new inside it. The emotional beats are familiar, the pacing is stretched, and the digital embellishment can make the whole thing feel airbrushed. Still, there’s enough warmth, spectacle, and musical momentum to explain why it landed with such a huge audience.
Bottom line
If you want a comforting, family-friendly fantasy with a grand, old-fashioned sheen, it does the job. If you’re hoping for a remake that justifies its existence by deepening the tale, this one may leave you admiring the packaging more than the story.
Top Letterboxd reviews
erika (2.5★) · 3792 likes
there's a bit after the prince turns human again when belle asks how he feels about growing a beard and he growls at her, and for a moment i honestly wished i were dead
Lucy (1.5★) · 1721 likes
i honestly can't remember the last time i was so uninterested in a movie
sree (3.5★) · 1477 likes
🎶 beauty and the autotune 🎶
Carrie (3.5★) · 1307 likes
Worth waiting two hours to see Ewan McGregor's face tbh