It's not a law or anything, but I guess that everyone has to have their favorite Disney animated film. As these movies have been around since the late 30s, they have touched on generations, and my guess is that if you asked most people, they could give you an answer -- some may even have to debate about which is their favorite. I'll be honest, I'm not a huge fan of the Disney movies from the early and middle part of the 20th century -- they simply don't grab me and I'm put off by the music. However, many of the movies from the 1990s renaissance of Disney movies impressed me, and my favorite is Beauty and the Beast.

Beauty and the Beast takes place in provincial France (in what looks like the 1700s?). A pre-credit sequence tells us the story of a selfish prince who refused to grant shelter to a haggard old woman. The woman revealed herself to be an enchantress and placed a spell on the prince, turning him into a ferocious beast. She stated that if the prince could fine someone to love him, the curse would be broken -- if not, he would remain a beast forever. We are then introduced to Belle (voiced by Paige O’Hara), a young woman who lives in a small village with her father, Maurice (voiced by Rex Everhart), an inventor. Belle loves to read, and because of this, some of the villagers think that she is strange. However, her beauty has not escaped the eye of the brutish Gaston (voiced by Richard White), who hopes to marry Belle. When Maurice leaves to go show off his latest invention, he gets lost in the woods and comes across a castle. Little does he know that this is the castle of the Beast (voiced by Robby Benson), who throws Maurice in a cell. Belle goes looking for her father and finds the castle. When she meets Beast, she offers her captivity in exchange for her father’s and Beast accepts. We soon learn that the entire castle is enchanted, as Belle is assisted by Lumiere (voiced by Jerry Orbach), a candelabra, and Cogsworth (voiced by David Ogden Stiers), a clock. Beast is very gruff and rude towards Belle at first, but he soon realizes that she may be the one to break the spell, so with the help of his servants, he attempts to woo her. Thus begins a great love story which will be met with danger from the frightened villagers.

Well, here we are 20 years later (wow, has it really been that long?) and Beauty and the Beast has lost none of its beauty or power. It would be inaccurate to call this a perfect movie, but all of its core ingredients add up to an experience which is pretty close. First of all, we have the story, which is simple enough to be engaging, yet deep enough to hold our interest. (Although, watching the movie again, I have a question: In what kind of castle does the 11-year old prince answer the door? And what happened to his family?) The story of the young women who falls in love with the monster is familiar enough, and Beauty and the Beast takes a daring next step by making Belle intelligent and cunning and not being afraid to have the Beast be a jerk. These two well-drawn (no pun intended) lead characters are surrounded by a group of great supporting characters, and I think that Lumiere and Cogsworth are far-and-away the best of the humorous second-tiers who appeared in this run of Disney films. Any movie like this can be defined by its villain, and this may be Beauty and the Beast's one weak spot. Sure, we don't like Gaston, which is a requirement for a villain, but he's rather bland and stereotypical -- unlike Belle and Beast.

Then, of course, we have the other two building blocks of a Disney movie; the art and music. Hopefully younger viewers who have grown up on CG animation will be able to appreciate the beauty of this movie. From the breath-taking opening multi-planed shot, to the rainy finale, Beauty and the Beast is a masterpiece of art and color. The character designs are great and the use of signature colors shows that a great deal of though and effort went into the movie. Let me frank and say that I don't like musicals. I typically dislike the music and find the idea of characters singing their dialogue annoying. Having said that, I love the music in this film, as the songs have a great combination of being both catchy and epic. The genius of the late Howard Ashman's lyrics would certainly be missed in future Disney films.

For some reason, when people look back at the Disney films of the 90s, The Lion King is always mentioned as a classic. Sure, it's good, but did they forget that Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture. This timeless classic is still looking for all of the respect which it deserves and perhaps this new Blu-ray release can help with that.

Beauty and the Beast actually uses the word expectorating in a song on Blu-ray Disc courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 1.78:1 and the Disc contains an AVC 1080p HD transfer which runs at an average of 25 Mpbs. The image is incredibly sharp and clear, showing no grain and no defects from the source material. The most striking thing about this transfer are the colors, which are simply gorgeous. The blues and red nearly leap off of the screen. The second thing that you'll notice is the depth. The characters in the foreground are nicely separated from those in the background, creating a quasi-3D effect. The level of detail is good as well, although this does reveal some lines in the animation which weren't completely erased. The Disc carries a DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track which runs at 48 kHz and an average of 6.0 Mbps. The track provides clear dialogue and sound effects. The stereo effects are quite good, as we are always aware of action off-screen. The surround sound effects are great, most notably during the finale. This scene also provides some nice subwoofer effects from the thunder. As one would hope, the songs sound fantastic, and the lyrics are always audible.

The Beauty and the Beast Blu-ray Disc contains a wealth of extras. Along with the original theatrical version, there are other viewing modes. The Disc contains a "Special Extended Edition" which runs some 7 minutes longer than the theatrical cut. The Theatrical Cut can be viewed with the workprint version viewable in a picture-in-picture format. The Special Edition can be viewed with an AUDIO COMMENTARY from Producer Don Hahn, Co-Director Kirk Wise, and Co-Director Gary Trousdale (along with a special guest). The final viewing choice is a Sing-Along version. The Disc contains two DELETED SCENES, one of which is an alternate opening. Both can be viewed with introductions. The alternate opening is vastly different, as it gives more background on Maurice and Belle. The other is a completely new scene (which is done in very rough form) which introduces new characters in the library. "Composing a Classic" (20 minutes) has Alan Menken, Richard Kraft and Don Hahn discussing the work which went into creating the music for the film. They break it down by talking about the most famous songs. "Broadway Beginnings" (13 minutes) has various actors discussed in the Broadway version of the film discussing their reactions to the show. The piece also focuses on how the movie made it to the stage. We get a MUSIC VIDEO for the song "Beauty and the Beast" by Jordin Sparks. The remainder of the extras are found on Disc 2. "Beyond Beauty: The Untold Stories Behind the Making of Beauty and the Beast" is a multi-faceted documentary which gives a detailed look at the production of the film This feature-length piece begins with a modern history of animation at Disney and then explores how the story, animation, and music came together. We get interviews with the people who made all of this possible, along with archive video and art. "The Story Behind the Story" (26 minutes), which is hosted by Celine Dion, takes a look at the original stories behind seven Disney animated classics. We get a MUSIC VIDEO for the song "Beauty and the Beast" performed by Celine Dion & Peabo Bryson. "Early Presentation Reel" (3 minutes) gives an early look at what the film is going to be. The Disc contains an Alternate Versions of "Be Our Guest", as well as an Alternate Score on the "The Transformation". The Deleted Song "Human Again" is presented here with introductions by Don Hahn and Alan Menken. "Animation" allows us to see how the process takes place, through tests and pencil versions. The "Camera Move Tests" (2 minutes) show how the ballroom scene was done. The extras are rounded out by set-top games, two TRAILERS, and four TV SPOTS.