While the 1946 Jean Cocteau and 1991 Disney versions are superior films of the timeless fairy tales, Cannon Movie Tales' 1987 adaptation is very worthy and one of the better Cannon Movie Tale films.Beauty and the Beast (1987) is one of their best-looking films, Cannon's films were always made on a low budget but Beauty and the Beast is one of the few where it is not so painfully obvious. The film's very beautifully photographed, the sets are surprisingly lavish and atmospheric, especially the gardens and the castle is like a magisterial character in itself and from personal opinion Beauty and the Beast is the Cannon Movie Tale film with the best costume design, here being one of the highlights rather than a flaw. The music is quite good, not as memorable as the score and songs in Disney's version but they stand just fine on their own and fit well into the film. The incidental music is charmingly whimsical, and while only If You See With Your Heart stands out as truly great out of the songs (Wish for the Moon is also lovely, but not quite as emotion-filled) they're all listenable and do nothing to hinder the story.The story of Beauty and the Beast is a timeless one, and while there are changes the basic details are intact structured faithfully and the enchanting spirit is too. Pacing is steady and controlled, very like the pacing of the fairy tale's story itself, the film doesn't suffer at all from trying to make a short story seem longer (a problem that The Frog Prince and especially The Emperor's New Clothes had) and the ending is very emotional. Beauty and the Beast's chemistry has a subtle intensity and a real poignancy too. It's nicely directed, allowing the story to breathe while still keeping its momentum and it does nothing to make the magic any less impactful. Rebecca De Mornay radiates innocence and beauty, and plays Beauty charmingly and touchingly, showing herself to be a quite decent singer too. John Savage shows very good chemistry with her, and is similarly very good as the Beast, giving off a scary but also tragically tormented figure and aided by good make-up.While there is not a lot here actually that is wrong in Cannon Movie Tales' version of Beauty and the Beast, there are a couple of not-so-good areas. The two leads come off very well but the supporting roles are stockly written and overplayed, the siblings resort to quite embarrassing mugging and Beauty's father has rarely if ever been more unsympathetically portrayed. While Savage really impresses as the Beast, he is rather wooden as the Prince, which is not entirely his fault actually because Beast has always been a juicier and more interesting character which gives more scope to do much with the role. The writing does avoid being too cheesy and cloying and it is decent writing for a Cannon Movie Tale film, but can get a bit stiff in places especially in the early parts before Beast appears and when Beauty and the Beast are not on screen together.All in all, there are some really beautiful things here, and of the Cannon Movie Tale films their version of Beauty and the Beast is one of their best. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Beauty (Rebecca De Mornay, young and very, very lovely) lives with her father, sisters and brothers in ye olden times. Beauty is the unspoken "caretaker" of the family, the one who makes their lives easier with her devoted attention to their needs. The father, a merchant, has been struggling but he hears that a ship of his has come in. Before he travels to port, he asks his children what they would like as gifts from afar. All of the girls asks for expensive presents but Beauty asks only for a beautiful rose. Alas, when the patriarch arrives at the docks, he finds that the ship did not arrive but was, in fact, lost at sea. Terribly distraught, he runs into a storm on the journey home and finds shelter in a large mansion with beautiful grounds. After a night of comfort, and without meeting the home owner, father is exiting the gardens when a rose catches his eye and he picks it for Beauty. Immediately, a man-beast (John Savage) rushes into view and snarls the bad news. For stealing a rose, father must remain on the estate forever. However, after much pleading, dad convinces the beast to let him return home to say goodbye. But, once back home, the whole story tumbles out and Beauty agrees to take his place and spend the rest of her days at the distant mansion. Since she won't take "no" for an answer, Beauty soon is installed in her new surroundings. She receives beautiful new clothing and lovely rooms. She even dreams of a "handsome" prince. But, reality soon comes calling with the entrance of the beast. Will Beauty be able to endure her "pretty" prison in the company of such a monster? This is a lovely, long-ago musical adaption of the classic story but not, of course, in the same category as the brilliant animated version. This one succeeds mainly on the presence of the two stars. De Mornay makes a beautiful beauty while Savage does a fine, sympathetic turn as the spellbound beast. The other actors work ranges from fine to acceptable to laughable but that is of small importance. The music, while pleasant, is not very memorable but the costumes and sets are more than adequate. Best of all, the film is a very "family-friendly" flick. Therefore, if you want to show a nice romantic film to a crowd of young females, this is a wonderful choice, for it has no objectionable material or themes. I happened upon the film at Kroger's for $3.99 and I consider that to be money well spent indeed. Why don't you keep your own eyes on the lookout during your next trip to the supermarket?

Charles Perrault's classic French fairy tale "Beauty And The Beast" has been filmed several times. Though it is not as popular as other fairy tales, it is just as enchanting. The well-known French version with Jean Marias and Josette Day, was filmed in 1946. Then, in 1962 came a forgotten quickie version with Joyce Taylor and Mark Damon. The groundbreaking Disney animated feature was released in 1991. But Cannon Films beat them to the punch, producing their live-action musical rendition in 1987. Starring Rebecca De Mornay as Beauty, and John Savage as The Beast/Prince, this is another good example in their "Movie Tales" series. Unlike some of their other titles which do NOT cry out for cinematic translation ("The Emperor's New Clothes" jumps to mind), this fairy tale is perfect for visual dramatization. Cannon's version stays relatively close to the original story, which is more than Disney's did (very little besides the title was retained) and it has great atmospheric photography, especially the scenes in the Beast's garden, which are all the more impressive considering the film's low budget. Both De Mornay and Savage bring depth to their roles, and, considering neither is a singer, they handle the best songs in the movie ("If You See With Your Heart" and "Wish For The Moon") very well, indeed. The film is rather slow paced, but, then, so is the original story. There are a few other changes as well, most notably, Beauty's sisters (Carmela Marner and Ruth Harlap) who are depicted as selfish and lazy, rather than jealous and wicked. Ditto her two brothers. The father,(Yosi Graber) is also characterized as somewhat shallow. But the climax is packed with traditional emotion, and this is a movie which seems to get better every time I see it. Recommended for fairy tale lovers everywhere on the planet.

I have always loved Farie Tales, and this is my all time favorite, and I have them all. "The Frog Prince" with Aileen Quinn and Helen Hunt. "Puss N' Boots" with Christopher Walken. "Hansel and Gretel", "Rumplestiltskin", "Snow White", "Sleeping Beauty", "Pinnochio". A couple of those are done by Farie Tale Theatre, but I love the Cannon tales more than anything on earth. With Rebecca de Mornay singing, I never would have imagined she could btw, it's astounding. The cinametogrophy is great, and the script is wonderful. I'm 19, and even my father willingly watches this with me. He says, and I agree, that it just seems so real... and he's not that kind of guy at all!!! John Savage is the most terrific beast I could imagine... other than in the French movie "Beaute et Le Bete" or whatever it's called *lol*. It's an even better version than the Disney Cartoon, which is also one of my favorites. I hope that whoever sees this film on sale buys it (and sends it to me, I need a not worn out one!!!) and cherishes it forever!