It is a story as old as time, with songs beloved by all. Beauty and the Beast return this week starring Emma Watson in a live-action adaptation of the Walt Disney Pictures animated classic.
The Walt Disney animated fantasy musical Beauty and the Beast was immediately hailed as a masterpiece when released in 1991 during Disney’s second golden age of animation, along with The Little Mermaid, The Lion King and Aladdin. It was the first animation to receive an Academy Award nomination for best picture, winning two Oscars for best original score and song, and the first to gross more than US$100 million (S$130 mil) at the box office.
Arriving this week is a live-action retelling. Bill Condon (Dreamgirls) directs Beauty and the Beast with Alan Menken providing new recordings of the original songs written by Menken and Howard Ashman.
It refashions the classic characters for a contemporary audience, and casting was pivotal for this beloved fairy tale romance of Belle, an independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast in his castle and learns to look beyond the captor’s hideous exterior into the kindly Prince within.
The filmmakers canvassed the worlds of film, television, music and theatre to find the talents best suited for each role. Emma Watson was the first to be cast as Belle, starring opposite Downton Abbey actor Dan Stevens as Beast. “From what I’d seen of Emma,” said Condon, “she seemed to be the person, both on screen and off, who best reflected the qualities that Belle embodied.”
Watson’s intelligence was instantly evident, playing the quick witted and tenacious Hogwarts student Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter film series. For over a decade, the British actress, 26, has continued to assert her presence in movies including The Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Bling Ring. She is in addition a human rights activist and global goodwill ambassador for the United Nations, something which has become her life’s calling.
What was it like to dance with the Beast?
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 16, 2017 من 8 Days.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 16, 2017 من 8 Days.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
What a G.E.M.!
Hongkong singer and new Tag Heuer global ambassador G.E.M. TANG, in town recently for F1, has a “guilty indulgence” that will just make you feel more guilty about yours.
The Twins Effect
Is the local showbiz scene big enough for both JAYLEY and HAYLEY WOO to twin and win? We compare and contrast.
Wake-Up Call
Following SHINee frontman JONGHYUN's suicide after a long struggle with depression, fans and celebs are urging the K-pop industry to pay more attention to the well-being of their artistes.
Coming Clean
Chart-topping British band CLEAN BANDIT, in town on Jan 22 for a gig, may be famous for using classical music in their hits, but that won’t stop them from collaborating with Beyoncé, as bassist Jack Patterson tells us over the phone.
Wong Time Right Target
The always-glam FANN WONG goes glum for her first major movie role in three years.
Star Ship Troopers
Space Travel is about to get more exciting. Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence, two actors already in Hollywood’s Stratosphere, take off this week for the Sci-Fi Romance Passengers.
Sandra Riley Tang, 25
The Sam Willo ws singer works out because “I really love to eat”. Yes, The Yoga Cofounder’s fad diet days are definitely over.
Comme What May
The man behind the Comme des F***down streetwear, Rusland Karablin, is so Zen (check out the mantra emblazoned on his swag), he doesn’t mind that everyone from Bugis to Bangkok is bootlegging his stuff.
“My Parents Told Me: You're On Your Own Now”
Getting cut off financially by her folks turned Asia’s Next Top Model alum AIMEE CHENG- BRADSHAW into a “super frugal” model. Except when it comes to yoga and shoes.
A Slice Of New York In Singapore
WOLFGANG’S STEAKHOUSE at the new Intercontinental Singapore Robertson Quay offers an authentic NYC steakhouse dining experience. But be prepared to leave with a much emptier wallet and smelling of beef fat.
