Beauty and the Beast

[7] Jean Cocteau’s Beauty and the Beast is ripe with indelible images of pure fantasy. That it was achieved with a modest budget in post-war France makes it even more impressive. The sets are exquisite — you’ll find them echoed in Ridley Scott’s Legend and Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands. I especially love the human arms that hold the candelabras out from the castle walls. Very …

[8] Disney goes Broadway in the first animated motion picture ever nominated for a Best Picture Oscar (in the days before they rolled out a separate category for the medium). This version of the classic fairy tale is fueled by power-house songs from Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, memorable characters, and a calibre of design and refined skillsmanship unseen for decades in the studio’s output. …