Movie Magic

So enchanting it takes your breath away, Jean Cocteau's 1946 live-action version of the famous fairy tale remains one of the most magical films ever made. Boasting a new print, struck from the restored French negative, and an improved, albeit not perfect, soundtrack, this glorious black-and-white film--in French with English...

By Jean Oppenheimer

November 14, 2002

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So enchanting it takes your breath away, Jean Cocteau's 1946 live-action version of the famous fairy tale remains one of the most magical films ever made. Boasting a new print, struck from the restored French negative, and an improved, albeit not perfect, soundtrack, this glorious black-and-white film--in French with English subtitles--takes us into a world as haunting as it is fantastic. The exquisite costumes and sets were by Christian Bérard, Georges Auric contributed the score and cinematographer Henri Alekan was the wizard on camera. His use of trick photography and hand-crafted special effects puts all of today's digitally generated, effects-laden movies to shame. With Josette Day as Beauty and Jean Marais as the magnificent beast, this film should not be missed.

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