Beauty and the Beast
Jean
Cocteau's adaptation of Beauty and the Beast (originally released in France as
La Belle et la Bte) stars Josette Day as Beauty and Jean Marais as the Beast.
When a merchant (Marcel Andr (C)) is told that he must die for picking a rose
from the Beast's garden, his courageous daughter (Day) offers to go back to the
Beast in her father's place. The Beast falls in love with her and proposes
marriage on a nightly basis; she refuses, having pledged her troth to a
handsome prince (also played by Marais). Eventually, however, she is drawn to
the repellent but strangely fascinating Beast, who tests her fidelity by giving
her a key, telling her that if she doesn't return it to him by a specific time,
he will die of grief. The film features a musical score by Georges Auric. ~ Hal
Erickson, Rovi
Beauty and the Beast (1946)
Drama, Fantasy,
Foreign, Romance, Science Fiction
Rated NR
96 minutes
December 26, 1999 |
Before Disney's
1991 film and long before the Beast started signing autographs in Orlando, Jean
Cocteau filmed "Beauty and the Beast" in 1946, in France. It is one
of the most magical of all films. Before the days of computer effects and
modern creature makeup, here is a fantasy alive with trick shots and
astonishing effects, giving us a Beast who is lonely like a man and
misunderstood like an animal. Cocteau, a poet and surrealist, was not making a
"children's film" but was adapting a classic French tale that he felt
had a special message after the suffering of World War II: Anyone who has an
unhappy childhood may grow up to be a Beast.
Those familiar
with the 1991 cartoon will recognize some of the elements of the story, but
certainly not the tone. Cocteau uses haunting images and bold Freudian symbols
to suggest that emotions are at a boil in the subconscious of his characters.
Consider the extraordinary shot where Belle waits at the dining table in the
castle for the Beast's first entrance. He appears behind her and approaches
silently. She senses his presence, and begins to react in a way that some
viewers have described as fright, although it is clearly orgasmic. Before she
has even seen him, she is aroused to her very depths, and a few seconds later,
as she tells him she cannot marry--a Beast!--she toys with a knife that is more
than a knife.
The Beast's
dwelling is one of the strangest ever put on film--Xanadu crossed with Dali.
Its entrance hall is lined with candelabra held by living human arms that
extend from the walls. The statues are alive, and their eyes follow the
progress of the characters (are they captives of the Beast, imprisoned by
spells?). The gates and doors open themselves. As Belle first enters the
Beast's domain, she seems to run dreamily a few feet above the floor. Later,
her feet do not move at all, but she glides, as if drawn by a magnetic force.
(This effect has been borrowed by Spike Lee.) She is
disturbed to see smoke rising from the Beast's fingertips--a sign that he has
killed. When he carries her into her bed chamber, she has common clothes on one
side of the door and a queen's costume on the other.
Belle has come to
the castle as a hostage. She lives at home with her father, two unkind sisters
and a silly brother, whose handsome friend wants to marry her. But she cannot
marry, for she must care for Poppa. His business is threatened, and he learns
on a trip to a seaport that he has lost everything. On his way home, through a
forest on a stormy night, he happens upon the Beast's castle, and is taken
prisoner and told he must die. The Beast offers a deal: He can go home if he
will return in three days, or he can send one of his daughters. The other
sisters of course sniff and make excuses, and their father says he is old and
nearly dead and will return himself. But Belle slips out and rides the Beast's
white horse, which knows the way to the castle. And the Beast's first words
tell her, "You are in no danger."
Indeed she is not.
The Beast has perhaps intuited that a daughter who would take her father's
place has a good heart. He tells her that every night at 7 he will ask her the
same question: "Will you be my wife?" She shudders and says she will
never marry him, but eventually her heart softens, and she pities him and sees
that he is good. He gives her a magical glove that allows her to travel
instantly between the castle and her home (emerging whole from the wall), and there
is intrigue involving the key to the garden where his fortune is held. The
sisters plot and scheme, but Belle of course prevails. Her father rises up from
his deathbed, the Beast sinks into a final illness instead, and when she begs
him to rally, his dying words are pathetic: "If I were a man, perhaps I
could. But the poor beasts who want to prove their love can only grovel on the
ground, and die."
Then there is
another death, of the faithless family friend who wanted to marry her, and as
his body turns into that of the Beast, the Beast comes back to life and turns
into a prince who looks uncannily like--the dead friend. And no wonder, because
all three--friend, Beast and prince--are played by Jean Marais. Odd, how
appealing Marais is as the Beast, and how shallow and superficial he seems as
the pompadoured prince. Even Belle doesn't leap cheerfully into his arms, but
looks quizzically at her new catch and confesses she misses the Beast. So did Marlene Dietrich, who held Cocteau's hand during the suspenseful first screening of the
film at a Paris studio. As the prince shimmered into sight and smilingly
presented himself as Belle's new lover, she called to the screen, "Where
is my beautiful Beast?"
Although he made
many films, Cocteau (1889-1963) did not consider himself primarily a filmmaker
but a poet; he also painted, sculpted, wrote novels and plays, and stirred the currents
of the Paris art scene. His first film, the surrealistic "Blood of a
Poet," was made in 1930, the same year as Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel's
notorious "L'Age d'Or." Both films were produced by the Viscount de
Noailles, who delayed the release of Cocteau's after the other film inspired
riots (Bunuel wrote of filling his pockets with rocks to throw at the audience
if they charged the screen). Cocteau's film included images that became famous,
as when a mirror turns into a pool of water, and when a mouth wiped off a
painting affixes itself to his hand.
"Blood of a
Poet" was an art film made by a poet. "Beauty and the Beast" was
a poetic film made by an artist. He made it at the urging of Marais, his lover
of many years, who was tall and imposing, with an extraordinary profile and
matinee idol looks--a contrast to the skinny, chain-smoking Cocteau, whose
months of shooting the film were made a misery because of a painful skin
disease that required penicillin every three hours.
Because Cocteau
was not sure he had the technical mastery for such an ambitious production, he
recruited the director Rene Clement ("Purple Noon") as his
technical adviser; the gifted cameraman Henri Alekan to handle the tricky
changes between outdoor realism and indoor fantasy, and the theatrical designer
Christian Berard to design the makeup, sets and costumes (his ideas were based
on the illustrations of Gustav Dore). The costumes were so elaborate they were
said to be "as much as the actors could stand up in." All of
Cocteau's thoughts on this process are preserved in his journal,Beauty and
the Beast: Diary of a Film,which shows him persevering despite his health.
His entry for Oct. 18, 1945: "Woke up with unbearable pain. As I can
neither sleep nor walk up and down, I calm myself by picking up this notebook
and trying to shout my pain to the unknown friends who will read these
lines."
We exist. His film
has made us the friends. Watching it again tonight, I felt an unusual
excitement. Its devices penetrate the usual conventions of narrative, and
appeal at a deeper psychic level. Cocteau wanted to make a poem, wanted to
appeal through images rather than words, and although the story takes the form
of the familiar fable, its surface seems to be masking deeper and more
disturbing currents. It is not a "children's film." Is it even
suitable for children? Some will be put off by the black and white photography
and the subtitles (brief, however, and easy to read). Those who get beyond
those hurdles will find a film that may involve them much more deeply than the
Disney cartoon, because it is not just a jolly comic musical but deals, as all
fairy tales do, with what we truly dread and desire. Brighter and more curious
children will be able to enjoy it very much, I suspect, although if they return
as adults they may be amazed by how much more is there.
Forty five years before
Disney adapted "Beauty and the Beast" into an animated feature and
hit Broadway play, Jean Cocteau brought to the screen a far more magical and
visually stunning version. Photographed with stark black and white imagery
without mountains of special effects, Cocteau's 1946 Beauty and the Beast
(La Belle et la Bête) showcases his theatrical, ballet, and artistic
talents in his finest creation.
Often more criticized
for his drug use and homosexual lifestyle than for his actual work during his
lifetime, Cocteau took on the fairy tale project at the urging of his lover,
Jean Marais, who plays both Avenant and the Beast in the film. Many draw
psychological interpretations of the film, partially based on Cocteau’s
sexuality or on the fact that Cocteau was beginning to have skin problems
(thus, the filmmaker could represent the ugly beast in search of love). Additionally,
fairy tales are always ripe for psychosexual interpretations, so critics can
have a Freudian field day with Beauty and the Beast, scrutinizing
the visuals for phallic and vaginal symbols. The story itself is very faithful
to the original fairy tale crafted by Jean-Marie Leprince de Beaumont.
Cocteau begs the
audience to suspend belief, introducing the film and preparing us for some of
its conceits with a title card that begins:
“Children believe
what we tell them, they have complete faith in us.
They believe that a rose
plucked from a garden can bring drama to a family. They believe that the hands
of a human beast will smoke when he slays a victim, and that this beast will be
ashamed when confronted by a young girl.
They believe a thousand
other simple things. . .”
A merchant (Marcel
André) lives in a country mansion with his son Ludovic and his three daughters
Felicie, Adelaide and Belle (Josette Day). Belle (Beauty in English) is the
good and pure daughter who does all the housework, as opposed to the two
self-centered sisters that only desire a life of leisure and marrying a rich
duke. Ludovic's handsome friend Avenant (Jean Marais) wants to marry Belle, but
she refuses to leave her father (providing lots of ammunition for Freudians).
Business isn’t going
well for the merchant, so he undertakes a desperate trip that promises riches.
Returning home in the fog after great disappointment, he wanders into a magical
castle literally illuminated hand held candelabras and watched over with living
statues and table hands that pour wine for the guests. As the merchant prepares
to leave, he plucks a rose for Belle, which causes the host Beast (Jean Marais
in a mask incorporating elements of Wolfman and a Werewolf) to angrily appear
to demand his death, unless he can supply one of his daughters to die in his
place.
Of course, the loyal
Belle willingly sacrifices herself. At first fearful, she grows to feel
sympathy for the Beast and the story proceeds with inevitability. The Beast may
look "horrible" (his words), but he has a heart of gold, contrasting
directly with the two untrustworthy sisters and the greedy Avenant, who look
fair enough on the outside but are far more beastly inside.
Cocteau has fashioned a
beautiful poetic vision with his Beauty and the Beast that has
now been restored and is preserved on a well-conceived Criterion DVD, complete
with background information and commentary. Although the perfectionistic
Cocteau wasn’t always satisfied with Henri Alekan's cinematography, the
camerawork is remarkable with its contrast between the clear and realistic
country mansion scenes and the dreamy castle scenes that immerse us intimately
into the fantasy world of the Beast. Camera choices that Cocteau makes, like
staying longer than expected on the castle steps when the merchant arrives and
creating a larger than life shadow emanating from the merchant, add to the
fantasy. One of the most memorable scenes effectively uses Day’s ballet
experience to great effect as she glides along a castle corridor enhanced with
billowing curtains—filmed in slow motion as she advances towards the camera
using an invisible pulley on a skateboard type devise.
Credit production and
set designer Christian Bérard with much of the magic of the film. Effectively
using shadow and light along with creative living candelabras and statues (with
their moving eyes), make the castle appear as vast as Citizen Kane’s Xanadu and
playfully surreal, despite being filmed in a relatively modest locale. There is
very little that Industrial Light & Magic could do to make this film more
fanciful, and this 1946 is far more memorable than anything created by the
Disney people.
Day personifies the
virginal Belle perfectly and Jean Marais was never better in any role than he
is as the Beast, especially remarkable since he primarily relies on
communicating through his eyes. Marais does a nice job with body language
inside the animal suit even though he had no ballet or dance training. Further
testament to Marais' acting as the Beast is indicated by the fact that Cocteau
once attempted to use another actor in the Beast outfit when Marais was ill,
but junked that footage because it didn't work.
Above all stands the
vision of Cocteau, who deftly combines all phases of his artistry to create a
film masterpiece. Many of the scenes can stand by themselves as
paintings—Cocteau had this in mind as he bases many of his choices specific
artist's works. Those who want to research the filmmaker's thoughts on his
masterwork can consult Cocteau’s own words in Beauty and the Beast: Diary
of a Film. The Criterion DVD release contains a few excerpts.
Beauty and the Beast (La
Belle et la Bête) by
far the best adaptation of the well-known fairy tale, but unfortunately will
not be watched as much as Disney's full color cartoon version. Adults who seek
this out will be richly rewarded because its unforgettable imagery makes much
deeper impact than more modern adaptations. Will children enjoy it? If you can
train them to be film connoisseurs that appreciate subtleties and black and
white cinematography, they will thank you in the future, for this is one of
cinema’s great films—one that will be indelibly inscribed in your memory. That
fact, alone, gives credence to the Freudian interpretations that you will read
concerning Cocteau’s film.
Magical Misty Tour de force
I first saw this when about
10 years old, it made little impression on me then, probably because I couldn't
hope to appreciate it or understand it all when so young. Next time I was 25
and was bowled over by its imagery, and as I've got older come to appreciate it
more and more.
So much for watching it through a child's eyes and accepting the fantasy at face value! At the beginning Cocteau states "Once upon a time...", but really for discerning adult cineastes (and/or poets) to drop their guards and enjoy it for what it was - a magical filmic fantasy. It's uniformly marvellous in all departments, direction, photography, acting, music, design, and Cocteau trotted out all his favourite cinematic tricks - just part of the sequence between Blood of a Poet in '30 and Testament of Orphee in '61. The script was suitably steeped in non sequiteurs and puzzles to add to the heaviness of it all. Er, not that it matters but what happened to Ludovic?
The wonderful dark brooding smoky atmosphere is the most important aspect though - there are few films I've seen with such a powerful cinematic atmosphere, Reinhardt's Midsummer Night's Dream is one and Dead of Night another etc. But the romantic melancholic atmosphere here was something ... incredible. It was only possible with black and white nitrate film stock to capture such gleaming, glistening and time- and place-evoking moving images - it hasn't been quite the same since 1950 with safety film in use.
If you're an adult about to give it your first (let yourself) go, I envy thee! All in all a lovely inconsequential fantasy, make what erudite and informative allegorical allusions you will.
So much for watching it through a child's eyes and accepting the fantasy at face value! At the beginning Cocteau states "Once upon a time...", but really for discerning adult cineastes (and/or poets) to drop their guards and enjoy it for what it was - a magical filmic fantasy. It's uniformly marvellous in all departments, direction, photography, acting, music, design, and Cocteau trotted out all his favourite cinematic tricks - just part of the sequence between Blood of a Poet in '30 and Testament of Orphee in '61. The script was suitably steeped in non sequiteurs and puzzles to add to the heaviness of it all. Er, not that it matters but what happened to Ludovic?
The wonderful dark brooding smoky atmosphere is the most important aspect though - there are few films I've seen with such a powerful cinematic atmosphere, Reinhardt's Midsummer Night's Dream is one and Dead of Night another etc. But the romantic melancholic atmosphere here was something ... incredible. It was only possible with black and white nitrate film stock to capture such gleaming, glistening and time- and place-evoking moving images - it hasn't been quite the same since 1950 with safety film in use.
If you're an adult about to give it your first (let yourself) go, I envy thee! All in all a lovely inconsequential fantasy, make what erudite and informative allegorical allusions you will.
From the fairy tale to Cocteau.
*** This review may
contain spoilers ***
In France ,the fairy tale
"La Belle et la Bête " is a classic by Madame Leprince de
Beaumont.Try to read it if you haven't because you will realize that although
Cocteau adapted the story,he took it to new limits ,he dramatically expanded
the scope,and most of all,he wiped out an obsolete grating moral.
Mrs De Beaumont's fairy tale insists on virtue ,her story takes virtue over beauty,wit or anything life can bring.The two bad gals are strictly punished at the end of the story:they become statues at the gate of their sister's palace but -supreme humiliation-,they will keep their mind beneath the stone which covers them ,and thus be able to watch their sister's happiness.
While keeping the two sisters' characters,Cocteau leaves the "moral " angle far behind magic,symbolism,surrealism and psychoanalysis.Jean Marais plays three parts:Avenant,la Belle's suitor ,the Beast (four hours of make-up and terrible sufferings during the shooting:Jean Marais was one of the greatest actors France ever had -proof positive was that the new wave (with the exception of jacques Demy) clique never used him-,and the prince.These three entities that finally make one predates Bruno Bettelheim by thirty years:this is not only because Belle does not want to leave her father that she does not want to marry Avenant:she's afraid of the man,he's the real beast.This triple part is Cocteau's genius.Cocteau dropped out the good fairy who appears in a Belle's dream and then at the end of Leprince de Beaumont's story when she punishes the "vilainesses "and rewards the "good ones" Instead ,we have these sublime lines:
-You resemble someone I knew...
-Does it worry you?
-Yes ....(then a beaming face) No!!!
Two words coexist -like in the literary work-:the mundane bourgeois house of the merchant;the Bête's mansion,where everything is possible,where Cocteau uses special effect to create pure poetry,extraordinary enchantment .The two characters seem to act as if they are in a ballet. The passage between the two is first the mysterious forest.Then the Beast reveals his secrets five magic clues:therose,the golden key,theglove,the ring and the mirror -some of them were in the story- and a horse "le magnifique" as the two worlds intertwines towards the end:Belle's room in her father 's room,in her room in the palace,Avenant coming to her rescue while the Beast is dying,the two characters soon to become one.
This is the best adaptation of a fairy tale for the screen.By writing the cast and credits on a blackboard,Cocteau winks at childhood -for a child he writes everything's possible -besides,it's because the prince did not believe in the fairies -all that is hidden for our poor rational spirit- that he was sentenced to his bestial life.Bruno Bettelheim thought children intuitively actually understood what lied beneath the fairy tales.They do not cry when the wolf eats the first two little pigs because thy do know that there is only one pig ,at three stages of its development.They won't cry when Avenant will be hit by Goddess Diana's arrow because they do understand in their subconscious that all in all,Avenant and the Beast are the same entity:beautifulprince,horrible
beast or simple young man share the same mystery.
Michel Tournier said that when his writing was at the height of its powers,he could appeal to children as well.Cocteau did the same for the seventh art.
Mrs De Beaumont's fairy tale insists on virtue ,her story takes virtue over beauty,wit or anything life can bring.The two bad gals are strictly punished at the end of the story:they become statues at the gate of their sister's palace but -supreme humiliation-,they will keep their mind beneath the stone which covers them ,and thus be able to watch their sister's happiness.
While keeping the two sisters' characters,Cocteau leaves the "moral " angle far behind magic,symbolism,surrealism and psychoanalysis.Jean Marais plays three parts:Avenant,la Belle's suitor ,the Beast (four hours of make-up and terrible sufferings during the shooting:Jean Marais was one of the greatest actors France ever had -proof positive was that the new wave (with the exception of jacques Demy) clique never used him-,and the prince.These three entities that finally make one predates Bruno Bettelheim by thirty years:this is not only because Belle does not want to leave her father that she does not want to marry Avenant:she's afraid of the man,he's the real beast.This triple part is Cocteau's genius.Cocteau dropped out the good fairy who appears in a Belle's dream and then at the end of Leprince de Beaumont's story when she punishes the "vilainesses "and rewards the "good ones" Instead ,we have these sublime lines:
-You resemble someone I knew...
-Does it worry you?
-Yes ....(then a beaming face) No!!!
Two words coexist -like in the literary work-:the mundane bourgeois house of the merchant;the Bête's mansion,where everything is possible,where Cocteau uses special effect to create pure poetry,extraordinary enchantment .The two characters seem to act as if they are in a ballet. The passage between the two is first the mysterious forest.Then the Beast reveals his secrets five magic clues:therose,the golden key,theglove,the ring and the mirror -some of them were in the story- and a horse "le magnifique" as the two worlds intertwines towards the end:Belle's room in her father 's room,in her room in the palace,Avenant coming to her rescue while the Beast is dying,the two characters soon to become one.
This is the best adaptation of a fairy tale for the screen.By writing the cast and credits on a blackboard,Cocteau winks at childhood -for a child he writes everything's possible -besides,it's because the prince did not believe in the fairies -all that is hidden for our poor rational spirit- that he was sentenced to his bestial life.Bruno Bettelheim thought children intuitively actually understood what lied beneath the fairy tales.They do not cry when the wolf eats the first two little pigs because thy do know that there is only one pig ,at three stages of its development.They won't cry when Avenant will be hit by Goddess Diana's arrow because they do understand in their subconscious that all in all,Avenant and the Beast are the same entity:beautifulprince,horrible
beast or simple young man share the same mystery.
Michel Tournier said that when his writing was at the height of its powers,he could appeal to children as well.Cocteau did the same for the seventh art.
Once upon our time...
This film immediately
captured my attention with the written comments at the beginning of the film.
Director Jean Cocteau begins this story by explaining why he wanted to make
this film. He talks about the passion behind the picture and all the social
unrest at the time. He ends this written dialogue with a comment that will
forever remain in my mind. He says, "...and now, we begin our story with a
phrase that is like a time machine for children: Once Upon a Time..." This
just sent chills down my spine. Why? Because, although he is addressing
children, I feel that it is really a phrase meant for all of us. It is used to
bring the child out in all of us, to show us that we do not need to be 4 or 5
to fully understand the themes of this film ... we are meant to just sit back
and let the film take us to another mythological time.
The amazing set design also impressed me about this film. Again, without the modern conveniences of today's cinema, Cocteau had to improvise. This was hard for him to do. Not only were there huge budgetary issues (since it was the end of WWII and France was about to be demolished), but also he was racing against an impending war. Fear was deep in the hearts of the French after WWII, and what a better way to rally your people then with a story about love found in the darkest of places.
This film also made me very sad. I am sometimes disgusted with the way that Disney ... for lack of a better word ... Disney-fies their fairy tales. I think after watching this masterpiece I will have trouble ever being able to go back to the computer generated "Song as Old as Time" version that Disney plastered their trademark to. Never have I been so impressed with black and white cinematography as I have been with this film. The actress that plays Belle, Josette Day, steals the camera every time it is on her. She looks so radiant with the black and white that to see a colorized version of this film would completely do it injustice. The power and emotion that comes between Belle and the Beast feels so true. Cocteau has somehow grabbed the true feeling of two people that are complete opposites that seem to find true love in the coldest of places. I would be one of those reviewers that believes that if this film were released today, it would still pull the audiences in as it did the first time. Only proving that it was made well before it's time, it shows so many of the characteristics of the modern day movie. Even the special effects seem perfect for this film. Even with budget being sub-par, we are able to get a true feeling that this Beast is one of the magical kind.
Oh, this film was superb. I would have to say that it is the best adaptation of a fairy tale that I have seen today. Definitely my best 40s film (made in 1946), and possibly the best telling of Beauty and the Beast EVER!!
Grade: ***** out of *****
The amazing set design also impressed me about this film. Again, without the modern conveniences of today's cinema, Cocteau had to improvise. This was hard for him to do. Not only were there huge budgetary issues (since it was the end of WWII and France was about to be demolished), but also he was racing against an impending war. Fear was deep in the hearts of the French after WWII, and what a better way to rally your people then with a story about love found in the darkest of places.
This film also made me very sad. I am sometimes disgusted with the way that Disney ... for lack of a better word ... Disney-fies their fairy tales. I think after watching this masterpiece I will have trouble ever being able to go back to the computer generated "Song as Old as Time" version that Disney plastered their trademark to. Never have I been so impressed with black and white cinematography as I have been with this film. The actress that plays Belle, Josette Day, steals the camera every time it is on her. She looks so radiant with the black and white that to see a colorized version of this film would completely do it injustice. The power and emotion that comes between Belle and the Beast feels so true. Cocteau has somehow grabbed the true feeling of two people that are complete opposites that seem to find true love in the coldest of places. I would be one of those reviewers that believes that if this film were released today, it would still pull the audiences in as it did the first time. Only proving that it was made well before it's time, it shows so many of the characteristics of the modern day movie. Even the special effects seem perfect for this film. Even with budget being sub-par, we are able to get a true feeling that this Beast is one of the magical kind.
Oh, this film was superb. I would have to say that it is the best adaptation of a fairy tale that I have seen today. Definitely my best 40s film (made in 1946), and possibly the best telling of Beauty and the Beast EVER!!
Grade: ***** out of *****
Beautiful, poetic, and haunting
Cocteau was a poet. Make no
mistake. First and foremost.Not only in history's mind, but in his own as well.
We are truly blessed that he was a filmmaker as well, and a brilliant one at
that, marvelously weaving together a tapestry that mystically incorporated both
words and sounds with the beautiful visions that lay captured in his mind.
Cocteau's vision of "Beauty and the Beast" is a visual marvel. To explain these marvels for you would be to ruin the experience. And it is an experience. But it is one of the poet: borne of symbolism and mythology. This is a fairy tale that a child could appreciate for its romance and beauty, and a parent for its intelligence and use of symbolism and metaphor. I recommend this film unreservedly. If you like classics and consider yourself a serious filmgoer, Cocteau's film is essential to your education
Cocteau's vision of "Beauty and the Beast" is a visual marvel. To explain these marvels for you would be to ruin the experience. And it is an experience. But it is one of the poet: borne of symbolism and mythology. This is a fairy tale that a child could appreciate for its romance and beauty, and a parent for its intelligence and use of symbolism and metaphor. I recommend this film unreservedly. If you like classics and consider yourself a serious filmgoer, Cocteau's film is essential to your education
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