Forget 3-D: 'Beauty' still a classic

Animated or not, movies don't come much better than "Beauty and the Beast," Disney's 1991 version of the fairy tale about a young girl captured by a lovelorn beast. After a long creative drought at the studio, the film turned out to be pure magic: beautifully drawn in the classic Disney style, enlived by a vibrant voice-cast and graced with an Oscar-winning score. It's about as close to perfection as you can get.

More than 20 years later, "Beauty and the Beast" returns to theaters Friday in 3-D. Talk about gilding the lily! The extra dimension adds nothing, save for a few extra dollars to the ticket price, a trick that helped last year's 3-D release of Disney's "The Lion King" open at No. 1. It's worth it, however, to see this gorgeous movie again on the big screen.

As with most 3-D films, the effect is initially noticeable -- the images look multilayered, like flat scenery arranged on a stage -- but your brain soon ignores it. That's for the best. There's no "enhancing" the romance between the bookish but spirited Belle (Paige O'Hara) and the rage-filled Beast (Robby Benson, in perhaps his most enduring role). Their chemistry -- animated, but so very real -- develops in their eyes and faces, not in some added depth of field.

Nor does 3-D improve the musical numbers, though they're still delightful, particularly "Be Our Guest," headed by the enchanted candlestick Lumiere (the late Jerry Orbach) and the Oscar-winning theme, sung by Angela Lansbury as the kindly teapot Mrs. Potts. That sequence, featuring Belle and Beast twirling through an expansive ballroom, was already computer-enhanced for added depth.

With or without the big black glasses, "Beauty and the Beast" remains the proverbial modern classic. There was never anything two-dimensional about it.

PLOT Disney's 1991 animated fairy-tale about a young girl held captive by a lovelorn beast. RATING G

CAST Voices of Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, Jerry Orbach, Angela Lansbury

LENGTH 1:24

PLAYING AT Area theaters

BOTTOM LINE The 3-D adds nothing except a few bucks to the ticket price, but it's worth the price to see this gorgeous movie again.

For new fans, her voice rings a Belle

"Beauty and the Beast," which first opened more than 20 years ago, has been hailed as perhaps the greatest of the Disney animated classics, nominated for multiple Oscars, including best picture.

Paige O'Hara, who sang the role of Belle, the "Beauty" of the title, recalls looking at the songs by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken for the film.

They had scored hits with "Little Shop of Horrors" and Disney's "Little Mermaid." But O'Hara saw in the sheet music "how they wanted to leave the pop music sound of 'Mermaid' behind and go for something more Jerome Kern/Rodgers & Hammerstein 'legit' with this score."

That connection to the Broadway tradition may explain why the 1991 film became a blockbuster Broadway musical (running from 1999 to 2007), and why its every revival in movie theaters is something of an event. It's back again today, newly converted to 3-D.

"The style of music is just another thing that makes it timeless," says O'Hara, who is best known for this role.

"Coming from the stage, where a lot of those performances are long forgotten, this movie is forever," she says. "Every few years, a new generation discovers it. Every time Disney puts a new edition of it, a new version of it in theaters or on video, I get a whole new fan base of kids."

-- Orlando Sentinel