“The party is most definitely on.”
This direct to video sequel of Disney’s Beauty And The Beast is a much more low-budget affair than The Enchanted Christmas was to become. While the film did use the voices of many of the original cast including Jerry Orbach, Robbie Benson, Paige O’Hara, and David Ogden Stiers, the production values show the economy of the project.
The film is really an anthology of three stories that once again take place during the enchantment days of the original film. The stories are all quite simple and more or less deliver some kind of moral or value.
The Perfect World:
Belle and Beast have a misunderstanding that leads to trouble when neither is willing to be the first to apologize. Several of the staff forge a letter from the Beast that apologizes to Belle, but the Beast is infuriated when he discovers the plot. He banishes the perpetrators until he finally realizes that he wasn’t being fair, and the children get a lesson in forgiveness.
Fife‘s Folly:
Lumiere wants to set up the perfect evening for his anniversary date with Fifi. He goes to Belle for help. But Fifi sees the two together, and the expected misunderstanding makes her think that Belle is trying to steal her guy… or candlestick. It’s a lesson in jumping to conclusions for the kiddies.
Broken Wing:
In defiance of Beast’s orders Belle tends to a bird with a broken wing. When he discovers the bird he decides to cage it so that it can only sing for him.
Mrs. Pott’s Party:
Mrs. Potts is feeling rather glum and useless because of the dreary weather. The gang tries to cheer her up with a party. Nothing goes as planned because everyone is fighting over the preparations.
Video
The film is presented in its original full frame broadcast aspect ratio. This isn’t going to win any awards for presentation. The colors are fine enough, but there is little detail or texture in the animation. The image becomes blurry quite frequently, and there are plenty of instances of compression artifact to contend with here.
Audio
The Dolby Digital 5.1 track doesn’t do the production justice at all. Dialog is the only thing that really comes through. Don’t expect to be taken on an adventure in the audio department.
Special Features
Sing Along Selections
Games & Activities
Sing Along With Belle Episode: (22:59) The lesson this time is that it’s what’s inside that counts.
Final Thoughts:
After watching the Christmas film, this one is a pretty hard let-down. It comes across more as a Saturday morning cartoon episode than a film. None of the original magic is to be found. It’s been out before, so likely you’ve seen it. There’s nothing new here to warrant another look. It’s a magical franchise, to be sure. But I’m afraid it’s “no good to anyone in this state.”
