Disney Rip-Offs: Beauty and the Beast (1992)

Yes, believe it or not, Golden Films actually made 2 animated rip-offs of Disney's 1991 classic, Beauty and the Beast! And like their knock-off of The Little Mermaid, this was also released back in 1992 while the other one (which I definitely shall review) was released in 1999. There really wasn't any facts that I could find for this film, so I might as well sink my teeth into it already for my & your sake! So, can GoldenFilms make the Jean LePrince classic as beautiful as a rose, or is the movie as ugly as the Beast's exterior? Let's. Take. A. Look.

Story: I'm not so sure this can actually qualify as a full on rip-off of the Disney version because this actually does take elements of the original fairytale, the most obvious being including Beauty's (yes, that's what they name her in this) siblings, making her father a merchant & none of the household objects appearing. But other than that, how does this movie hold up? Well...it doesn't (Big shock). Because of the additional scenes before Beauty takes her father's place at the castle, what really should be the focus feels too rushed and be left to the sidelines, leaving no real insight or development. And like mentioned, it oddly shows more of the Merchant making the deal with the Beast which leaves absolutely no room for development between Beauty & the Beast. And speaking of, the lack (or non existent) romance between Beauty & the Beast is easily the worst part of the film because they have absolutely no chemistry & both characters are so dull & boring! Despite apparently taking place within 6 months, they have no sense of pacing nor a true sense of getting to know one another because as mentioned before, the movie decides not to dive into the romance that should have driven the plot! So is there anything good to say about the story? Well...I will say that some scenes rather it be the animation (which I'll get to in a moment), awful voice acting & the utter stupidity of the plot did leave me chuckling a bit at how ludicrous it all was. But keep in mind that it was SOME scenes because I was left bored during the majority of this mess of a film. Add in numerous plot holes that are never acknowledged, the most pointless & laziest conflict I have ever seen, this movie feels less beautiful than a wilting rose.

Animation: Like The Little Mermaid, the animation isn't really the best. To be honest, this is a tad worse. And by that I mean this movie is filled with numerous errors like derpy faces, characters barely emoting, choppy character animation, poor lip synching & dull backgrounds. It does absolutely nothing to make it stand out compared to the grandure of the Disney film & just looks soulless & generic. And yet again, the character designs try to rip off Disney while being a tad more basic & cartoony & are sometimes duplicating designs of characters because of how lazy they really are up to the point that there's no lighting or sense of depth to them & that yet again, they're left looking off model. Seriously, I'm surprised that somebody thought it was OK to approve of this incompetent animation before distributing it! I know animation is mostly dependent on budget, but clearly it was a case of getting this over & done with before the (presumably very short) deadline. And to be honest, I don't really blame the animators for not putting any effort into this crap, Actually thinking about it, that makes much more sense with why the animation is bad in these movies...Anyway, I don't think I need to say anything else to explain why the animation is atrocious in this because I think the pictures kindly provided from yours truly speaks for itself!

Characters: As expected, none of the characters here have the same charm or dimension as their Disney counterparts (of which there is few this time round). Beauty is just a doormat with a very questionable intelligence given how much she's willing to believe, her numerous blank expressions & is nowhere near as interesting or likable as the far superior Belle. The Beast is no better since his only character trait is that he yells a lot & looks like a mix of Pumbaa & a deformed Chewbacca with no actual change or development. Oh yeah, and he seems to save separation anxiety given that he'd apparently die of loneliness if Beauty didn't return to him! Why? Well, the movie clearly doesn't want to know either! As for Beauty's father...yeah, there's a reason why Phelous made him into a meme! He's stupidly incompetent up to the point that he feels like he has no brain cells because of his skewed opinions on what's going on like immediately assuming he was expected at the castle just because there was a feast full of food in the dining room! Yeah, safe to say that he's no Maurice! Beauty's siblings are just generic one dimensional annoyances with the sisters Pauline & Alicia clearly ripping off the stepsisters from Cinderella & her brothers Nathan & Robert looking like Prince Eric & convincing Beauty to let the Beast die despite knowing nothing about him. In place of all the quirky household objects, we instead have the housekeeper Clara, a blatant Mrs Potts rip-off who may have a few funny one liners because of how much she doesn't seem to give a crap, but she also has a puzzling running gag about confusing windows for doors & vice versa that I'm surprised she accidentally hasn't thrown herself off a building yet! And the Enchantress in this one is just the villain who only appears in a grand total of 3 scenes with absolutely no motives or personality other than wanting the Beast dead for no reason! And yes, like The Little Mermaid, none of these characters are worth caring about or getting to know

All I can describe this movie is just soulless. Even if it's more of an adaptation of the original fairytale & there were a couple of so bad it's hilarious moments thanks to the inconsistent animation, it doesn't do anything to make it stand out from Disney's far superior version. With rushed writing with no depth or development, lazy animation & boring one dimensional characters, it was absolutely painful to watch from start to finish. If you really want to look at a Beauty and the Beast movie that's a direct adaptation of the original story, then I suggest you look at either the 1946 Jean Cocteau movie which is much better representation of the story & characters with gorgeous direction & fantastical visuals or the 2014 adaptation for those looking for a more modern version which is equally as beautiful to watch.
Story: 2/10
Animation: 1/10
Characters: 1/10
Overall: 1/10