Beauty and the Beast (2009 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 2009 Australian fantasy film directed by David Lister and starring Estella Warren, Rhett Giles, and Victor Parascos, and loosely based upon the fairy tale of the same name. The film was released in 2009 on video under that title and aired in 2010 on Syfy television as Beauty and the Beasts: A Dark Tale.[1][2][3]
Beauty and the Beast | |
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film poster | |
Directed by | David Lister |
Produced by | Dale G. Bradley Grant Bradley Dana Dubovsky Mark L. Lester Richard Stewart |
Based on | Beauty and the Beast by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve |
Cinematography | Nino Gaetano Martinetti |
Edited by | Brad Lindenmayer |
Production company | American World Pictures Limelight International |
Distributed by | Barnholtz Entertainment, United States |
Release date |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
Plot
A series of horrific murders has the Beast being blamed for the crimes. Belle (Estella Warren) and Beast (Victor Parascos) must work together to investigate the crimes and discover who the true murderer is and why they're committing these murders.
Cast
- Estella Warren as Belle
- Rhett Giles as Count Rudolph
- Victor Parascos as Beast
- Vanessa Gray as Lady Helen
- Peter Cook as Duke Edward
- Nicholas G. Cooper as Duke Henry
- Gabriella Di Labio as Anna
- Tony Bellette as Otto
- Damien Garvey as Dr. Thorne
- Anthony Kidd as Kurt
- Todd Levi as Baron Conrad
- Tony Thurbon as King Maxililian
- Alex Kuzelicki as Troll
Production
The project was filmed in Australia at locations on the Gold Coast and at studios at the Village Roadshow Studios adjacent to Warner Bros. Movie World in Queensland.
Reception
Variety reviewed the film and offered that it was "an odd, bloody, cheaply made" adaptation "designed not for kids, but young guys heading toward a date with a Sunday-morning hangover." Toward the film as a "re-imagining" of the beloved Beauty and the Beast, they offered that Disney Studios "needn't lose any sleep."[1] Other critical reception for the film was negative, with The Trades writing "Shun this ugly duckling, and hope that the future plans for other retellings from SyFy learn from this one's mistakes."[4] Dread Central panned the film, criticizing the chemistry between Estella Warren and Victor Parascos, stating "Xena and her female sidekick Gabrielle shared more sexual chemistry than these two."[5] New Zealand-based review site Mori.co.nz praised Rhett Giles' acting but criticized the film as a whole.[6] Tor.com reviewed the film, saying "SyFy seems to have given this venture the same short shrift it’s given all its other movies, and their premiere effort ends up simply [beast-related pun]".[2] Filmink negatively reviewed Beauty and the Beast, calling it "a spectacular calamity that genuinely has no saving graces whatsoever."[7]
Conversely, Monsters & Critics praised the film "for all its camp, overwrought acting, diabolical machinations and just plain old silly B-movie fun" and concluded their review by writing, "Given all the horrible, sad news going on in the world especially today, Beauty is just what the doctor ordered for a short respite from the misery."[3]
References
- Lowry, Brian (17 February 2010). "review: Beauty and the Beasts: A Dark Tale". Variety. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- Valentine, Genevieve (1 March 2010). "review: Beauty and the Beast". Tor.com. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- MacIntyre, April. "Syfy's 'Beauty and the Beasts: A Dark Tale' brings B film glory back". February 27, 2010. Monsters & Critics. Archived from the original on 2 September 2010. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- Carter, R.J. (23 February 2010). "Television Review: Beauty and the Beast". The Trades. Archived from the original on 25 May 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- Scott, Sifu (23 February 2010). "review: Beauty and the Beast (2010)". Dread Central. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- Scheib, Richard. "review: Beauty and the Beast". moria.co.nz. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- Smith, Roger (9 February 2012). "DVD review: Beauty and the Beast". Filmink. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2012.