AMBER ROLLAND – Hoof Prints Editor

During the cinematic era in which filmmakers are milking the 3D cash cow for all its worth, scores of movies are being released (and re-released) with the increased ticket price but with very few increased effects to show for it. This re-release of a 1991 Disney animated classic was no exception. Luckily for “Beauty and the Beast,” it has something these other mindless movies don’t, substance.

This classic tale needs no plot rehashing; we’ve all enjoyed this classic musical cartoon from an early age, though some of us only from our television at home. As far as I’m concerned, Disney didn’t even need to add the third dimension because the best thing this re-release had to offer was the chance to experience it in a movie theater.

Sure the “Be Our Guest” number and the ballroom scene were given a little extra pizzazz by the 3D makeover but I couldn’t have cared less about the silverware and other household items seeming to jump off the screen. I could have just as easily watched this film at home by myself and the colors and music would’ve looked and sounded all the same but seeing it while surrounded by kindergarten kids and teenagers who had never seen the movie on the big screen and their parents and grandparents who just wanted to experience it all again made this tale even more enchanting for me.

Disney could send “Beauty and the Beast” back into theaters once a decade and people would still flock to see it, three dimensions or two. Its ability to bring generations together to reminisce about the way animated films used to be made and look in our youth has proved this classic is timeless. I give the 3D re-release of “Beauty and the Beast” 5 out of 5 horseshoes.