Beauty and the Beast

The film Beauty and the Beast was directed by Jean Cocteau and produced in 1945. It was based on the original story written by Suzanne Barbot de Gallos de Villeneuve. Jean Cocteau was born in France and has made many other movies including the following: Les Parents Terribles, Orphee, Les Enfants Terribles, and Le Sang D’un Poete. In the Film Beauty and the Beast, Jean Cocteau uses smoke, a glove, a white rose and other items of the Beast to create a magical mood. He also uses oblique camera angles to develop the stature of the characters.

Cocteau uses symbolism to establish a magical and enchanting mood in the film. The smoke symbolizes the progressi

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The smoke also gives the movie a spooky sort of mood. Now this is not the only use of symbolism in the film. The white rose is also symbolic of the Beast’s inner character. Cocteau was able to reinterpret Suzanne de Villeneuve’s story and theme of love’s power to redeem ugliness. He uses the white rose as a symbol of love and purity. The Beast may appear to be a hideous creature, but on the inside he is a loving and caring person.

In conclusion Jean Cocteau did an excellent job in developing his characters with symbolism and oblique camera angles. When Beauty asks for a rose she shows her true character of love. Although having to read subtitles was quite annoying, overall the movie was produced well and was better than the Disney version.

Jean Cocteau uses also symbolism as one of the methods to develop his characters. Cocteau had another way of developing his characters besides symbolism. He would also angle shots from of above the character to make them look smaller or less important. Cocteau would use the upward shots on the Beast to make him look more powerful, and the downward shots on lesser characters, like the extras or the sisters, to make them look either less important or smaller. He also did well with establishing his magical and enchanting mood with his use of symbolism.

Approximate Word count = 442
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

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