Review: Beastly
Last Updated on Thursday, 03 March 2011 21:47 Thursday, 03 March 2011 21:43
Think Beauty and the Beast. Subtract a charming French candlestick and a classic piece sung by Celine Dion. Now add a hint of Goth, a dash of Twilight, and Tardis over to modern-day New York. That’s the basic recipe for Beastly, a film based on Alex Flinn’s novel of the same name starring Vanessa Hudgens and Alex Pettyfer that hits theaters on Friday, March 4th.
Two things stuck out the most with regards to this film – the make-up and the acting.
The make-up to change popular self-obsessed high-school student Kyle (played by Pettyfer) into a “beast” with tattoos, scars, and boils was nothing short of phenomenal and through the film I could not wrap my mind around how it was accomplished. Fabulous! The same can be said for the make-up worn by Mary-Kate Olsen in her role as the witch Kendra, it was distinct and yet bore the same style as that of Kyle once “transformed” so a good visual link was made.
The other was the acting. While I have my doubts about Mary-Kate Olsen’s job and believe a better actress could have been chosen for the role and Vanessa Hudgens’ character was not too different from hers in High School Musical, Alex Pettyfer did a great job expressing inner frustrations and showing character development throughout the progression of the film. From a stuck-up self-obsessed rich-kid to a man risking to lose everything he used to have, the variety of emotions Pettyfer can put across was astounding. Simply put, he made the movie for me.
Overall? Do not by any means dismiss this for a “chick flick” or something aimed at girls, as the audience at the preview was pretty equal in terms of male and female attendees. While romance is stereotypically a female genre, it is Alex Pettyfer’s character, Kyle, who takes the lead here and the film explores psychology in a way that is meaningful and appealing to both genders. And it is this message that drove the film, the “happily ever after” was guaranteed as we all know the classic story. It is the journey that matters and why you should go see it.
And yes, now I’m obsessed with Jujyfruits. Never even heard of them prior to seeing Beastly but I can assure you they are delicious.