Beauty vs Beast: Beast vs Gaston

Jason from MNPP here with this week's "Beauty vs Beast" -- tomorrow marks the 25th anniversary of Disney's magnificent Beauty and the Beast, which is my favorite animated movie of theirs and I have a feeling I'm not alone in feeling that way. I mean Belle is clearly the greatest Disney Princess, Gaston is clearly the sexiest villain, and THAT LIBRARY. Yes, Yess, and YASSSSSS.

We've still got a few months before the live-action remake with Emma Watson and Dan Stevens (not to mention notedly hairless Luke Evans) hits theaters, which seems strange to me - doesn't it seem like right here and right now, at this anniversary and in time for the holidays, would've been the perfect time to drop the film? Well nobody asked me to run Disney (not yet anyway) so I suppose they will make their own decisions - if I was running Disney and someone had come to me suggesting they remake perfection I probably would've beaten them out of my office with the nearest candlestick anyway.

PREVIOUSLY Fantastic Beasts won the weekend box office handily but more importantly Harry Potter kicked Voldemort's butt in last week's contest here, taking just under 80% of your votes. Said LadyEdith:

"Jason you are definitely hitting a nerve here, I've been using a lot of HP for this election. Hermione was a great stand in for A student Hillary Clinton. Considering the rise of death eaters I think more of us are choosing Harry."

Live Action Christopher Robin Flick Coming Your Way

Manuel here with news of what has to be the curious-est film in Disney's quite crowded animation-to-live-action slate of films. As we await the carbon-copy version of Beauty and the Beast and keep worrying that somehow the execs will manage to screw up the upcoming Mulan feature film, news broke last week that the Mouse House had tapped Marc Forster (World War Z, Quantum of Solace) to direct Christopher Robin. 

Yes, Winnie the Pooh's Christopher Robin is getting the live-action fantasy film treatment. (This is not to be confused with the current filming A.A. Milne biopic.) Here's the brief description of the project:

The story catches up with Christopher Robin – the character based on author A. A. Milne’s son, Christopher Robin Milne – as an adult who has grown out of the joyful imagination he had as a child. Now a businessman, he prioritizes his work life over his wife and daughter, and must find his inner child once again.

I know I'm supposed to get Finding Neverland vibes (given Forster's involvement) but I also couldn't help think back to this year's The Little Prince which also aimed to reimagine a beloved childhood favorite into a meta-story about finding one's inner child-like wonder. Though, perhaps the most curious thing about the entire project is its screenwriter: Alex Ross Perry. Yes, that Alex Ross Perry.

Can the Queen of Earth and Listen Up Phillip screenwriter manage to make this cloying-sounding project have the edge it might need to set itself apart? Or is this (yet another) craven cash-grab by a studio intent on pilfering all of its properties?

The Furniture: Wednesday Addams Sets Thanksgiving on Fire

"The Furniture" our weekly series on Production Design. Here's Daniel Walber

Happy Thanksgiving! In three days, Americans will gather together to cook, feast and argue. The acrimonious presidential election has launched a multitude of think pieces on the subject. How do you talk to your relatives who voted differently than you? The classic stereotype of the young, liberal, usually-white urbanite going back to conservative “middle america” for turkey is certainly more fraught this year than it’s ever been. Does that scenario now come with the moral obligation to speak up?

This may seem like a weird way to begin a column about Addams Family Values, a comedy sequel without an overt political message. But there's some Thanksgiving advice to be found in the Oscar-nominated design of legendary production designer Ken Adam (The Spy Who Loved Me) and set decorator Marvin March (Annie). Beyond the social satire of the early 1990s ("But Debbie...pastels?"), a blunt clash of historical narratives is built into the sets for Camp Chippewa...

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Tweetweek: Amy Adams, Cognitive Dissonance, and Apocalyptic Futures

 Amy Adams double feature (Arrival & Nocturnal Animals), 2016's grimness, Actressy fierceness, and more after the jump...

Not that this is directly relevant to anything happening right now, but I really miss BUNHEADS. pic.twitter.com/yq8Q9WIXGE

— Anne Marie (@WeRecycleMovies) November 16, 2016

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Podcast: 'Nocturnal Elle's Halftime Walk'

We're back to weekly podcasts! This week Nick, Joe, and Nathaniel discuss the latest films from Tom Ford, Ang Lee, and Paul Verhoeven, only one of which we can recommend.

Index (42 minutes)
00:01-17:22 Ang Lee's awkward Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk starring Joe Alwyn and Garret Hedlund

17:23-29:45 Tom Ford's revolting Nocturnal Animals. We don't understand the initial acclaim at all

29:46-42:00 Paul Verhoeven and Isabelle Huppert's provocative collaboration Elle, France's Oscar submission (mild spoilers)

You can listen to the podcast here at the bottom of the post or download from iTunes. Continue the conversations in the comments.

Nocturnal Elle's Halftime Walk