I will freely admit that I attended the pre-screening of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast live action film knowing about the director’s boast of an “exclusively gay moment” ahead of time. I knew I would need to pay close attention and keep track of the homosexual overtones in this movie – because I knew I was expected to write about the movie on my website. That’s part of the gig. And I wanted to take a very factual approach to my full review of Beauty and the Beast.
Even with that mindset going into the theater, within twenty-four hours of watching the movie I had forgotten one of the more significant homosexual moments. During the song called “Gaston” the homosexual character Le Fou actually sits on Gaston’s lap, leans in, puts his arm around him, and then asks him “Too much?” and they move on. It was a very purposeful moment. When I saw it, I remember taking note of it as something important to mention. And I still forgot when I sat down to write.
I’ve seen quite a few people who are saying that the homosexual content is “no big deal” even after reading all of the facts I laid out in my review. “My child won’t notice any of that, so I’m excited that we can still go.” Well that’s something to consider. Maybe your child won’t notice or remember that particular moment where Le Fou enjoys sitting on Gaston’s lap – or any of the other subtle homosexual overtones in the movie or even the “exclusively gay moment” at the end. I will concede for the moment that its possible. At least not the first time they see it.
I wonder how many of our children only watch a Disney movie just one time? I mean come on. Frozen anyone? This is why the song “Let it Go” was turned into a parody for parents more than once! If your child loves this movie, you are going to want to buy it for her or him and the movie is going to be watched over and over until the songs are memorized and the scenes are etched into their little brains. That’s something to consider as you choose whether or not to take your children to the theaters to see Disney’s Beauty and the Beast live action film.
Please check out Amy’s FULL review of the new Beauty and the Beast at her blog here.