A beautiful young woman takes her father's place as the prisoner of a mysterious beast, who wishes to marry her.
The simple and surreal effects bind the spell: by using the tangible magic of hands through walls, moving statues, steamy paws and the rest, Cocteau makes rapt believers of us all – adults and children alike.
Cocteau's 1946 version of the famous fairytale (re-released in a 4K restoration as part of the British Film Institute's ongoing Gothic season) is a tour de force that belies the straitened circumstances in which it was made.
It is formally exquisite and heartfelt and entirely absorbing: a secret fairytale for adults.
La belle et la bête is full of wonder and mystery. It's cinema's ultimate love story, dressed up as a monster.
Fairy tale cinema at its most subversive and magical.
Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow from Friday January 3, 2014, until Sunday January 5, 2014. More info: http://www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre/
Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Wednesday January 8, 2014, until Thursday January 9, 2014. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com