Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise direct Paige O’Hara, Robby Benson and Jerry Orbach in this gold standard of the Walt Disney Renaissance where a bookworm falls for a cursed monster.

Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme… Belle is definitely an evolutionary leap as a “princess.” The songs are nearly all showstoppers. The Beast remains kind of a sketched enigma. How old was he when he transgressed and was cursed? 11? Why doesn’t he at least have a beard when the curse is lifted? Gaston is a loveably bad villain. Looks gorgeous, has little explosions of horror and action. But the romance is pure, unadulterated and rockets this high watermark into its very own stratosphere. Lushly iconic for good reason.

10

Perfect Double Bill: The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (1996)

My wife and I do a podcast together called The Worst Movies We Own. It is available on Spotify or here https://letterboxd.com/bobbycarroll/list/the-worst-movies-we-own-podcast-ranking-and/