Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle...

Recently, there have been announcements about Disney releasing a live-action Beauty and the Beast! While the movie won't come out until 2017, we can still delight in the prospect of such an endeavor being underway.

Ma chere Mademoiselle (or Monsieur), it is with deepest pride and greatest pleasure that I welcome you tonight (or today). And now I invite you to relax, let me pull up a chair as the Fangirl Initiative proudly presents--all the latest details on this exciting up-coming project!

The Cast:

While the entire cast hasn't been announced, the biggest roles now have faces and let me tell you, it's something that wasn't there before...

As the above picture shows, Emma Watson has been cast as Belle. I have been a long time fan of Beauty and the Beast and have watched it countless times with my sister (it's her favorite). We both think Emma will portray a wonderful Belle. She's gorgeous, down-to-earth, and strong-willed, all qualities Belle possesses. She also was born in Paris. In addition, her role as Hermione makes for the perfect parallel to book-loving Belle. It couldn't be more perfect, right?

The Beast, or Prince Adam if you prefer, is being portrayed by Dan Stevens. Hailing from England, this bright-eyed monsieur has recently appeared in more well-known roles, such as Downtown Abbey and Night at the Museum. However, we can't forget his role as the charming, down-to-earth Edward Ferras in the 2008 BBC Sense and Sensibility (*sigh*). While the role as Beast might be little bit on the gruff side, I think Dan Stevens will be a fine fit for a portrayal. Recent pictures show he can pull off a little hair.

However, we can't forget the other somewhat-charming man, Gaston himself. Luke Evans is set to play the handsome, conceited villain. And let me tell you: I'm psyched. You've probably seen Luke Evans in The Hobbit Trilogy as Bard the Bowman and possibly even as Vlad in Dracular Untold. Both of these roles make me think he can pull off both handsome and strong "hero" and "villain." He's had his fair share of playing warrior characters as he's appeared in Robin Hood, Clash of the Titans, Immortals, and The Three Musketeers. Can he pull of Gaston? My opinion: yes, yes he can (although I might end up rooting for the villain ???)

Speaking of Gaston, we cannot forget his adorkable (maybe?) sidekick, Le Fou. And nobody would be better to play such a comical character than Josh Gad. Yes, that's right folks Frozen's very own Olaf is going to play the goofy character. I find this casting choice to be absolutely perfect. Josh Gad has the perfect voice to play the part (Need a refresher on Le Fou in the animated? Listen to Gaston's song. I hear Olaf in Le Fou). He's just going to be perfect.

In addition to these cast members, Mrs. Potts and Maurice (Belle's father) have been cast. We have the lovely Emma Thompson as Mrs. Potts. What a gem! She'll do wonderful as Mrs Potts. And Kevin Kline is cast to portray the crazy old Maurice. I'm not as familiar with him, but I think he looks like he could pull of the lovable, somewhat odd father for Emma Watson.

Clearly this isn't the whole cast or every detail of the movie, so I'm excited to hear about more updates soon!

The Music:

Now the cast members aren't the only exciting things happening for the movie. But they've announced that the talented and glorious Alan Menken has been hired to do the music. *flops on the ground* If you don't know who Alan Menken is, listen up! This man has been the music writer, composer, producer, and/or arranger for many of the best Disney soundtracks and scores. He's been involved with the original Beauty and the Beast score, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hercules, and Tangled. *cries* Did I mention he's won four Oscars for music and been nominated for many others (among other awards)? This movie is going to look gorgeous and sound gorgeous.

And that's not everything. Sources say this isn't just going to be a live-action remake. No, it's going to be a live-action, musical. Yes, that's right. Not only will we have beautiful music and wonderful actors, but we'll hear these said actors singing. Emma Watson singing. Dan Stevens singing. Luke Evans... singing.

Could this remake get any better?

Disney has also reported they plan to use some new awesomesuace, 3D CGI technology to create the film; so basically the magic of Beauty and the Beast will feel all the more closer to our (fangirl) hearts.

I'd say this is one film that will definitely bring the Tale as Old as Time into a new, fresh light. Unfortunately, we have to wait until 2017 to watch this film, but until then you can watch the live-action Cinderella (just released last weekend) and next year, we're getting a live-action Jungle Book with another fantastic cast!

What do you think? Is this cast perfect or do you have someone else better in mind? And what of the other characters that have yet to be cast, any fancasts on who should play them (i.e. Lumiere, Cogsworth, Chip, etc.)?

Valentine's Day is officially behind us, but since the holiday came and went so quickly, I'm still thinking about it. I confess, I'm rather relieved my news feed won't be clogged by pictures of couples and their various flowery or chocolaty gifts anymore. I also won't have to hear phrases like "Single's Awareness Day" until next February.
All of this did get me thinking, though. Valentine's Day is supposed to be about love, yet we typically view it as a couple's holiday exclusively. And while romantic love is certainly wonderful and important, it's not the only kind of love. In fact, it may not even be the strongest. To help illustrate this, I'm looking to none other than Disney. True, Disney has given us some of the sweetest and most iconic couples of all time. We discussed that earlier this month here on the Fangirl Initiative.
But Disney also gives us the stories of everlasting love found in families and friendships. I could cite examples from countless films, but for this post, I'll focus on one of the most recent releases: Frozen.

It's been talked about a lot, but I'd like to share my own little insights on the love in this movie. Frozen reminded me that love is so much more than romance. Love is...

1. Friendship. Anna and Elsa are sisters by birth, but friends by choice. As kids, they are inseparable. They have matching dolls, enjoy each other's company, and are always there for one another. After an accident divides them, both grow up missing this friendship. It never fully fades, though, and by the end of the movie, they're back to having fun together as both sisters and friends.

2. Having things in common. From building snowmen, loving warm hugs and chocolate and giggling at the same jokes, Elsa and Anna share a lot. A great part of love is about what we share.

3. Having and accepting differences. This is perhaps an even greater part of love than sharing likenesses. Anna and Elsa are similar in some ways, but also opposites. Anna is bubbly, extroverted, trusting, and a bit clumsy; Elsa is quieter, introverted, cautious and elegant. Anna is "completely ordinary (in the best way!)" and Elsa has magical ice powers. Yet they never try to change each other. Even when Elsa has frozen the summer, Anna tries to change the situation not her sister. Although I'm trying to avoid discussing romance, I have to point out that Anna and Kristoff are also very different. Instead of judging those differences, though, they're drawn to them and balance one another out.

4. Being honest, even when it's hard. Elsa tells Anna she can't marry a man she just met, although it means Elsa is risking her newly regained friendship with Anna. Elsa isn't trying to dash her sister's hopes; she's telling her the truth because she genuinely cares about Anna's future. Imagine if Elsa had gone along with idea of Anna marrying Hans! Frozen would have been a far different film.

5. Protecting the person you care about. In the song "Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?" I always feel sorry for Anna when Elsa tells her to go away. But it must have been hard for Elsa to send her little sister away, too. Since Elsa couldn't control her powers, she did what seemed like the only alternative: Locking herself away to keep Anna safe. I've heard people call Elsa's parents abusive for keeping her in her room, but I disagree. They didn't know how to help her, so they thought keeping her away from people who wouldn't understand was the solution. Elsa was already terrified of hurting others, so they assumed that protecting her from people would limit her anxiety. They were trying to protect both of their daughters out of love.

6. Forgiving. Elsa and Anna each have reasons they could stay angry with one another, but instead, they let it go. Love can't exist alongside grudges, and both Anna and Elsa know this. Anna, especially, forgives Elsa over and over. This isn't simply a trait of Anna's personality, since she isn't as generous towards Hans. It's a choice she makes out of love for her sister.

7. Putting someone else's needs before your own. For a somewhat clueless but adorable snowman, Olaf defines love with true insight.

I love that in Frozen, love isn't a feeling. It isn't reserved for first sight, couples or duets. Love is a verb. It's a choice that characters make over and over, as they put each other first. In some way or other, just about every character (except Hans) does this throughout the story. Elsa is willing to live in isolation to keep her sister safe. Anna will literally climb mountains to find Elsa, even when everyone else believes she's a monster. Kristoff is willing to let Anna go to her "true love," even though it means he's giving up his own true love. Olaf is so determined to save Anna, he nearly melts himself.

And at the end, Anna sacrifices herself to save Elsa. Love is sacrifice, and Frozen reminds us of that over and over.

Love is indeed a force that's powerful and strange. And true love exists in many forms: In romance, yes, or being "in love", but also in parents protecting their children, friends sticking together, sisters forgiving one another, and making sacrifices for the people we care about most. Even the most anti-Valentine's-day person has to admit, true love really does thaw a frozen heart.

And that's the kind of love worth melting for, even after Valentine's Day.

     I’ve always preferred movies over live plays. I wish the reason was that movies won’t include cast mistakes; or the props will be top-notch; there won’t be technical difficulties or any other disruptions… but that’s not it. The truth is, being in the near vicinity of devoted role-players really makes me uneasy.

     From what I can remember, when I was a child my family attended a screening of The Wizard of Oz in a beautiful old-fashioned movie theater… and there were some costumed characters (including the Wicked Witch of the West) that lingered around guests in the lobby or in the aisles with the audience. Had it been any other movie, perhaps I would have been fine - but I tell you, that witch was the singular source of any and all childhood nightmares that I ever had.

     The point is, to this very day, live plays tend to make me uncomfortable. I rarely watch them unless I have friends in the cast. And even then, I prefer a nice spot in the back; somewhere a bit harder for villains to reach, just in case that personality taking over my friend’s body decides not to depart after the play is over.

     No, seriously. It’s the most ridiculous, irrational fear that I’ve ever heard of… but it’s true. And mine.

     However, there is one play that I’ve seen on multiple occasions: performed by middle-schoolers, by high-schoolerss, and finally by a college cast… And all three times, it had me rolling in my seat.

     Needless to say, when Into the Woods was released as a fully-fledged movie, I had some reserved excitement. Some might say it wasn't a good idea to come in as a reviewer, since I was already familiar with the plot. But I'd say that I was ideally-suited for the job, because I've only ever seen the first half of the play, and not the second half: that made me the perfect combination of expert and novice on it.

     You see, the play's intermission actually occurs right after a (seeming) happy ending, so most junior performances end with that. Only the college production that I attended actually performed both acts (but I had to leave early for work, so I missed the second half. Blasted adulthood).

     Normally before I attend a movie, I can generate an idea of how good or bad it will be just by looking at the Newsfeed from all my fellow filmmakers. (Everyone's a critic. Besides, opinionated media buffs are my type of people.)

     Sometimes their nutshell reviews will build incorrect expectations for me, but on the whole I find their commentary to be spot-on and helpful. Strangely enough, I heard more hype about Into the Woods when it was cast than when it was actually released… so I had almost no context when I walked into the theater. But no matter; it was my favorite play, so I was going to watch it (and enjoy it, surely).

     The sets and landscape were certainly impressive; that was the first thing that I noticed. And it helped the story, making sense as to how so many people could get lost and run circles around one another in a single forest.

     Then the quirky, familiar musical number started, the characters started parading… and I felt nothing. The spark of excitement in me never grew: it was just a spark, winking out of existence as quickly as it did in. And for some time, I wasn’t exactly sure why.

     It certainly wasn’t the story, or the music. Both I knew well, and they were performed cleanly enough. It wasn't even the physical absence of the mysterious Old Man and the Narrator, both of whom are major characters in the first and second act, respectively. For a while, I wasn't sure what was missing… and at last, I realized that we simply hadn’t seen The Actor yet.

     Every performance of Into the Woods has a certain actor, The Actor — be it Jack’s mother, a prince, even a person in a cow costume — who steals the show.

     Into the Woods is always phenomenal because despite how many times you’ve seen it, some new portrayal of any character could send you into stitches all over again; having watched the show done by three different groups, I knew that all too well.

     And so I waited, through four songs at least, before I started to wilt. I’d barely laughed three times in the past fifteen minutes. Lines that normally split my ribs were… well, just lines. There was no overdone acting, there were no pauses by the performers to allow for laughter before they went to their next line.

     Everything was detached and distant: there was no tongue-in-cheek humor to make fun of classic fairytale clichés, as if it was assumed the script could do that on its own. There wasn't even a laugh track to latch onto. Director Rob Marshall took what should have been a sitcom and turned it into a drama (though, now that I think about it, he was the guy who directed Chicago and the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Yeah, that guy. Why did we hand him the reigns to a comedy, again?).

     The second half was no different from the first — if anything, it was more depressing, since that’s where all of the happy endings unravel and the characters have to patch them up again. It was so macabre, I actually wished that I had seen the play's second act before, just so that I would have some pleasant memories of comedy that could have been used in those scenes.

     By the end of the film, even though my head was swimming with delightfully-dizzying show-tunes…

     …I still felt betrayed. Not only had at least two characters been removed from the plot, but there was too much solemnity for the ridiculous parts of the show to fit in.

     The only person who didn’t grate on my nerves for the duration of the tale was the main character: the Baker, played in a rather cuddly manner by British actor James Corden.

     The Baker is one of the less-comical personalities in the story, and all of the performers around him were so carefully-reserved that it felt as as if nobody wanted to overwhelm or upstage him. But as I walked out of the dark room  and my thoughts started to reorganize themselves, I realized that everyone is supposed to upstage the Baker.

     He’s a normal person being swept off by more and more ridiculous circumstances. Not only that, but Into the Woods is the sort of story that lends itself to cheap props and minimalistic decorations - which I have seen done with incredible style and grace.

     It’s much more hilarious to see a boy be "best friends" with a wooden cow (or even better, a person in a costume who can do a secret hoof-shake) than to see him attached at the hip with a real animal.

     It’s much more fun to secretly giggle at someone trapped up in a cardboard tower than it is to watch them sitting up a real one. Actors can feed on the energy from the audience, and you never know who might steal the show from one rendition to the next.

     Yes, you read correctly; for the first time in my life, I’ve discovered that I prefer a live play over a movie. So take it from someone who’s never slandered the film medium before: if you do decide to go and see Into the Woods, I’d recommend you save a few dollars. Go to the theatre. Not the theater.

One of the things Disney is known for is true love. In the world of Disney, love is magical--and Disney taught us that magic is something worth believing in. So, then, love is worth believing in as well.

While true love manifests itself differently in the real world, these movies filled our childhood and adult years with tales that reflected it. And these stories are not easy to forget. So during our Month of OTPs, we've decided to feature some of our favorite Disney couples--the ones that, however cheesy, showed us what love could look like. Whether from new or old Disney movies, they're the couples we still believe in today.

Reminder: OTPs stands for One True Pairing. An OTP is a romantic couple in a fandom that you like. "Shipping" an OTP means you: 1.) very much like this couple together, 2.) have "feels" (feelings) about them, and 3.) want them to succeed.

Jaime Heller

It’s so hard to choose. So. Many. Options.

But obviously, I’m going with Rapunzel and Eugene Fitzherbert. :) These two make me smile and cover my face with my hands because they’re adorable. Also how they fall in love: it’s not a “love at first sight” kind of deal, though they do seem pretty infatuated with each other after about a day (but hey, what’s a little adventure and being hunted down by multiple people to make you fall in love?) But they learn about each other and open up little by little and slowly fall in love (or at least slower than a lot of other Disney couples). They balance each other: she boosts his dreaming and he grounds her back to earth.

 

But my biggest reason they are my OTP is that Eugene dies for her. Dies. Yes, she was going to sacrifice her living life so he could be healed, but he won’t accept that. He would rather die than know she can’t be free. It’s rare you see that happen, especially with people who don’t know each other that well. Plus I can’t keep a straight face when they whisper “You were my new dream.” “And you were mine.” My shipper's heart beats loudly for them. 

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Memorable mentions: Belle and Adam (the Beast) because that is probably the greatest love story in Disney existence and Carl and Ellie from Up because dang their story creates my own Paradise Falls on my face and it’s told without any words, just music. (Plus these two remind me of my grandparents in almost every way.)

Mirriam Neal

As I write this, I’m listening to the Strange Magic soundtrack and preparing to go to see the movie for the second time tonight. My partner-in-crime Courtney and myself are taking my sister Riah to see it because a) she hasn’t yet and b) we really, really need to see it again. I was shocked with how much I adored the movie – and how hard I shipped two certain characters; namely, the Bog King and Marianne. Their ship name? Butterfly Bog, of course. Because Mog and Barianne sound just a little too funky, I guess. 

I have never, ever shipped an animated couple this hard. Not even Hiccup and Astrid in HTTYD 2, even though they were completely adorable. I mean, I ship Butterfly Bog almost as hard as I ship Bellarke, and anyone who knows how hard I ship Bellarke has an inkling of what this means. I shipped Bog and Marianne before they were even in a scene together, okay. They were written like real, flesh-and-blood characters and not two-dimensional cartoons. And it was beautiful.

In fact, Strange Magic is legitimately the most romantic movie I’ve ever seen – and I’m a cinemaphile who has seen a lot of romantic movies. Strange Magic is from the mind of George Lucas, and so we get a romance that’s reminiscent of Madmartigan/Sorscha or Han Solo/Leia – except it’s more like the distilled essences of these characters, with a twist.

The Bog King tries very hard to be ‘the bad guy,’ when in reality he’s an awkward sweetheart who got severely burned from his last ‘love’ attempt.

Marianne is a thick-skinned, tough fairy princess who has sworn off men after her former Romeo spurned her.

When these two meet, they find they have a lot in common – namely, people-hate and bad attitudes toward love. Sparks fly (literally – as the saying goes, it’s not a real OTP unless they’ve tried to kill each other at least once) but there’s quite a lot of awkwardness since the Bog King’s mother is trying to set him up with every female that breathes, and Princess Marianne’s younger sister Dawn is head-over-heels for Bog thanks to an errant love potion.

The Bog King is ugly. He’s prickly. He’s ‘a scaly-backed cockroach’ who happens to have a heart of gold that he tries very hard to bury. Marianne is beautiful and lively and has a soft heart that she’s attempted to harden through sheer determination and ‘realism.’ Their chemistry is something I rarely see even in live-action movies or – well, even television shows.

This movie. Guys, this couple – let me tell you right now, when I’m in a relationship, I’m not making my man watch The Notebook. I’m making him watch Strange Magic. If you think I’m kidding, just wait. This relationship is everything I aspire to write, everything I love. It’s perfect. I don’t even care that it’s insta-love – it’s an animated movie and they’re allowed that. It’s beautiful. I – guys. I can’t stress this enough – the movie has great animation, great music, great dialogue – but this relationship is my jam. I can’t tell you enough. And you haven’t lived until you’ve heard Alan Cumming belt out Mistreated.

Sky Destrian

It's honestly hard for me to zero in on just one Disney couple. However, when gathering images for this post, I realized that, um, I shipped Lady and the Tramp so hard as a kid. I had a lot of feelings about them I had totally forgotten about.

While it may seem odd to ship a pair of dogs, the love story perfectly crafted in The Lady and the Tramp stuck with me. Who could forget the infamous spaghetti scene?

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Quick warning: I'm about to go into some character analysis about animated dogs.

I think I love them so much because the Tramp is the perfect contrast to Lady's prim and proper demeanor. He gets her into trouble, and she reigns him in. They complete each other.

One thing that strikes me is Tramp's loyalty to Lady. He'll do anything to take care of her. From the moment he meets her, he keeps an eye on her. For a mutt off the streets, I think that's a big deal. I don't think Tramp cared for anyone quite as much as he cared for Lady.

The Lady and the Tramp is actually an intense movie--not everything is okay, not at first. Lots of things stand in the way of their perfect love story. They lose each other throughout the movie and then find each other again. "Pidge? Where are ya, Pidge?" The two of them have to overcome many obstacles to end up together, but when they do, they have the cutest puppies ever. Truly, a love story to behold.

Another favorite is Carl and Ellie from Up. Their movie felt so real in the space of about ten minutes. As a writer myself, I realize that making the audience care in such a short time span is an amazing feat. Some couples have two hours devoted to them and don't have as much chemistry as Carl and Ellie did. Carl's loyalty to Ellie was especially touching, as was their thrill for adventure. I especially related to Carl's difficulty of letting go. But in the end, it was the memories that mattered, and Ellie knew that.

If I can find a love story like that, I'll be a lucky person indeed.

However, my all-time favorite, like so many of us from The Fangirl Initiative, has to be Flynn and Rapunzel. Ever since I watched Tangled three years ago, I've wanted a Flynn Rider. They are perfect together. If there's one animated couple I can get behind 100%, it's them. And I definitely want a relationship like that. As Flynn Rider said about his frying pan, "Oh, mama, I have got to get me one of these!"

Honorable mentions: Tarzan and Jane from Tarzan & Wall-E and Eve from WALL-E

Sarah Munson

The older I get, the more I love Disney movies. I credit Disney with making me first fall in love with, well, love. A few couples stand out above the rest to me. These are my Disney OTP’s. (Or at least, this is a sample of them. I could probably find reasons for loving most Disney couples!)

1. Beauty & the Beast, a.k.a. Belle & Adam. They were my first ever OTP, long before I knew what it meant to have one. Simply put, I was four years old and in love with them being in love. Now that I am old enough to see beyond the charming songs and how handsome the Beast turns out to be, I have more solid reasons why I adore this couple. Firstly, their love isn’t instant. They have tension and fights initially, but working through those difficulties eventually brings them closer. Both of them understand what it’s like to be an outcast. Belle, because everyone considers her “odd,” and Adam, because he’s shunned for being cursed. Because they’re both so often misunderstood and outcast, I love that they find friendship and later love in each other. Their characters are both tested and strengthened throughout the story. Belle sticks with the Beast even when he doesn’t deserve it. For his part, he treats her as well as he can, keeping her in the palace as a guest rather than a prisoner. Later, he releases her to return to her sick father, but when Belle accidentally places the Beast in danger, she is quick to rush back to his side. They both make sacrifices for one another, and make each other better. It may be a tale as old as time, but I’ll always love their love story.

2. Mulan & Li Shang. I feel like this is one couple that’s often overlooked, but because I’m a fan of Mulan, these two deserve a mention. They have perhaps more tension than any other Disney pair I can think of. They’re both strong characters, and stubborn at times. But their dedication and passion to their beliefs ultimately pulls them together. I’m not always a fan of sequels, but I really like the further development of their relationship in Mulan II. They’re like yin and yang together. (Also, shout out to Mushu the dragon, for being the best and worst third wheel in Disney romance history!)

3. Flynn & Rapunzel. They’re a popular OTP, but they remain my absolute fondest! I could write an entire essay on the reasons I love them as individuals and especially a couple, but I’ll try to contain myself. They have the perfect blend of similarities and differences. Both are adventurous, dreamers (Flynn is a little more reserved about it, but he does have a dream. No, really! It’s just much less touchy-feely!) Neither one had a perfect life or enough love, nor is either particularly eager to discuss backstory. At least, not at first. Once they open up to each other, though, they begin to connect in a quiet, understanding, accepting way. Flynn’s bolder, shrewder and snarkier side is balanced out by Rapunzel’s gentleness, innocence and kindness. He’s typically calm and collected; she’s excited and a bit scattered. His traits enhance her life, and vice versa. They don’t instantly fall into romance, first taking the time to be a team, looking out for one another and having fun together. My favorite scene involving them is the kingdom dance, because it’s full of little details that show how much they care for each other. Then comes the lantern scene, which makes my heart flutter and soar. Their duet is the most perfect ever. And then the end of the movie. There are no words. Rapunzel and Flynn (or rather, Eugene) are possibly the most perfect pairing I could imagine. Now if you’ll pardon me, I need to go watch Tangled again!

Now it's your turn: who's your Disney OTP?

Note: Several images in this post are from this article of Disney valentines. 

They're adorable, so check them out!

Special thanks to:

Jaime, for coming up with the idea for this post and finding the Disney valentines

Sarah, for sending in a few of the images used in this post

Mirriam, for overflowing with her effervescent opinion of Strange Magic.