Beauty and the Beast
Despite a mid-range budget of $25.0M, Beauty and the Beast became a runaway success, earning $425.0M worldwide—a remarkable 1600% return.
2 Oscars. 33 wins & 32 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Belle
Beast
Gaston
Lumiere
Cogsworth
Mrs. Potts
Maurice
LeFou
Main Cast & Characters
Belle
Played by Paige O'Hara
An intelligent, book-loving young woman who becomes prisoner in the Beast's castle and learns to see beyond appearances.
Beast
Played by Robby Benson
A cursed prince trapped in monstrous form who must learn to love and be loved in return to break the spell.
Gaston
Played by Richard White
A narcissistic hunter obsessed with marrying Belle, serving as the film's human antagonist.
Lumiere
Played by Jerry Orbach
The Beast's charming and romantic maître d' transformed into a candelabra.
Cogsworth
Played by David Ogden Stiers
The Beast's uptight and anxious majordomo transformed into a mantel clock.
Mrs. Potts
Played by Angela Lansbury
The castle's warm-hearted housekeeper transformed into a teapot, serving as maternal figure.
Maurice
Played by Rex Everhart
Belle's eccentric inventor father whose capture by the Beast sets the story in motion.
LeFou
Played by Jesse Corti
Gaston's bumbling sidekick who reluctantly assists in his schemes.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Belle walks through her provincial town, reading a book while townspeople sing about how odd she is. She dreams of adventure beyond this simple life where she doesn't fit in.. The analysis reveals that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 13 minutes when Maurice gets lost in the forest on his way to the fair, pursued by wolves. He stumbles upon the Beast's castle seeking shelter, and is imprisoned by the Beast for picking a rose from the garden.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 25 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 21% of the runtime. This demonstrates the protagonist's commitment to Belle makes the active choice to offer herself as the Beast's prisoner in exchange for her father's freedom. She sacrifices her freedom and enters the enchanted castle world, crossing into Act 2., moving from reaction to action.
The Collapse moment at 75 minutes (62% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, The Beast, heartbroken that Belle has left him, refuses to fight back when Gaston stabs him. He collapses on the castle balcony, dying. The "whiff of death" is literal - the Beast appears to be mortally wounded as the last rose petal begins to fall., indicates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Synthesis at 79 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 66% of the runtime. Magic swirls around the Beast, lifting him into the air as he transforms back into a prince. The enchanted objects return to human form. Belle recognizes the Prince through his eyes - the windows to his soul. The curse is broken through true love that sees inner beauty., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Beauty and the Beast's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 11 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs structural analysis methodology used to understand storytelling architecture. By mapping Beauty and the Beast against these established plot points, we can identify how the filmmaker utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Beauty and the Beast within its genre.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Belle walks through her provincial town, reading a book while townspeople sing about how odd she is. She dreams of adventure beyond this simple life where she doesn't fit in.
Theme
Belle tells the bookseller, "I want much more than this provincial life... I want adventure in the great wide somewhere." The theme of looking beyond surface appearances and finding true beauty is established.
Worldbuilding
Belle's ordinary world is established: her small-minded village, brutish Gaston pursuing her, her eccentric inventor father Maurice. We see Belle's intelligence, independence, and yearning for something more meaningful than Gaston's shallow affections.
Disruption
Maurice gets lost in the forest on his way to the fair, pursued by wolves. He stumbles upon the Beast's castle seeking shelter, and is imprisoned by the Beast for picking a rose from the garden.
Resistance
Belle discovers her father is missing and Philippe (the horse) returns alone. She tracks Philippe to the castle, finds Maurice imprisoned, and debates what to do. The enchanted objects observe, hoping she might break the spell.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Belle makes the active choice to offer herself as the Beast's prisoner in exchange for her father's freedom. She sacrifices her freedom and enters the enchanted castle world, crossing into Act 2.
Premise
The "tale as old as time" unfolds: Belle and Beast's relationship develops through conflict and tentative connection. "Be Our Guest" dinner, the forbidden West Wing, Beast saves Belle from wolves, Belle tends his wounds, and they begin to bond over books and shared interests.
Opposition
Beast lets Belle go to help her sick father. Gaston manipulates the situation, convincing the town Maurice is crazy and Belle is under a spell. The mob forms to kill the Beast. Belle's two worlds collide as she must choose between her old life and her new love.
Collapse
The Beast, heartbroken that Belle has left him, refuses to fight back when Gaston stabs him. He collapses on the castle balcony, dying. The "whiff of death" is literal - the Beast appears to be mortally wounded as the last rose petal begins to fall.
Crisis
Belle cradles the dying Beast, crying over him in despair. She finally understands her true feelings but believes it's too late. The enchanted objects begin transforming into inanimate objects as the spell becomes permanent. All hope seems lost.
Act III
ResolutionSynthesis
Magic swirls around the Beast, lifting him into the air as he transforms back into a prince. The enchanted objects return to human form. Belle recognizes the Prince through his eyes - the windows to his soul. The curse is broken through true love that sees inner beauty.