La Bête (The Beast) poster & wallpaper
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Sirpa Lane, Lisbeth Hummel, Elizabeth Kaza, Pierre Benedetti, Guy Tréjan ... see more see more... , Marcel Dalio , Roland Armontel

In this story, a young nobleman with an unusually strong interest in horse-breeding is being prepared to marry the wealthy niece of an American Cardinal. (Noble families which are growing impoverished... read more read more... try to marry off their younger generations to the heirs of wealthy commoners.) When the girl arrives at the nobleman's family mansion the day before the wedding, she is shown around the house and its treasures and is told the story of an ancestor's legendary battle against a beast. That night, she dreams of an erotic encounter with a man/beast which culminates in the death of the beast. On awakening, she finds that she has been in bed with her fiancé, who is now dead. When mysterious bandages on his person are removed, he is seen to have a tail and one hand which has turned animal-like. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Flixster Users

53% liked it

1,336 ratings

Critics

75% liked it

8 critics

NC-17, 1 hr. 42 min.

Directed by: Walerian Borowczyk

Release Date: January 1, 1975

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DVD Release Date: November 8, 2005

Stats: 116 reviews

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Sirpa Lane Sirpa Lane
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Flixster Reviews (116)

  • deano
    August 8, 2010
    deano
    I never except to see this arthouse film is very erotic while it finally released straight to DVD, not in the cinema in 1975 because it was banned for 30 years - it's true! This attempts to mix a fairy tale, a sort of comedy of manners and faked explicit bestiality.
    This genuinel... read morey erotic film is wonderfully photographed and tasteless. The women here are stunningly beautiful and they are naked most of the time. Overall La Bête is a visual feast. Whether it be from the fetishistic attention to detail, or the visual motifs pregnant with information, director Walerian Borowczyk's masterpiece should be watched with care and attention.
  • Beefy
    April 27, 2008
    Beefy
    I wanted to like this a lot more than I did, but as a whole it came across as amateurish and juvenile, a weak framework being used as an excuse to show sexually "shocking" imagery. Great, now I've seen horses mate. Oh wow, they're showing that guy's johnson. Sex and sexual ima... read moregery can have meaning and can be truly daring, but there needs to be an artistically perceivable point. I found no such thing in The Beast, which largely left me just bored despite all the supposedly lustful ongoings.
  • robertnlee
    July 19, 2010
    robertnlee
    One of those attempts at artsy porn that is neither artsy, nor porn. Just disturbing, and not in a good way.
  • columbiatch
    August 7, 2008
    columbiatch
    holy crap, what an interesting take on the Beauty and the Beast story with some Bunuelian sensibilities. Hilarious stuff!
  • firstamb
    July 4, 2008
    firstamb
    This is not Beauty and the Beast as Disney did it by a long shot. Not for the kiddies. This movie is a twisted horror comedy based on the old tale.
  • bestiasalvaje
    April 28, 2008
    bestiasalvaje
    I was taken by surprise to see that this film turn out to be a weird one.Is like watching a twisted & exotic tale of beauty & the beast.The film is extremely bizarre & explicit.You have to be in the right mood for this film but is quite a shocking one.
  • flynnparadox
    September 27, 2006
    flynnparadox
    Borowczyk's notorious erotic fable. Wonderfully wicked and quite beautiful in its own perverse way.

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Critic Reviews

Fernando F. Croce
November 15, 2009
Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion

Beauty killed the beast, Borowczyk says, and erotic poetry freed the screen Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
March 1, 2006
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

The film is oddly effective and, unlike so many other "erotic classics," virtually undated. Full Review

Scott Weinberg
April 17, 2005
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com

Seriously strange French skin-stuff.

Rich Cline
November 6, 2003
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

Yes, it's utterly unhinged in every way, but Borowczyk avoids much of the stylish overkill of most films of this genre and period, and the result is surprisingly timeless Full Review

Guy Flatley
May 9, 2005
Guy Flatley, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

December 6, 2005
Film Threat

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
September 29, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

August 5, 2003
Film Threat

Click to read the article Full Review

January 16, 2002
BBC

Click to read the article Full Review

January 26, 2006
Time Out

Click to read the article Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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