Dan Stevens (“Downton Abbey”), as the Beast, has the heaviest lift. He’s emoting through a CGI veil that never quite feels real. But his cranky character is more engaging this time around.

But looking at 1991’s Beauty and the Beast, the last full flowering of exec producer-lyricist Howard Ashman’s collaboration with composer Alan Menken, it’s easy to become enchanted again.

The original spell says the Beast's rose will bloom until his 21st birthday. If he doesn't learn to love and find someone who can love him in return by the time the last petal falls, he'll forever ...