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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Belle’ on HBO Max, an Inspired Anime Reinvention of ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ Rich With Eye Candy

Where to stream:.

• Belle (2022)

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Now on HBO Max , Belle finds filmmaker Mamoru Hosoda – director of Oscar nominated 2018 feature Mirai – updating Beauty and the Beast for the digital-reality/social media era. This complicated, hybrid saga debuted at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, became that year’s third-highest grossing film in Japan and was screened on IMAX screens for a while in America, a vote of confidence for its visual ambition if there ever was one. The question is whether it hews too tightly to fringey anime weirdness, or manages to cross over to audiences open to the more accessible pleasures of Studio Ghibli.

BELLE : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Five BILLION people are registered users of U, an online virtual-reality meta-world that reads your biometric whatnots and generates an avatar and persona for you. Sounds like it could be horrifying and wonderful at the same time, doesn’t it? One of the first images that sears itself into your cerebral cortex is of a massive blue whale, studded with speakers, flying through the sky, amplifying the voice of its rider, a pop singer with waist-length pink hair named Bell (voice of Kaho Nakamura). Who else could make an entrance like that? Not Gaga or Swift! Part of the allure of U is anonymity for all users, so you can pursue a whole new second life if your original one is too boring or traumatic. If all this sounds too disconcertingly dystopian and possible in our own reality, well, try not to think about it too much and maybe take a pill if your doctor gave you one and do your best to just get a decent night’s sleep, OK?

As you might expect, mass popularity and anonymity bring mountains of internet scrutiny upon Bell: Who is she, really? We know, but most everyone else in the movie doesn’t: A meek, anxious teenager named Suzu. Ironically, she’s easy to not notice on the sidewalk or in the halls at school. She had U and the Bell situation thrust upon her by her comic-relief bestie Hiroka (Lilas Ikuta), who knows the Bell secret and acts as her de-facto VR manager and publicist. Suzu’s had a rough childhood; when she was still wee, her mother died saving a drowning child, leaving Suzu to mutter inexpressively in the general direction of her father, and sometimes suffer anxiety attacks that render her physically ill. She feels alienated from former friends Shinobu (Ryo Narita), a quiet boy who once vowed to always protect her, and Ruka (Tina Tamashiro), a popular girl and saxophonist in the school band.

Another irony: Suzu used to sing, play piano and write music with her mother, but now, her singing voice is a strained rasp. She belongs to a choir with five older women who were her mother’s friends, and all show motherly concern. So U is an escape, and Bell has a concert to perform, for millions – a concert that’s interrupted by the Dragon (Takeru Satoh), a horse-faced, demon-goat-horned mysterious brooder covered in nasty bruises who frequently tangles with the Justices, self-appointed superhero types who say they keep the peace in U. His disturbance of everyone’s entertainment doesn’t go over well, and the internet mob demands to know his identity. But Bell/Suzu? She senses something about this beast. Maybe he’s just an injured soul in a monstrous body who lives in a wild castle and doesn’t quite realize he needs a dance partner.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Hosoda’s deference to 1991’s Disney Beauty and the Beast musical is readily apparent; now mix that with the anime Ghost in the Shell , Ready Player One and the sprawling inside-the-server reality of Ralph Breaks the Internet .

Performance Worth Watching: Ikuta injects her character with enough loony energy to make her vocal performance stand above the fray. (And this is as good a place as any to push the virtues of watching the corners of the screen for strange and wonderful little details – Horoda and a legion of animators frequently outdid themselves with their more-is-more approach.)

Memorable Dialogue: Disturbing disembodied computer female narrator voice for the U reality: “COME. IT’S TIME TO START ANOTHER LIFE.”

Sex and Skin: None.

Our Take: Belle is a saga all right, from the tiny tears welling in the corners of eyes to its whalespout fireworks. Hosoda tries to do it all – relentless teen emo-drippiness, whammo anime action, trippy psychedelia – and the result is messy but admirable. The story is a somewhat routine traipse through grief and anxiety and all the pros and cons of the internet age; we’ve heard a lot of this before, but with significantly fewer flying cetaceans and dream castles.

It’s held aloft by its eccentricities, although there’s a nagging sensation that it should be more wildly inventive visually, or dive significantly deeper into the emotional wells of its characters. Maybe that’s silly to say, when U is populated with robot-people, nutty pixies, squidgy indefinables, Amazonian cheetah women and the like, but there’s also a familiarity here, as if the harder sci-fi stuff has been watered down so it doesn’t alienate teenage viewers. And that’s where the film might test your patience. Interpersonal revelations range from crush confessions to death acceptance, and in the third act, Hosoda tends to linger in the big puddles of FEELS long past the point of moving on, until his characters’ all-too-realistic experiences take on an air of triteness.

But Belle is ultimately a successful aesthetic crossbreed, not too out-there nor too conventional, and a near-wholesale reinvention of a classic story. Hosoda was reportedly inspired by the 1991 film, and makes reference to its unforgettable ballroom sequence; here, too, the scene acts as a thematic grounding force, one wounded soul reaching out to another from behind facades of impossible beauty and fearsome toughness. Facades made possible only by the internet and its philosophical conundrums, mind you, although Hosoda is primarily optimistic about the endeavor – never before have we been capable of reaching so long and so far to touch another person. That’s the beauty, not the beast.

Will you stream or skip the inspired anime #Belle on @netflix ? #SIOSI — Decider (@decider) May 7, 2022

Our Call: STREAM IT. Belle is visually inspired and often totally acquiver emotionally. You’ll want to take parts and leave parts, but thankfully the former more than the latter.

John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Read more of his work at johnserbaatlarge.com .

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‘Belle’ Review: Soaring and Singing Over the Online Rainbow

In this gorgeous anime, a high school student journeys into a virtual world and finds herself amid cute, kooky and menacing fellow users.

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By Manohla Dargis

Colors and hearts explode in “Belle,” and your head might too while watching this gorgeous anime. Set in the undefined future, it envisions a reality that resembles our own, with the same drab institutions and obligations, the same confusing relationships and feelings. Suzu (voiced and sung by Kaho Nakamura), a melancholic high school student, lives with her father (Koji Yakusho) and still mourns her long-dead mother. Suzu exists in a miasma of grief, one she fleetingly escapes by entering a computer simulation.

Described as “the ultimate virtual community” and cleverly named U, this other-world is an entertainment but also a refuge. A dazzling phantasmagoria, it allows customers to log out of their reality by slipping into an avatar in the U space. Once inside, users — their real selves obscured by eccentric, sometimes aspirational cartoonish identities — have seemingly unfettered freedom. They can cut loose, bop around like tourists, become someone else or maybe find themselves. “You can’t start over in reality,” Suzu hears when she first fires up the program, “but you can start over in U.” The catch? Everyone is still on social media.

Journeys of self-discovery dominate much of contemporary animated cinema, even if the routes and mileage vary. “It’s time to see what I can do/To test the limits and break through,” as Elsa sings in “Frozen.” Suzu’s pilgrimage is somewhat complicated — certainly visually — but she too needs to “let it go” and cut free of her past and her trauma, an agony that the story doesn’t soften. Suzu is unequivocally, openly sad. Her shoulders sag and her head bows, she blunders and shrinks from others, sighing and weeping. Even so, she also questions, searches and keeps trying to sing. She lost her voice to grief; she wants it back.

Suzu is a poignant, sympathetic figure but there’s a welcome edge to her, a bit of stubborn prickliness that’s expressed through the animation, the character’s churning emotions and Nakamura’s sensitive, expansive vocal performance. The character design employs the pert nose, heart-shaped face and huge eyes that are standard in anime, but these conventions never feel static because Suzu isn’t. Delicately perched on that unstable boundary between childhood and adulthood, she slips from the comically juvenile (mouth agape) to soberly mature. She can seem younger or older than she is, but she’s never less than human.

Before you meet her, though, the writer-director Mamoru Hosoda introduces U’s virtual reality, giving you a seductive eyeful. (His movies include “ Mirai ” and “Wolf Children.”) The first image in “Belle” is of a thin, pale horizontal line cutting across the otherwise black frame, a visual that wittily suggests the first line in a drawing. This line rapidly changes and, as it does, the contours of the U world emerge, as do its mysteries, oddities, personalities and possibilities. At first, the line seems to consist of a series of rectangular shapes that look like beads on a necklace, a design that amusingly evokes the spaceship in “2001: A Space Odyssey” — and then it explodes into the kaleidoscopic realm of science fiction and U.

A rapturously beautiful expanse filled with whirling candy colors and charming character designs, U gives Suzu a virtual reality escape and gives you a great deal to go gaga over. That introductory straight line soon expands, growing evermore complex and giving way to intricate geometric forms. As the shapes shift and mutate, Hosoda uses old-fashioned perspective — differing sizes and planes, parallel edges and vanishing points — to create an illusion of movement through depth. That’s crucial for the user (and viewer) experience in U, where rectangles turn into what look like parts of a motherboard only to then transform into mazelike spaces that give way to soaring buildings in a crowded modern cityscape.

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Review: 'Belle' is a ravishing experience for audiences of all ages

Shortlisted for the Oscar for best animated film, "Belle" -- now in theaters -- reimagines the tale of "Beauty and the Beast" through the prism of a virtual reality in which a shy, lonely teen, Suzu, becomes a pop singing sensation named Belle and befriends a beast no one else understands.

Thanks to Japanese anime master Mamoru Hosoda, "Belle" is a knockout fantasia that cuts to the core of Generation Z lives that revolve around digital technology. The film, available in Japanese with subtitles or dubbed in English, speaks a universal language of love and loss.

And cheers to "Belle" for being unapologetically girlcentric -- look, it worked like gangbusters for "Frozen." You can feel the alienation of 17-year-old Suza (beautifully voiced by Kaho Nakamura and in English by Kylie McNeill) as she goes through her days in rural Japan.

Though the freckle-faced Suzu has a bestie in computer nerd Hiroka (Lilas Ikura) and a crush on Shinobu (Narita Ryô), she has basically drifted and stopped singing since the traumatic death of her beloved mother, who perished trying to save the life of a drowning boy.

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The only escape Suzu finds is entering the metaverse of "U," where 5 million users congregate as avatars crafted from their individual biometric programs. It's inside "U" that Suzu morphs into Belle, a pretty-in-pink, pop princess (the freckles remain), which frees the timid Suzu to sing her heart out and capture the attention of the world.

It's a guarantee that the visionary miracles Hosoda creates will knock your eyes out. Alive with color and characters that represent a world of diversity and dazzle -- get a load of the whale festooned with speakers that play Belle's music -- the movie brims over with surprises.

Though "U" neg-heads will take down anyone for clicks and more followers, Hosoda never takes the easy out of condemning the digiverse as a dangerous escape that functions like a drug for troubled youth. For Hosoda, "U" can also connect outsiders to their best impulses.

MORE: 'Cruella' review: Emma Stone and Emma Thompson deliver much to enjoy in this beautifully crafted fluffball

Case in point: the meeting of Belle and the Dragon, the so-called Beast who ruins her public concert and incurs the wrath of a vigilante group led by Justin (Toshiyuki Morikawa ceding to Chace Crawford in the English version). The group destroys the Dragon's castle, leaving Suzu/Belle to save him if she can learn his real identity before his enemies strike again.

Since this review is a spoiler-free zone, I refuse to unveil secrets except to say that Belle's search leads her to two brothers who are being beaten by their abusive father. Her attempt at rescue leads Suzu to finally understand why her mother tried to save that drowning boy.

In the film's most moving scene, when Belle is unveiled as Suzu, the real girl behind the avatar comes forward to sing in her own voice. Corny? Maybe. But also thrilling. Hosodo never comes on too strong with his life lessons. That's what makes "Belle" a ravishing experience for audiences of all ages who learn the value of thinking for themselves.

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Belle Review: An Anime Beauty With Bullying Beasts

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Animation is often at its best when delivering what can only be possible within its medium, creating worlds and images which are otherwise unthinkable in live-action films or literature. From the dancing brooms of Fantasia to the eyeballed lumps of adorable coal in Spirited Away , animation has the ability to express a creative vision with more imagination than almost anything else. Paradoxically, this is what makes Mamoru Hosoda's new film Belle be simultaneously wonderful and, in some minor ways, a missed opportunity.

This Japanese anime film concerns a world where virtual reality has really taken off, to the extent that five billion people are members of a digital platform simply deemed 'U.' "You can live as another you," goes the tagline to the social media-like app. "You can start a new life. You can change the world." The question is, though, which "you," which "life," and which "world?"

The film isn't exactly dystopian about any of this, though. Unlike movies such as Ready Player One , eXistenZ , or The Matrix, the world of Belle seems to have essentially handled such technological advancements the way that humanity has handled YouTube or Instagram-- it may be "ripping apart the social fabric of how society works," as the former VP of Facebook has said , but it's also mind-numbingly pleasant on occasion, along with being a largely banal distraction. If it's the demise of society, it's a slow and mediocre one, with lots of cat videos and predictable selfies as its death throes.

The five billion people of U fly around megacities that look like microchips, gathering in cliques and commenting to each other the same way that 510,000 comments are posted on Facebook every 60 seconds . Biometric readings from ear-pods and algorithmic collections of internet histories and photographs coalesce to help create a person's avatar, and the virtual world is filled with all sorts of strange and imaginatively designed creatures. The avatars seem to be the biggest appeal of U, what with their ability to recreate a person entirely and give them a new life online.

This is exactly what Suzu, the protagonist, needs after her mother dies while heroically attempting to save a child in danger. Suzu was extremely close with her mother, who inspired a love of music and singing in her. After this tragedy, the trauma remains so acute that Suzu literally vomits whenever she tries to sing. She hardly eats, and her relationship with her father is largely monosyllabic. She is terrified to talk about her feelings with anyone, sometimes including her only real friend, Hiroka. She's essentially a ghost because that's what ghosts are-- not the people who die, but everyone who is left behind, haunted by the absence of who has passed and forced to live without them.

Related: Belle Trailer Announces Mamoru Hosoda's Anime Epic is Coming to U.S. Theaters This Januar

When she discovers U and the possibility of changing her identity, Suzu embraces the anonymity of the platform to tap into her musical potential once again, becoming the titular Belle . There is no direct correlation between U and the real world; nobody knows the actual identity of anyone in the virtual sphere unless someone is 'unveiled' for serious reasons and automatically banned from the platform. This tabula rasa allows Suzu to unleash the beautiful, confident musician who dwells within her (but who has been caged by grief) onto U's canvas. Her voice and persona, like anything online, gather mixed responses, but she quickly develops a following of lovers and haters which grows exponentially into the millions, making her the most famous singer in the alternate universe.

The remainder of the film is a variation on the classic Beauty and the Beast narrative, as a disruptive, aggressive dragon-like character is hunted down by the guardians of U for breaking numerous rules, and Belle sees some sort of beauty in him and attempts to save him from both the public and himself. This formula can be inherently toxic-- the original 18th-century fairy tale from Madame de Villeneuve has not aged well and, in a sense, neither have the Disney iterations of the tale. The traditional story essentially propagates a destructive and misogynistic trope, wherein a woman is told to endure the emotional and physical violence of a domineering male (who kidnaps her and holds her prisoner). The woman believes that she can 'fix him,' and that beneath all of his insults and screaming, he is actually a beautiful soul; the luxurious palace where he keeps her captive probably helps. In the fairy tale, when Beauty learns of Beast's death, she weeps and laments how she should have loved him more. When she cries out, "I am sorry! This is all my fault," the Beast suddenly awakens and is transformed into a prince. Gross.

Thankfully, Hosoda's Belle deconstructs the traditional fairy tale in a less chauvinistic vein, though he retains the Disney style of sudden song-bursts. The writer-director does not make Suzu (and her alter-ego, Belle) a victim; she isn't kidnaped, she doesn't need to be rescued, and she isn't responsible for anyone's destructive behavior. Her relationship with the Beast isn't even a romantic one, technically. Her romance lies outside U, in extremely awkward, real-life moments. Instead, the Beast embodies the old adage that 'hurt people hurt people,' and the film ties his behavior to online bullying and the bevy of internet comments which can also shame and dismiss people.

Related: Explained: Avatar the Last Airbender & the Success of Western Anime

Suzu begins a sometimes humorous, sometimes heartbreaking quest to track down the Beast before the forces of U do, believing that he has goodness in him. What she discovers is truly sad, but extremely appropriate for a film about society's desperate need to escape from various traumas and find some version of reality that lacks all these griefs, sorrows, and fears. The lyrics of her songs throughout the film reflect this well, helped by the fact that the pop music (including the epic, emotional closer) is often very good.

While some of this is heavy, the majority of the film and the search for the real Beast is light and breezy. Hosoda draws from a variety of technological ideas to tell his Bell e , creating extremely busy frames brimming with social media comments, internet tabs, and online video chats during the search. He uses a kind of Greek chorus of internet comments throughout the film in a humorous and satirical way, along with screens upon screens of internet windows, video chats, text messages, and so on. Whenever technology is involved like this, the animation practically explodes with wild, busy chaos, an energy-addled fever dream of epic digital proportions which probably reflects the minds of young people who have grown up using this technology.

The animation throughout the whole film is gorgeous, worthy of the heartwarming 14-minute standing ovation the film received at the Cannes Film Festival. The vibrant and colorful world of U is compared to the more tonally subdued and calm two-dimensional animation of reality, of a world where parents die, kids are bullied, and social anxiety runs rampant. The offline world may be a stark contrast to the online one, but it has a kind of calm realism to it that's extremely effective. No scene better captures this than an extended, uncomfortably funny sequence in which three of the young characters try to express their actual feelings. The frame stays the same, focusing on a dull and empty train station, and the film doesn't cut for what seems like an interminably long time. The characters stumble in and out of frame, blushing and having the hardest time actually being honest about their emotions. It's funny, awkward, adorable, and sad all at once, and perfectly depicts the kind of clumsy, complicated reality which so many kids flee from and toward online alternatives.

This is a film that is stuffed with thematic ideas-- bullying, viral sensations, social anxiety, PTSD, and virtual reality are all explored in-depth, making the ideas of the movie as busy and frenetic as some of its animation. Belle is deeply interested in the digital age, so it's all the more surprising, then, that the movie doesn't take full advantage of its fascinating concept and incredible animation to really delve into U. The visual creativity of its online sequences is often stunning (pop stars ride whales fitted with stereo equipment through the air, for instance), so it's a shame that the world it creates often seems underdeveloped with so much untapped potential. U essentially feels like a plot device for Suzu to heal her trauma and for the film's narrative to progress, never really feeling like a fully fleshed-out digital space.

Regardless, the movie is beautiful and heartwarming. Portions of it (especially the music) may be too sentimental for some, but anime fans should enjoy it immensely, along with anyone interested in deconstructing the Beauty and the Beast mythos . It is a sweet, buoyant film that also isn't afraid of being heavy and emotionally serious in its coming-of-age tale. Hosoda was nominated for the Best Animated Film Oscar recently for his excellent Mirai , and is sure to receive another nomination for this beauty.

• Movie and TV Reviews

Belle Movie

A fantastical, heartfelt story of growing up in the age of social media.

Who's Involved:

Chace Crawford, Mamoru Hosoda, Manny Jacinto, Hunter Schafer, Kylie McNeill, David Chen, Paul Castro Jr.

Release Date:

Friday, January 14, 2022 Limited Wednesday, January 12, 2022 Limited

Plot: What's the story about?

Suzu is a shy, everyday high school student living in a rural village. For years, she has only been a shadow of herself. But when she enters “U”, a massive virtual world, she escapes into her online persona as Belle, a gorgeous and globally-beloved singer. One day, her concert is interrupted by a monstrous creature chased by vigilantes. As their hunt escalates, Suzu embarks on an emotional and epic quest to uncover the identity of this mysterious “beast” and to discover her true self in a world where you can be anyone.

4.43 / 5 stars ( 14 users)

Poll: Will you see Belle?

Who stars in Belle: Cast List

Chace Crawford ... Justin (voice)

Reunion, Inheritance  

Manny Jacinto ... Shinobu (voice)

Freakier Friday, Cora Bora  

Kylie McNeill ... Suzu/Belle (voice)

Hunter Schafer ... Ruka (voice)

Kinds of Kindness, Cuckoo  

Paul Castro Jr. ... Dragon (voice)

David Chen ... Gogo Doggo (voice)

Who's making Belle: Crew List

A look at the Belle behind-the-scenes crew and production team. The film's director Mamoru Hosoda last directed Mirai and The Boy And The Beast . The film's writer Mamoru Hosoda last wrote Mirai and The Boy And The Beast .

Mamoru Hosoda

Screenwriter

Production companies, watch belle trailers & videos.

No trailer available.

Production: What we know about Belle?

• The film has also played in competition at the London Film Festival, Fantastic Fest, and Los Angeles’ Animation is Film festival, where the film was awarded the Special Jury Prize. GKIDS will qualify the film for 2021 awards consideration and release it theatrically in both its original Japanese language and a new English dubbed version (11/21/2021).
• Belle has crossed 6.52 billion yen (approx. 59.2 million USD) in box office to date, and has become Hosoda’s highest-grossing film ever, beating the lifetime gross of Boy and the Beast (11/21/2021).
• Belle is an original story written and helmed by celebrated director Mamoru Hosoda, whose previous films include Mirai, The Boy and the Beast, Wolf Children, Summer Wars, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and others.

Filming Timeline

• 2021 - November : The film was set to Completed  status.

Belle Release Date: When was the film released?

Belle was a Limited release in 2022 on Friday, January 14, 2022 . There were 15 other movies released on the same date, including Scream , Hotel Transylvania: Transformania and Delicious . As a Limited release, Belle will only be shown in select movie theaters across major markets. Please check Fandango and Atom Tickets to see if the film is playing in your area.

Q&A Asked about Belle

Seen the movie? Rate It!

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Follow the Updates

• Sun., Dec. 4, 2022 from Amazon
• added the US Blu-ray release date of May 17, 2022
• Fri., Dec. 10, 2021
• added David Chen as Gogo Doggo (voice) to movie credits
• added Paul Castro Jr. as Dragon (voice) to movie credits
• added Hunter Schafer as Ruka (voice) to movie credits
• added Kylie McNeill as Suzu/Belle (voice) to movie credits
• added Manny Jacinto as Shinobu (voice) to movie credits
• added Chace Crawford as Justin (voice) to movie credits
• set film release to Limited
• added the US film release date of January 12, 2022

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Belle Review

Belle (2021)

Though centred on a teenager seemingly content to fade into the background amongst her peers, Belle itself is hardly lacking in ambition. It’s at once an homage to Beauty And The Beast , and 
a recollection of its creator’s greatest hits ( Wolf Children , The Boy And The Beast , Mirai ); a large-scale fantasy as well as a small-town coming-of-age drama, reflecting on the intertwining of teen anxiety and social media; an innovative piece of CG animation that blends with a more traditionally hand-drawn style. But it’s never overwhelming, 
as director Mamoru Hosoda arranges all these moving parts into a precise, exciting symphony.

Through his protagonist Suzu’s (Kaho Nakamura) story, Hosoda remixes Beauty And The Beast not just as a reflection on how teenagers can escape into internet communities but also on the broader subject of the role of the parent, and the pain that results when they are absent. Taking on the persona of ‘Bell’, Suzu, who has a fraught relationship with her father (Kōji Yakusho), becomes something of a halfway point between a V-tuber (an online entertainer who uses an avatar) and a pop star, her singing turning her into a viral sensation. Where other films might warn against the perils of this, Belle instead takes a humanist view of the internet, seeing it as a medium through which isolated and misunderstood souls connect. Not that the film ignores the risks — as Suzu encounters ‘The Beast’ (Takeru Satoh), it engages with the practice of doxxing (a cyber-attack that reveals a user’s true identity), and how corporate control of online spaces corrupts communities.

With its intense story, spectacular animation and catchy soundtrack, there’s an almost dizzying amount going on.

As with much of Hosoda’s work, Belle constantly has one foot in and one out of reality, the setting split between the real and digital worlds, the characters animated with traditional 2D in the former and CGI in the latter. In 2D, they appear more subdued and naturalistic, but very often offer outsized, cartoonish reactions. In 3D, the characters take on a fairy-tale appearance, while the world of ‘U’ itself appears as somewhere between a sprawling cityscape, a circuit board and a harp. There’s a constant push-and-pull throughout, between the 2D and 3D animation, the inner self and the external, it all feeding back into how the online space essentially doubles us, offering the chance to create a new image for oneself. That conceptual approach to the animation makes switching between the two worlds feel seamless.

With its intense story, spectacular animation and catchy soundtrack, there’s an almost dizzying amount going on. But Hosoda keeps it all on an even keel, employing recurring visual motifs, a precise rhythm and quieter, slice-of-life vignettes in the real world as room to breathe. It stumbles occasionally: while the nature of Bell and The Beast’s relationship aligns with Hosoda’s sensibilities perfectly on paper, the revelation of the latter’s identity feels clumsily executed. Still, the conclusion to which it leads is powerful, balancing its lavish fantasy imagery with moments of quiet observation and moving intimacy.

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Movies | 09 09 2021

When he lectured on literature at Cornell University, Vladimir Nabokov referred to Jane Austen ’s 1814 novel “ Mansfield Park ” as a “fairy tale,” a term he did not use disparagingly. He also obliquely noted that none of its fairy-tale romantic doings would have been possible were its characters not somewhat affluent, and that the source of the money that affords the characters their modes of living is “cheap slave labor.” The observation is a bracing one. But it’s true that the economic system that guaranteed the incomes of the moneyed characters in Austen’s world was a criminal one, even if Austen herself remained neutral on the topic. And it is uncomfortable to think that the template for the rom-com was built on…well, do I have to spell it out for you? The new movie “Belle,” which claims, like so many such efforts, to be based on actual events, is a novel work in that it takes on a topic not regularly treated in period drama, that is, the necessarily fraught place of a free black woman in proper British society in the late 18th/early 19th centuries.

Directed by Amma Asante from a script by Misan Sagay , “Belle” tells the story of an illegitimate mulatto child, daughter of a Royal Navy man, who’s raised in affluence, lavishly educated, and rather condescendingly doted upon by the extended family her father foisted her upon. Once the girl, named Belle by her father but called Dido by her uncle and aunts, reaches adulthood (at which point she is incarnated by the lovely and capable young actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw ), her marriage prospects seem…well, unusual. Good thing she’s got a guaranteed income, something her white not-exactly-sister Elizabeth ( Sarah Gadon ) does not, for reasons that a thorough reader of Jane Austen novels could probably guess at correctly.

As it happens, Dido’s uncle Lord Mansfield ( Tom Wilkinson ) is a judge, and in the main part of the film’s story, he’s hearing a case involving a slave ship and the question of whether human beings can be insured like cargo. Dido hears about the case in dribs and drabs, and then in more detail from a neighbor, a passionate vicar’s son ( Sam Reid ) who’s under Lord Mansfield’s tutelage, at least until they have a violent disagreement on the main issue of the case. Dido’s consciousness grows, as does her attraction to the vicar’s son. But at the same time, Dido’s aunts, played by Emily Watson and Penelope Wilton , seek to steer Dido into an engagement with Oliver Ashford (James Norton), son of a very scheming grand dame ( Miranda Richardson , of course) and younger brother to a bug-eyed bigoted quasi-rotter ( Tom Felton , who seems not at all concerned by the fact that he’s lately being cast as a Draco Malfoy For All Seasons).

The movie is intelligently written and well-acted, but it doesn’t sit all that comfortably between the two stools of Austenesque Romance and Socially Conscious Drama. Although director Asante herself is a woman of color her shooting style is as conventional as any veteran director you can, or can’t, name. Take the whole opening sequence, for instance, in which a sense of intrigue and drama is (putatively) built in a series of shots in which no faces are seen, merely feet and ankles taking strides, the backs of heads moving forward, hands opening carriage doors, and so on. All very stock, all very expected, at least if you’ve seen such montages as many times as I. So while “Belle” is of undeniable interest in some respects, its overall execution restricts it from being as engaging as it wants to be, and as wrenching as perhaps it ought. 

Glenn Kenny

Glenn Kenny was the chief film critic of Premiere magazine for almost half of its existence. He has written for a host of other publications and resides in Brooklyn. Read his answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

• Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Dido Elizabeth Belle
• Penelope Wilton as Lady Mary Murray
• Tom Felton as James Ashford
• Miranda Richardson as Lady Ashford
• Sarah Gadon as Elizabeth
• Matthew Goode as Captain Sir John Lindsay
• Tom Wilkinson as Lord Mansfield
• Sam Reid as John Davinier
• Emily Watson as Lady Mansfield
• Amma Asante

Cinematography

• Ben Smithard
• Misan Sagay

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Common Sense Media Review

Vivid anime has humor and heart and deals with big themes.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Belle is a coming-of-age anime fantasy that retells the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale in a slightly futuristic setting. Available both in the original Japanese (with subtitles) and in a dubbed version, it delicately deals with several big issues within a family, including …

Why Age 10+?

Implied child abuse. A terrified child sees a parent perish in front of her (the

"Damn." "Hell." Name-calling, including "idiot," "loser," "old fart," "scumbag,"

Several crushes.

Any Positive Content?

Beauty is about who you are on the inside. Curiosity is important. There's a cer

Several characters act out of a moral responsibility to protect others, includin

Characters are all Japanese. Female characters are shown to be brave, brainy, an

Violence & Scariness

Implied child abuse. A terrified child sees a parent perish in front of her (the death itself and body aren't shown, but it's clear what happens). Adult intimidates and threatens kids. Deep scratch bleeds. Rage. In a digital world, avatars attack and fight one another, but it's understood there's no real-life threat.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

"Damn." "Hell." Name-calling, including "idiot," "loser," "old fart," "scumbag," etc. Jokes about crushes being age-inappropriate.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

Beauty is about who you are on the inside. Curiosity is important. There's a certain freedom in the anonymity of digital worlds.

Positive Role Models

Several characters act out of a moral responsibility to protect others, including strangers, even if they put themselves at risk. Many examples of what it means to be a good friend.

Diverse Representations

Characters are all Japanese. Female characters are shown to be brave, brainy, and heroic.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Parents need to know that Belle is a coming-of-age anime fantasy that retells the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale in a slightly futuristic setting. Available both in the original Japanese (with subtitles) and in a dubbed version, it delicately deals with several big issues within a family, including ( spoiler alert ) loss, grief, abandonment, and abuse. None of those incidents are actually depicted, but kids are shown being threatened, and one receives a bloody scratch. Main character Suzu (voiced by Kaho Nakamura and Kylie McNeill) is still grappling with the past trauma of her mother's death, and her sadness has left her alienated from most of her classmates over the years. With the encouragement and support of her best friend, she finds comfort (and eventually strength) by re-creating herself as a beautiful avatar in a virtual environment, emboldened by her anonymity there. Themes include curiosity and beauty coming from who you are inside. Expect some name-calling ("idiot," "loser," "old fart," "scumbag," etc.) and a use of "damn," as well as jokes about possibly age-inappropriate crushes. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

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Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (7)
• Kids say (17)

Based on 7 parent reviews

Slow, plot holes, inappropriate for young kids.

Belle retold for teen audiences, what's the story.

Still hurting from her mother's tragic death about a decade earlier, timid teen Suzu (voiced by Kaho Nakamura in Japanese and Kylie McNeill in the English dub) joins U, a virtual playground that promises users they can be whoever they want. Creating a beautiful avatar whose appearance shares only her trademark freckles, Suzu becomes BELLE, an uninhibited singer and fashion icon who becomes the most popular personality in the digital universe. When a troublemaking beast known as The Dragon disrupts her online concert, Suzu and her best friend, Hiro (Ikura, Jessica DiCicco), are curious about why he's so angry and set out to learn more.

Is It Any Good?

Vibrantly spectacular, this anime movie imaginatively retells the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale as a humorous, heartfelt story of empowerment and self-discovery. In real life, Suzu is emotionally fragile teen dealing with the trauma of significant loss. In U, a social media metaverse, she can live a different life with the avatar and persona she creates. For viewers who, like Suzu, have difficulty expressing themselves face to face, U is a fantasy within a fantasy. It's vicariously exciting to watch Suzu become a sought-after celebrity (who still retains her anonymity) and see her confidence develop. We all want to be seen, appreciated, and celebrated for what we can offer the world, and kids in particular often feel insignificant or dismissed in the world of adults.

Director Mamoru Hosoda 's film is absolutely phenomenal, but it takes a bit of a turn in the third act. Suzu takes "real world" actions that defy belief. Hiro, a computer whiz, suddenly starts pulling off feats that would impress the NSA. And adult characters knowingly allow Suzu to travel far away, alone, and into a dangerous situation. The thrill from watching a breathtaking work of perfection starts to lose a bit of steam -- at least, that's how adults and critics may see it. But for kids, Suzu finishes her journey in a way that may continue to bolster their own dreams of strength and independence. Can we ask for a more beautiful experience?

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how Suzu's curiosity led her to be a force for good. What's the difference between following your curiosity and "being nosy"? Why is curiosity an important character strength ?

What alternate persona would you create if you could "start over" in a digital, anonymous world? Do you think people already do this online, on YouTube, or on social media ?

How does Belle reimagine Beauty and the Beast ? How do the stories compare? What fairy tale can you picture taking place today?

How do Suzu and her mother demonstrate courage ? In both instances where they must be brave, was there a better solution that would have kept them out of harm's way?

How do Suzu's friends and classmates show kindness, understanding, and support? Hiro can be blunt and refers to Suzu in unflattering ways, but she also creates the path to help Suzu find her way back to herself. So is she a good friend?

Movie Details

• In theaters : January 14, 2022
• On DVD or streaming : May 3, 2022
• Cast : Kaho Nakamura , Ryô Narita , Koji Yakusho , Kylie McNeill , Chace Crawford , Manny Jacinto
• Director : Mamoru Hosoda
• Inclusion Information : Asian actors
• Studio : GKIDS
• Genre : Anime
• Topics : Magic and Fantasy , Fairy Tales , Friendship , High School , Music and Sing-Along
• Character Strengths : Curiosity
• Run time : 121 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG
• MPAA explanation : thematic content, violence, language and brief suggestive material
• Award : Common Sense Selection
• Last updated : April 17, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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The biracial daughter, Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), of Royal Navy Captain Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) is raised by aristocratic Great-uncle Lord William Murray, 1st Earl of M... Read all The biracial daughter, Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), of Royal Navy Captain Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) is raised by aristocratic Great-uncle Lord William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson) in 18th century England. The biracial daughter, Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), of Royal Navy Captain Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode) is raised by aristocratic Great-uncle Lord William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield (Tom Wilkinson) in 18th century England.

• Amma Asante
• Misan Sagay
• Gugu Mbatha-Raw
• Matthew Goode
• Emily Watson
• 126 User reviews
• 146 Critic reviews
• 64 Metascore
• 13 wins & 32 nominations

Top cast 38

• Dido Elizabeth Belle

• Captain Sir John Lindsay

• Lady Mansfield

• Lady Ashford

• Lady Mary Murray
• Young Elizabeth

• Lord Mansfield

• Elizabeth Murray

• Oliver Ashford

• James Ashford

• John Davinier

• Maid, Kenwood House
• Reverend Davinier
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia In real life, Lady Elizabeth Murray married first to George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea. Their great-grandson was Denys Finch Hatton, who was played by Robert Redford in Out of Africa (1985) .
• Goofs The character Oliver Ashford states he has a commission in the Royal Navy purchased for him. Impossible as commissions have never been sold in the RN, which at the time was the nearest thing to a meritocracy the world had seen. Grease a few palms to get him in as a midshipman? Maybe. As a captain, never. Fleet boards had to be sat, idiots weeded out. Commissions could be bought and sold in the cavalry and infantry but not, for instance, in the Royal Engineers. Soldiers could be lost to incompetence but not ships or bridges. Far too valuable.

Dido Elizabeth Belle : My greatest misfortune would be to marry into a family who would carry me as their shame.

• Connections Featured in Belle: The Story (2014)
• Soundtracks Piano Suite in G Minor, HWV 439, Allemande Composed by George Frideric Handel

User reviews 126

• denisenicholas9
• Apr 25, 2014
• How long is Belle? Powered by Alexa
• June 13, 2014 (United Kingdom)
• United Kingdom
• Official site
• Stream Belle officially on Disney+ Hotstar Indonesia
• Douglas, Isle of Man
• Isle of Man Film
• British Film Institute (BFI)
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $10,900,000 (estimated)
• $10,726,630
• May 4, 2014
• $16,607,575

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 40 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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When shy teen Suzu enters the virtual world of "U," she escapes into the persona of Belle, a beloved singer. After a strange monster interrupts her concert, Suzu embarks on a quest to uncover the identity of this "beast."

Cast and Crew

Starring: Toshiyuki Morikawa , Ryo Narita , Kaho Nakamura , Kaho Nakamura , Tina Tamashiro , Shota Sometani , Lilas Ikuta , Ryoko Moriyama

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Rent Belle on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

What to Know

It boasts all the surface beauty that fans of period pictures have come to expect, but Belle also benefits from its stirring performances and subtle social consciousness.

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Amma Asante

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Dido Elizabeth Belle

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This 'White Lotus' Star Will Lead the 'Who TF Did I Marry' TV Adaptation

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Natasha Rothwell will wear two hats in her next project. She will star and executive produce Who TF Did I Marry , based on the viral TikTok series, into a television series, according to Variety . Initially told in 50 TikTok videos by creator Tareasa "Reesa Teesa" Johnson , Who TF Did I Marry chronicled Johnson's story about discovering she was married to a serial liar. She told the story in more than 8 hours of separate videos. Rothwell is set to play a fictionalized version of Johnson's character. Her TikTok series has amassed over 450 million impressions and gained her more than 3 million followers within a fortnight.

In the wild story , Johnson shared several things she had been told by her ex-husband which she later found out were untrue. He had told her that he played football at San Diego Star University despite never attending the school. He would ask for money for his stepdaughter's funeral, and Johnson would learn that the stepdaughter in question was alive and well. Upon scrutiny, Johnson learned that her ex-husband's social insurance number did not match the one they registered their marriage certificate with. Johnson did use the alias "Legion" when referring to the man she said had cheated on her. Some investigations by fans enamored by this story identified Legion as someone named Jerome McCoy , who has publicly denied Johnson's assertions.

Where You May Have Seen Natasha Rothwell Before

Rothwell is best known for her roles in Insecure and The White Lotus Season 1. She is set to reprise her character in the upcoming third season of The White Lotus . Apart from acting, she is also a writer, having written some episodes of Insecure and serving as a writer for Saturday Night Live for one season from 2014 to 2015. Rothwell will next be seen in How to Die Alone , a Hulu comedy series she created and stars in. She will produce Who TF Did I Marry through her Big Hattie Productions company after acquiring the rights to Johnson's story, who has since signed with CAA for representation. Johnson graduated from Kennesaw State University with a degree in criminal justice. She later studied international law and counterterrorism in The Hague, Netherlands.

Watch How to Die Alone when it premieres on September 13 on Hulu. The White Lotus Season 3 does not have a premiere date yet, but stay tuned to Collider for further updates. Watch both seasons of The White Lotus on Max.

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‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ Review – Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga Enchant in Todd Phillips’ Deranged Sequel | Venice 2024

The highly anticipated sequel to Joker (2019) is as deranged and exciting as you would have hoped. By incorporating song and dance in the vein of a jukebox musical , filmmaker Todd Philips (also known for The Hangover trilogy) gives Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker a different kind of strut, one that’s more meditative and less violent than what would be expected from the sequel to one of the highest-grossing R-rated movies of all time . Nothing will compare to the original 2019 phenomenon, but Joker: Folie à Deux does an exceptional job at following up with an imaginative comic book film unlike any other.

Joker: Folie à Deux picks the story up with Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) incarcerated at Arkham State Hospital. He lives a repetitive life as he struggles with his infamous dual identity as “The Joker,” constantly being teased by fellow patients to make them laugh. Everything changes for Arthur when he meets his true love, Harleen “Lee” Quinzel (Lady Gaga). The two become infatuated with each other after meeting in a singing class at Arkham. Music and singing become a huge part of their love language as Arthur goes on trial for the murders he committed (as seen in the first film), which is put on a live television broadcast for the whole world to see.

While on trial, Arthur is reunited with familiar faces like Gary Puddles (Leigh Gill), who testifies to what he was like before he became the Joker. The overall testimony is persuasive and sincere to Arthur’s previous pathetic life, which ironically paints him in a terrible light that will almost certainly lead to him being sentenced for murder. As the “Trial of the century” continues, Joker’s supporters gather in the thousands outside the Gotham City courthouse. Whatever happens, it’s made clear that Joker’s influence will live on, having impacted so many everyday Gotham citizens who are disillusioned by society. What ensues is a musical misadventure that walks the line between reality and fantasy.

Opening with a classic Looney Tunes -inspired animated sequence, Arthur faces off with his shadow, an alternate personality that takes center stage as he sings Tom Jones ‘ “What the World Needs Now Is Love” on his own Murray Franklin-type show. It’s a fantastic opening that foreshadows the plot’s main focus on Joker’s split personality. Writer-director Todd Phillips doesn’t try to one-up the first Joker but rather tries to expand the audience’s understanding of Arthur’s mental state, offering a closer, more personal look at the protagonist. It sidelines the thrills of the first movie for musical numbers that express Joker and Harley’s emotions beyond what words would have been able to communicate. It’s a much-welcomed surprise to see a studio franchise film, based on DC Comics so less, care so little for genre conventions.

Apart from focusing on a singular hefty theme, the musical numbers in Joker: Folie à Deux are well-performed and incredibly entertaining. Most of them fit into the narrative structure of Todd Phillips’ script, which is once again co-written by Scott Silver ( The Fighter , 8 Mile ). Everything moves along at a smooth pace, and the two-plus hour runtime is rarely felt. Seeing Joker and Harley Quinn belting out their hearts is not something that DC fans would have ever expected to see in an adaptation like this. However, it’s a joy to watch this absurd take on the iconic DC villains, especially when the story takes a break from their cruel reality. Whether it’s the two lovers dancing on a Gotham rooftop under the moonlight or a dream-like fantasy of them getting married, Joker and Harley’s shared delusion and infatuation for each other is chaotically charming.

Joaquin Phoenix’s return as Joker feels like no time has passed, delivering another Oscar-worthy performance. This time, Phoenix is asked to do much more with the addition of singing and dancing, yet he still embodies the character’s disturbed personality to perfection. Phoenix wears Joker’s skin, embracing the struggles and moments of madness once again. Created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini for Batman: The Animated Series , Harley Quinn returns to the big screen with popstar-turned-actress Lady Gaga filling the shoes. Gaga is an understated, less psychotic version of Harley that aptly fits this film’s tone. Naturally, Gaga shines in the sequel’s musical sequences, which will leave many viewers obsessed with the selected songs. Not including any original music (apart from the score) in the vein of a jukebox musical was the right choice, as the duo pulls these tunes from their own twisted realities living in Gotham City.

Returning cinematographer Lawrence Sher beautifully lights and lenses Joker: Folie a Deux , capturing the fantastical numbers and Gotham’s griminess to great effect. Sher utilizes deep focus to isolate Phoenix’s Joker as he wrestles with his tragic existence while lighting most scenes with contrasting teals and oranges. The world of Joker: Folie à Deux is just as visually rich as the original, aided by Oscar-winner Hildur Guðnadóttir ‘s haunting orchestral score that breathes new life into the titular character. As aforementioned, the screenplay is more restrained and less sensationalist than its predecessor, which works well with the themes at hand. Despite how controversial the musical elements may be and how less “thrilling” it is compared to 2019’s Joker , it’s better that the filmmakers chose to take a creative swing rather than be safe. Otherwise, this would’ve just been another sequel. Instead, Joker: Folie a Deux is an entirely unique anti-hero film.

Joker: Folie à Deux is an enchanting follow-up that boasts some bold risks and surprise twists that will leave fans speculating for days. It ends in a satisfying way that teases a potential future while highlighting the effect that Joker had on society in the original film. There will undoubtedly be a lot of awards chatter as Joker: Folie à Deux is superbly made by a range of top creatives with two excellent performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga. Love it or hate it, it’s looking like this one-of-a-kind interpretation of Joker and Harley Quinn’s romance will have a tight grip on the public zeitgeist for the foreseeable future.

Joker: Folie à Deux premiered at the 2024 Venice Film Festival. The film hits theaters on October 4!

Release Date: October 4, 2024. Directed by Todd Phillips. Written by Scott Silver & Todd Phillips. Based on characters by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Jerry Robinson, Bruce Timm, & Paul Dini. Produced by Todd Phillips, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, & Joseph Garner. Executive Producers: Scott Silver, Jason Ruder, Mark Friedberg, Georgia Kacandes, & Michael E. Uslan. Main Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Zazie Beetz, Harry Lawtey, Steve Coogan, Leigh Gill, Sharon Washington, Jacob Lofland, & Ken Leung. Cinematographer: Lawrence Sher. Composer: Hildur Guðnadóttir. Production Companies: Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Studios, & Joint Effort. Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures. Runtime: 138 minutes. Rated R.

DiscussingFilm's Senior Film Critic, Ben Rolph, loves to review films, ranging from indies to blockbusters. He loves musicals, horror, and indies among a broad range of other genres. Also, Ben is the Chairman and Founder of the DiscussingFilm Critic Awards. In his spare time, Ben’s watching DCTV shows and going on about Melissa Benoist, Chris Wood, and Grant Gustin. Follow him here: @thedctvshow

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George R.R. Martin Calls Out ‘House of the Dragon’ Changes and Warns: ‘There Are More Toxic’ Tweaks to Come Based on What’s ‘Being Contemplated for Seasons 3 and 4’

As promised in his Aug. 30 blog post, “ Game of Thrones ” creator and author George R. R. Martin has gone into detail about what he thought went wrong with HBO’s “ House of the Dragon ” Season 2, calling out specific changes from his original work, “Fire & Blood,” and what the “Game of Thrones” prequel’s showrunner Ryan Condal has adapted for the screen, as well as upcoming plans for the final two seasons of the show.

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Martin went on to outline in detail how the elimination of Maelor could ultimately affect plans for the final two seasons of HBO’s “House of the Dragon,” which Condal recently confirmed will end with Season 4, by revealing future major spoiler plots from “Fire & Blood”: “Maelor by himself means little,” Martin wrote. “He is a small child, does not have a line of dialogue, does nothing of consequence but die… but where and when and how, that  does  matter. Losing Maelor weakened the end of the Blood and Cheese sequence, but it also cost us the Bitterbridge scene with all its horror and heroism, it undercut the motivation for Helaena’s suicide, and that in turn sent thousands into the streets and alleys, screaming for justice for their ‘murdered’ queen. None of that is essential, I suppose… but all of it does serve a purpose, it all helps to tie the story lines together, so one thing follows another in a logical and convincing manner.”

The “A Song of Ice and Fire” series author ended this blog post, which he deleted later Wednesday, by hinting at more issues for “House of the Dragon” moving forwarding, adding: “And there are larger and more toxic butterflies to come, if HOUSE OF THE DRAGON goes ahead with some of the changes being contemplated for seasons 3 and 4…”

An HBO spokesperson responded to Martin’s complaints Wednesday with the following statement obtained by Variety , “There are few greater fans of George R.R. Martin and his book ‘Fire & Blood’ than the creative team on ‘House of the Dragon,’ both in production and at HBO. Commonly, when adapting a book for the screen, with its own format and limitations, the showrunner ultimately is required to make difficult choices about the characters and stories the audience will follow. We believe that Ryan Condal and his team have done an extraordinary job and the millions of fans the series has amassed over the first two seasons will continue to enjoy it.”

On a recent episode of HBO’s official “House of the Dragon” podcast, Condal explained that “we had to make some compromises in rendering the story” when it came to eliminating the Maelor character.

“The casualty in that was that our young children in this show are very young. Very, very young,” he said. “Because we compress that timeline. So those people could only have children of a certain age and have it be believable where it didn’t feel like we weren’t hewing to the realities of the passage of time and the growth of children in any real way. And people, people look at that stuff. And particularly with a show like this, they look at it very closely. So it was a choice made. It did have a ripple effect, and we decided that we were going to lean into it and try to make it a strength, instead of playing it as a weakness.”

On Aug. 30, Martin first teased on his blog that he would write a post about “everything that’s gone wrong” with the “Game of Thrones” prequel show.

Martin was originally largely positive in his assessment of “House of the Dragon” Season 2. After watching the first two episodes, he wrote “both episodes were just great. Dark, mind you. Very dark. They may make you cry. (I did not cry myself, but one of my friends did.) Powerful, emotional, gut-wrenching, heart rending. Just the sort of thing I like. (What can I say? I was weaned on Shakespeare, and love the tragedies and history plays best of all.)”

Later on, however, he posted a negative reaction to the show using the incorrect, four-legged dragon sigil for House Targaryen. The correct sigil from his Westeros world uses a two-legged dragon.

“They went with the bad sigil rather than the good one,” Martin wrote at the time. “That sound you heard was me screaming, ‘No, no, no.’ Those damned extra legs have even wormed their way onto the covers of my books, over my strenuous objections.”

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George R.R. Martin Lambastes House of the Dragon Story Choice, Hints at ‘Toxic’ Changes Ahead — HBO Says Showrunner Has Done ‘An Extraordinary Job’