beauty and the beastThe only time my kids had ever seen Beauty and the Beast was on an iPad. A tiny little screen with questionable audio. So I jumped at the chance to take them to a screening of the film, on a big screen with real surround sound, in 3D. I, personally, can care less about the 3D element Disney insists on inserting into old movies and I wish they would stop.

Produce new movies in 3D — if you must! — but leave the old movies as they were.

And, as it turned out, what I really loved about Beauty and the Beast 3D was not even in the movie at all ...

It was the adorable short, Tangled Ever After, that ran before the feature film. I mean, who didn't love Tangled when it came out in 2010? The Disney movie where Rapunzel, a seriously kick-ass princess, falls in love with Flynn Rider while being ransomed rescued — and that horse, Maximus ... funny, even for the adults! This new short brings the whole gang back together again for the cute couple's wedding. And of course, Maximus is none other than the most responsible ring bearer ... ever. The slapstick shtick that ensues (in 3D that makes sense) was laugh-out-loud funny. Here's a little clip to whet your appetite.

Once that ended I got to watch the smiles on my kids' faces as they watched Gaston try to convince Belle to marry him. Remember what an ass he makes of himself? And I couldn't help but sing along to so many of the songs. In fact, for days afterward, my 5-year-old son complained that he couldn't get one song, in particular, out of his head! Can you guess which one?

"Be Our Guest." It really is infectious. I bet you can't listen to it again without it getting stuck in your head. Go ahead ... give it a try.

Will you take the kids to go see Beauty and the Beast 3D?


Image via Disney