In Paris, which was recovering slowly from the German occupation, studio conditions were quite terrible and equipment was scarce. Electrical power was undependable, to say the least. Cocteau decided to shoot as much of La Belle as possible in practical locations.
The first location was the manor-house of Rochecorbon in Touron, where the scenes set at Beauty's home were shot. This site represented the sun-drenched real world of 18th-century France, and therefore was given a different photographic treatment than the mysterious exteriors of the Beast's magical domain. "What a pity France cannot afford the luxury of films in color," Cocteau mused. (Some 26 years later, a similar strategy was employed with color by Francis Ford Coppola and Gordon Willis, ASC in The Godfather, which effectively contrasted the bright and active outside world with the gloomy and sluggish inner world of the Mafia.)
As production began, Cocteau found himself fretting over Perinal's absence, but upon seeing the first rushes he quickly came to appreciate Alekan's expertise. The scenes in question were exquisite fixed compositions depicting the characters among clotheslines filled with bedsheets, upon which the interplay of sunlight and shadow, as well as the motions caused by light winds, could be seen. "Very, very beautiful," he wrote. "Clear, rich in detail, robustly poetic. Alekan has understood my style. Relief, contour, contrast and something imponderable, like a light breeze moving throughout."
Most of the exteriors of the Beast's domain were filmed in the spacious and heavily foliaged environs of the Louis XVIII Chateau de Raray, near Senlis. Cocteau insisted upon filming under whatever weather conditions happened to prevail in an attempt to "evoke the beauty which comes by accident." The company worked in rain, mists, fog and patches of bright sunlight with treetops furnishing cucaloris-like patterns. Because no studio lights were available, torches and magnesium flares were utilized when more illumination was needed. By the time the work at Raray was finished, Cocteau was suffering from intestinal flu. Soon, Marais and several other members of the company also fell ill.
Marais also suffered from the application and removal of his makeup as the Beast, a procedure which required several hours each day to accomplish. The guise was very extravagant and unlike that in any other film. (A later American remake of La Belle reprised the familiar werewolf makeup designed for The Wolf Man.) The Beast's features resemble those of a lion with a sweeping mane; the hair cost alone 200,000 francs. The body form is that of a man, but inside Beast's ornate gloves are the hairy, clawed paws of an animal; in one scene, the creature's ears prick up when he hears a stag in the forest. Despite the heaviness of the makeup, Marais was able to express emotions clearly with his eyes, eloquent body language and tormented voice. The actor actually brings greater warmth to his turn as the Beast than to his other roles as the loutish Avenant and the overly prettified Prince.
By tying together shots made in various places at Raray, a completely fictional setting is achieved in the film. For example, the top of a wall becomes a ramp which seemingly leads to a balustrade that runs along a moat in front of the chateau. A magnificent promenade lined with oversized stone statuary of wild animals, photographed from a low angle, provided a weird setting for one dramatic confrontation scene.
Upon finishing at Raray, the company went to the Saint Maurice Studios in Paris, where most of the interior settings were constructed. Some additional scenes would be filmed later in studios at Joinville and Epinay. The first batch of Raray footage, screened the morning after it was photographed, exceeded all expectations. The remainder of the Raray scenes arrived from the lab the next day, and it was discovered that the negatives had been badly scratched at the lab. Overcoming his despair, Cocteau found that the more essential material could be salvaged with clever editing.
Cocteau and Alekan were at odds over the handling of the Raray scenes. The director felt that hard-edged, realistic photography would lend conviction to fantastic scenes. Alekan's artistry and professionalism demanded more subtlety. "Alekan is timid," Cocteau noted. "He hesitates. He does not dare to work for harsh effects in his photography. The result is a certain softness that I have to correct. Everything is still too pretty. I want it rougher, with more contrasts. I shall badger him until he comes around After the projection I scold him. His mania for 'camera effects' and diffusion offends me. Nothing is better than a sublimation of the documentary style." Both cinematographic approaches are displayed to advantage in the final film.
The interiors of Beauty and her family at home are exceptionally well-lit, grouped and photographed. They strongly suggest genre paintings by Dutch and Flemish masters, particularly those of Vermeer.
The studio settings of the Beast's home reflect brilliant imagination. The compositions and lighting derive inspiration from the art of Gustave Dore, the French artist whose woodcut illustrations for The Bible, The Divine Comedy, Paradise Lost and many other classic tomes depict a dark and terrifying world conjured up by an unrestrained intellect. During the production of La Belle, Cocteau acquired a Dore bronze of Perseus, Andromeda and the dragon. "Under its sign I made my film," Cocteau said. "It sums up the picture and explains itThe influence of an object on our subconscious is greater than we think." The sculpture itself appears in the film in Beauty's room within the Beast's castle. The Dore-like forest around his lair, which includes a ravine in which Beauty's father becomes lost, was created within a soundstage to permit fog and lightning effects.
The castle's interior is equally impressive and fantastic. The front door opens into a long, dark hall which is lined on both sides by candelabras held by living arms protruding from the walls. At the approach of the visitor, each arm lifts its chandelier and the candles light up. When Beauty takes one of the candelabras away, the arm falls limp. A hand grasping a similar array in the center of the dinner table also reaches out to pour the wine. All of the fireplaces are ornamented with sculpted human faces which sometimes exhale smoke. The eyes open and watch passersby, and the heads turn to follow conversations. There is no animation involved in these stage effects; the faces are those of actors who were "built" into the set.
La Belle's studio photography was unusually difficult because of power failures and the limitations of the production's antiquated or damaged equipment. On one cold winter day, there were seven electrical breakdowns, bringing work to a halt. The film lab was unable to process the negatives for fear of further breakdowns. The set movers often worked by candlelight. Nerves were stretched to the breaking point.
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