There are a few reasons to see the new live-action Beauty and the Beast (which is out TODAY and really good). First of all: the nostalgia factor. One must mentally prepare themselves for each and every childhood heartstring to be tenderly pulled, from the "Little Town (Belle's Song)" to "Beauty and the Beast." Second: the cast. I mean, Luke Evans as Gaston is perfectly obnoxious. Josh Gad as LeFou is refreshingly funny. Emma Watson as Belle is incredibly clever. Dan Stevens as the Beast is very furry. Third: the first "exclusively gay" moment in a Disney movie. Well, almost. What exactly does happen in this incredibly talked-about moment that has led to the movie being banned and edited from certain cinemas?
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Honestly, not that much. Which is to say that anything is better than just another caucasian heterosexual couple finding love in a fairytale world, but all the hullaballoo about this hyped-up gay moment is about a nearly missable scene. Here's exactly what happens (if you think this is a spoiler then stop reading, but if you don't, then please let's continue):
LeFou dances with a man for two seconds during the final ballroom scene. Everyone is switching partners, and he looks quite happy with his male one. It's nice. It's brief. It's, frankly, super normal and totally fits within the narrative. Also, at another part they wear makeup for a minute but that barely counts.
Disney is super, super proud of this fleeting interaction between two men (which was included to honour one of the main men behind the original 1991 film, Howard Ashman, who died of AIDs before its release and wrote the theme song as a metaphor for his cursed life dealing with the disease as a gay man). And they should be. LeFou the first openly gay Disney character, ever — that's history being made. Even if it is brief (and feels like it's not the first time).
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