The Eye of the Beholder

A sick day found me alone, curled up on a sofa, in the dark, watching Disney's Beauty and the Beast. It is my all time favorite Disney Movie, for many reasons, but the most prominent, being Beast.
He is the epitome of animated perfection, first off, being goofy when the moment suits, terrifying at all the right times, though not so much so that it's still a family show, and lovable in the End. Also, he is the Pinnacle of Anthropomorphism; the artists, after fishing around
for sometime on the right human/animal balance, decided on an image based on a Silver back gorilla, which would give him the "Human" feel, crossed with a wolf, hence the hind legs and tail, as well as other beastly characteristics. But there is more to him than pure artistry.
Beast was a Prince turned Brute by a beautiful enchantress, after which he locked himself away in his cursed castle. So, no matter how long he has actually been a beast, his heart and mind are still that of a 21 year old man, or boy, if you will. The Feminine race alone is alien to him, not to mention kindness and love. And so the Beautiful Belle reaches out to him and--Viola!--The spell is broken.
Re-watching this movie made me realize the deep emotions, especially of Love and the REALness of the characters, though it was made well over a decade ago. I also reflected on the contrasts between the Movie version and the original Fairy tale, mainly the retelling in Robin McKinley's book, Beauty. And I saw one Major difference: While in the Film, It is beast who must change his beastly nature before he can change his beastly appearance by learning to Love. In the book, however, he has already overcome himself after years stowed away in his castle in the forest. When Beauty shows up, he loves her at first sight. It is Beauty who must change her heart to be able to accept him, and in so doing, accept herself. So the question is asked: Who has the real challenge? The Hideous in overcoming the physical and emotional challenge of being a Beast, whether physically, emotionally or both; or the Beautiful, in witnessing the beast and having sympathy and try to understand the Ugly, and accepting it despite the obvious barrier of both Appearances and--in the case of the Movie version--the cruel actions and seeing the kindness and goodness inside.
While that may be a philosophical reason to enjoy both book and movie, I still prefer the Film. And I love Beast, past the "Moral of the Story." Though my infatuation is rather hard to explain, I shall try any way.
He's furry/hairy and teeth-y. He has an awesome, billowy cape, an amazing singing voice and roaring voice; he has kindness, but self-doubt. He can make enormous snowballs, has the heftiest pair of eyebrows ever to move individually. He's adorably awkward, yet frightening. But most of all, Beast battles on roofs and jump from half-way up a stair case onto the next floor without bothering to make the turn in between. He's a Beast, what other reason need I?