Belle's Tales of Friendship (NR, 1999)

This straight-to-video release follows a TV format, with Belle and her puppet friends narrating a series of previously released cartoons. In the live action portion of this release, Belle is the owner of a lavish bookshop. Her love of reading is shared by a group of lively puppets, including two bookworms, a large ginger cat, and a red book with a mustache. A gaggle of precocious children visit Belle's shop and beg for stories. Belle is only too happy to oblige with tales about cooperation and teamwork. The first three animated tales, including one featuring the Beauty and the Beastcast, show characters working together to achieve a common goal. The last two demonstrate that pitching in and doing chores means everyone gets to have fun sooner. In the final scene, set during Belle's chili party, she proves that there's no such thing as a free lunch (or bowl of chili, as it were).

It's never too soon to teach kids how to be good team players, and this release attempts to do just that through story and song. A few of the children that congregate in Belle's shop take turns being selfish and lazy, giving our heroine ample opportunity to illustrate the downside of those tendencies. Belle's instructions stay fairly entertaining with the help of some catchy tunes and cartoons straight out of Disney's vault.

Younger or more sensitive kids might be scared by some parts of the "Hansel and Gretel" and "Three Little Pigs" cartoons, and the "Beauty and the Beast" cartoon segment deals with Mrs. Potts' depression, but overall, this is a cheerful production (although parents may find the puppets irritating).

Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Director: Jimbo Marshall
Cast: Hampton Dixon, Kirsten Storms, Lynsey McLeod
Genre: Family and Kids
Run time: 70 minutes
Theatrical release: August 17, 1999
DVD release: August 17, 1999
MPAA Rating: NR
MPAA explanation: not rated