The Beautician and the Beast is a 1997 American romantic comedy film directed by Ken Kwapis and written by Todd Graff. It stars Fran Drescher (pictured) as a New York City beautician who is hired to tutor the children of a fictional Eastern European dictator, played by Timothy Dalton. The film takes inspiration from other stories like Beauty and the Beast, The King and I, Evita, and The Sound of Music. Produced by Drescher and Paramount Pictures, The Beautician and the Beast had Drescher's first starring role in a film. Filming took place in Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills, California, and Sychrov Castle in the Czech Republic. Cliff Eidelman composed the soundtrack, which features the London Metropolitan Orchestra. Critics panned the story as more appropriate for a sitcom, and Drescher and Dalton received mixed reviews for their performances. The Beautician and the Beast was a box-office bomb, grossing roughly $11.5 million against a production budget of $16 million. (Full article...)