In celebration of unexpected love on the Eve of Valentine’s Day, RAAC will show Jean Cocteau’s 1946 classic “La Belle et La Bete,” or Beauty and the Beast, at the Little Washington Theatre, at 6 o’clock on Friday February 13 ( a test run of an earlier start for RAAC movies). Based on the 18th century fairy tale, the story unfolds like a beautiful but disturbing departure from the ordinary, with plenty of special effects created without any of today’s computer-assisted techniques.

Cocteau’s treatment of the eerie romance has been called “realism of the unreal. ” Audiences can watch a credible, if dreamy, young woman’s journey from horror to empathy to love for the beast, who has taken her hostage as part of a shocking deal imposed on her father when he is staggered by a business failure. Jean Marais plays the lonely, misunderstood beast, as well as two competing suitors for the affection of Belle, played by Josette Day.

Reports of the filming experience in post-war France add to the fascination. Marais would endure five hours of make-up time, with fur strips attached to his face and hefty incisors inserted in his mouth. And during the production period, Cocteau himself was stricken by a painful skin disorder requiring penicillin every three hours.

This French film includes subtitles, and RAAC provides hearing assistance, helpful in taking in the French dialogue and the sumptuous score by the French composer Georges Auric.

This special evening is free, but RAAC welcomes donations to cover productions costs.