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FANTASIA/2000 Send This Review to a Friend
The parlaying of an asset for new marketing potential rather than creative inspiration seems to be the driving force behind Disney's "Fantasia/2000," no improvement upon the original "Fantasia" despite the heightened techniques of animation and effects available today. The film is first being presented in Imax, which does at least render it huge; later, it will be presented on regular screens. Either way, much of the new concoction is more boring than exiting.
One should recall that the 1940 "Fantasia" mixed classical music and animation in a effort, bold for its time, to bring music to a mass audience. It also pioneered stereophonic sound. Theaters were specially equipped for maximum results. Disney was a visionary, and while much of the mix was gauche and deserved criticism, the conception was a landmark one and the original "Fantasia" still offers charm as well as a reprise of an important moment in film history.
One of its delightful segments, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice," featuring Mickey Mouse, is carried over to "Fantasia/2000." But only a smattering of the new is compelling. I particularly enjoyed the Noah's Ark parade of the animal kingdom led by Donald Duck and set to Sir Edward Elgar's "Pomp and Circumstance." The "Rhapsody in Blue" segment as a tribute to artist Al Hirchfeld is another highlight.
But much of the film has a numbing effect despite the fresh animation expertise of the vast corps of contributors to the visually impressive finished product. It is made more leaden by the awkward new hosting sequences provided by Steve Martin, Bette Midler, James Levine, Itzhak Perlman, James Earl Jones, Angela Lansbury, Quincy Jones and Penn & Teller. In fairness, the old hosting sequences were awkward, too. But there was excitement to the original because of its groundbreaking. Here the entire enterprise bears the mark of strained commercial recycling of the old to extract new mileage from the Disney library. A Buena Vista Pictures release.
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