Fantasia 2000

Rating:
Summary: A worthy continuation
Review: If you liked Fantasia, then Fantasia 2000 won't let you down. I must admit that at first I was a bit annoyed at flying whales, but by the end of that sequence, I was ready to accept anything. It seems that the music was written to support Disney's scenes, not the other way around. I found the steadfast soldier and rhapsody in blue simply breathtaking, and I was laughing out loud for the flamingos. I can't add any comments about Sorceror's apprentice which haven't been said, it's timeless. Also a big vote of approval to Disney for adding DTS. It really improves the sound which is so important here.

Rating:
Summary: Fantasia Continues
Review: The first Fantasia bored me out of my mind when I saw it a long, long, time ago as a child. I haven't seen it since. But I will very, very soon. When I heard about a new Fantasia, I had no intention on seeing it. But after I saw clips of the "Rhapsody in Blue" and "Pines of Rome" sequeces, I was compelled to watch it. Unfortunately, the Imax theatre in San Diego didn't show Fan 2000, so I didn't get to experiance it in Imax.

When I saw it in theatres, I was amazed at how beutiful the animation was and how the music blended so well with it. I loved it. I never tire of watching this movie on DVD. But don't ever get a Fantasia on video. They are so much better when you can view their brilliance with digital pefection.

Things that would have made this movie SO MUCH better are these:

1. Get a more serious intro to the film instead of having the wacky Steve Martin give one of his jokes. I like him, but I think they should have made James Earl Jones the person to introduce the movie. He is perfect. In fact, just have him the only announcer for the whole thing!

2. I suggest more serious peices. The flamingo/ yo-yo scene was enjoyable the first time I saw it, but now I just view it as an oppertunity to have a 1 second intermission, looking at how short it is anyway. "Rhapsody in Blue" was inspired and brilliant, even though it was humorous, so don't scratch that one.

3. Improve the Donald Duck segment. I recognize whey wanted something like "Sorceror's Apprentice" with Micky Mouse for Fan 2000, but the Noah's Ark thing was just dumb. They should have made the story of Noah's Ark very serious and emotional and longer. But putting a squaking duck into a serious peice like Pomp and Circomstance just doesn't fit.

4. Every peice should have been longer!

I hope Roy Disney reads this and keeping these suggestions in mind for Fantasia 3000. I guess the original is one star better than this one.

Rating:
Summary: Fantasia Not Fantastic
Review: Being a lover of the arts, especially late 19th and early 20th century classical music I found this latest edition of Fantasia absolutely horrible and a pain to watch! The audience is told in regarding Pines of Rome by Ottorino Respigi that one usually thinks of lovely pines growing about Rome, both in the ancient ruins and the modern city. I quite agree as Respighi is known for writing music like poetry. Resighi's Church Windows and Autumn Poem are excellent examples of this. Repighi wrote "Pines" in four suits, the second: Pines Near A Catacomb is not played in Fantasia 2000. This is good because of the horribly mismatched images! The other suits in "Pines" dealt with a childrens' play ground (Villa Borghese), a city park (Janiculum) and the most famous ancient road of all Rome: the Appian Way, recalling Rome's glory. Disney studios have Respighi horribly wrong! Flying humpback whales do not exactly fit the image of the glorious and venerable ancient city of Rome! The second suit (Catacombs) begins in sorrow and prayer and ends in a triumph faith - using adaptations of Gregorian chant which Repighi loved. Again I am glad Disney did not use this piece because the concept of flying whales is totally inappropriate and ludicrous! The rest of the film uses similarly mismatched images to the music. I really don't think music can be put to animation or any other medium. It's like viewing art with background music, or reading poetry with art and sculpture being flashed in front of you. The arts simply do not mix well together. Everyone has his or her personal views and should be left so accordingly. I never liked the original Fantasia for the same reasons. To me Fantasia 2000 is a boorish ugly nightmare to say the least!

Rating:
Summary: A lifelong Disney and Fantasia Fan
Review: I had to write when I read the review from A viewer from Beaver Falls N.Y. When the original Fantasia was released in theaters in 1940, it was not an instant success. It took 16 years for the public to appreciate Walt Disneys dream and the work it took to make it happen.

I own the video of the original Fantasia, and I have Fantasia 2000 on my wish list for Christmas. I saw this film twice in the theater, and if I run true to form, I will end up buying at least 2 copies of this film if not more. I am on my second "Lady and the Tramp", and my second "Fantasia", however, "Fantasia" is wearing out, so I'll have to get another soon.

I understand that everyone has their own taste and opinion, but I felt that I had to speak in defense of the genius of Walt Disney. His company has the courage to tackle issues that are being debated today such as conservation (Bambi) and womens rights (Mulan).

I guess that what I really want to say is, judge this film on its own merits. It is a completely seperate work of art from Fantasia. Comparing one to the other is like comparing apple and oranges.

Rating:
Summary: A worthy successor in every respect.
Review: Who would have believed it? It really is a worthy successor to Fantasia.

Everyone's already said that it's excellent music and excellent animation - which is true.

What's been left out is that it's an incredible overview of all the best of what Disney animation has to offer. Even the introduction uses animation techniques impossible a few short years ago. It offers a proper tribute to the original while setting the stage (literally) for a whole new series of wonders.

Beethoven's Fifth is stylized abstract animation -- just a glorious celebration of color, shapes and music, with a complexity impossible without modern computer enhancing techniques.

Pines of Rome adds new dimensions to CGI animation. The whales are quite realistic, and their movements are serene and joyful.

The Rhapsody in Blue segment combines a distinctive Anerican music style (Gershwin) to an equally distinctive American art style (Hirschfeld). Its stylized story-telling is delightful (and I would never have believed that a segment of Fantasia would ever be set in New York City). Don't recognize the name Hirschfeld? Well, neither did I - but I recognized that style of caricature instantly. And so will you.

The Steadfast Tin Soldier is an excellent example of adapting a traditional fairy tale to modern animation. It's classic Disney story-telling with modern techniques, and the movement and art styles of the three main characters make them visually distinctive as well as helping the characterizations.

The Carnival of the Animals is zany cartooning at its frenetic and silly best.

Mickey in the Sorcerer's Apprentice is as good an example of Classic Disney as you could hope for.

You can almost see the storyboard developing in Pomp and Circumstance. "The music is associated now primarily with graduation processions, so let's attach it to a traditional procession - the animals entering the Ark. We want some humor, so let's use Donald. We'll put him in charge of the animals - that will allow a lot of slapstick. Now, Walt always said for every laugh there must be a tear. How do we generate tears for Donald? He's lost Daisy, of course." It's a symbiotic whole of silliness, pomp, traditional story-telling, animated animals, sadness, joy, and love.

The Phoenix is a natural tale of death and rebirth, using animal, plant, and volcanic movements that are precise, beautiful, incredibly realistic, and compellingly moving.

The movie as a whole is incredible for animation fans, compelling for music fans, fascinating for artists, and satisfying for those (like me) for whom the original Fantasia is one of the best movies ever made.

Rating:
Summary: Enriching Experience
Review: I took my 18 month old son to see Fantasia 2000 at the Imax theater for his first movie experience. And what an experience it was. We were both captivated throughout the entire movie. We especially enjoyed the flying whales - it was breathtaking. Fantasia 2000 will definetly be one of our favorite Disney movies. It's nice to see movies that make the effort to enrich the minds of children. It's very refreshing compared to all the cartoons with no plot or substance. For all those with negative comments and want to downplay this movie as compared to the original - you should compare this movie to other movies produced in this day and time. There are few movies that compare to the masterpiece of Fantasia 2000.

Rating:
Summary: Fantasia 2000 is not as expected.
Review: The original Fantasia was an absolute triumph. Walt Disney had confidence that the public would appreciate a fusion of great "classical" music and the latest animation techniques. He also had confidence that a major segment of a musical composition could be presented and if the animation was meaningful enough, the audience would be able to maintain their focus on the work. Walt Disney was very correct and the original Fantasia was a milestone of film-making history. The movie Fantasia 2000 shows that the current rulers at Disney did not share Walt's confidence in the public. The various segments are mostly much more truncated that those in the original. Roy Disney also felt the need for human announcers to do their little bits before the segments begin. His introduction at the beginning of the VHS video was not only dull and self serving but used tape time that would have been more enjoyable and meaningful if the horrendously shortened segments could have been made longer. I also seriously question the decision to include the Sorcerer's Apprentice from the original film. I'm sure that many of the purchasers of this latest version already have the original version. A new segment would have been far more desirable. The music and the animation are timeless and could be enjoyed during numerous replays- the limp personality cameos and the Roy Disney introduction can not. They are tedious. The musical performances of James Levine and the Chicago Symphony are outstanding. The animation is fantastic and the story lines very enjoyable. The Tin Soldier episode and the Rhapsody in Blue are particularly well done- even brilliant. If only more of the Carnival of the Animals could have been presented, there are many treasures in this piece of music that could be grist for animation ala Disney. For my taste the Noah's Ark segment with Donald Duck was a bit childish. This had the promise of being a great film experience like the original version. If only Roy Disney had the confidence in our sense of taste and our attention spans, he could have produced another truly outstanding film to compare with Walt's original.

Rating:
Summary: See this film! Donald is NOT Noah...
Review: First of all, don't listen to the reviews that say this is a copycat version of the original. This is a much better film than the original Fantasia.

Also, Donald Duck is NOT Noah in the pomp and circumstance section. He's the male duck on board the ark who believes that his female counterpart Daisy did not make it onto the ship, only to discover that she did when they both exit. Noah is briefly seen calling the animals to the ark. Some people pretend to be able to review film because they feel good about expressing their opinions, but when such erroneous conclusions are made, you cannot take their word for anything.

So,...take my word for it. See this movie!

Rating:
Summary: "Fantasia 2000" A Modern Masterpiece
Review: With the release of "Fantasia 2000" there has been a tendency for critics to compare it to the original 1940 classic. While this is inevitable, it is also not fair in some regards. It is important to realize that the 2 films are quite different and were made in different times. With that said, to be fair to this film, "Fantasia 2000" should be looked at independently and on its own merits.

"Fantasia 2000" is a modern masterpiece. It brilliantly matches beautiful classical music with fantastic animated imagery. Like the original, it is an artistic experience and is meant to be seen, heard and felt on a rich emotional level. I enjoyed all of the sequences, with Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite" and Gershwin's "Rapsody in Blue" being my favorites. "Fantasia 2000" was energetic, entertaining and very emotinal. On DVD, it is superb. Excellent sound and seemingly perfect images are nicely balanced with audio commentaries and a wonderful documentary. While not coming close to the subconcious level of the original "Fantasia," it is still an excellent film that deserves a masterpiece label of its own.

Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece
Review: If you ask me, this is certainly the best Disney movie, I have seen in a long, long, time. I feel that to get more people to see this version then the original Fantasia was to get celebrities, and humorous cartoons inside the film to introduce each segment. But, if you're a fan of the following songs, Beethoven's 5th symphony, Pines of Rome, Rhapsody In Blue, Piano concerto no. 2 (shostakovich), Carnival Of the Animals, Pomp and Circumstance, or the Firebird Suite, this is a must see film. The animation is surely more clear and clean than the original. If you own a collection of Fantasia movies, this is one you must have.