5 Reasons to Watch
After the huge success of Jon Favreau's "The Jungle Book", Walt Disney Pictures announced their plan for more live-action versions of their animated classics. It shouldn't come as a surprise after Kenneth Branagh's interpretation of "Cinderella" (2015). There were lofty expectations, and this romantic fantasy film, which featured Lily James in the titular role, exceeded expectations. Tim Burton's "Dumbo" is quite old news, but his fans are intrigued at how he'll approach this beloved 1941 classic. (There's still no news on the playdate.) "Fantasia" will be also remade.
Older viewers will recall "Fantasia 2000", a homage to the 1940 original. It featured animals dancing to the musical score of Ludwig van Beethoven (among others). "Fantasia" could be Walt Disney's brilliant concept, but the timing of its release would be another thing. It was World War II, and moviegoers would like to see a hippopotamus doing a pirouette. The box-office result told a different outcome. Time changed the initial perception. "Night on Bald Mountain", the final segment in this animated film, might have unsettled them.
"Night on Bald Mountain" was set in a remote European town on Walpurgis Night. Chernobog, whose name would mean black god, rose up from the summit of Bald Mountain and summoned the evil spirits and restless souls. Computer-generated imagery (CGI) was unheard of, but Modest Mussorgsky's music set the tone to the entire segment. It was an eerie show, where viewers would be treated to a ghastly (dance) number in the end. The sound of the Angelus bell saved some souls from eternal damnation. And this would be the segment that Disney wanted to turn into a live-action feature.
There are five reasons to find a blue-ray disc copy of "Fantasia" and watch it. Here they are:
Silence is golden. All the characters didn't utter a single word, and the audience might be dumbfounded at some scenes where they are engaged in a conversation. But they will be engaged. They can relate to them. "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", for instance, described how Mickey Mouse wanted to learn his master's tricks. The music of Paul Dukas had a mischievous side that would suit this amusing story. Mickey was the most lovable Disney character, so he couldn't be chastised for failing to control his master's tricks. It would be a different outcome if he spoke a few words.
Nothing beats classical music. Johann Sebastian Bach, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Amilcare Ponchielli. Music aficionados will argue on what makes good music, but there's no doubt about this company. Their music would be appreciated by generations of audience. And Disney showed that it wouldn't be reserved for listeners with high taste.
Walt Disney knew when to be serious. "Rite of Spring" depicted the evolution of life on Earth, which ended with the extinction of the dinosaurs. Igor Stravinsky's score was a somber one, which could prompt viewers to watch the scenes closely. It might be worse, which Disney wouldn't want his younger viewers to see.
Classical mythology has never been sweeter. "The Pastoral Symphony" was set in a Greco-Roman world, where cupids acted as matchmakers to forlorn centaurs and centaurettes. A festival honoring Bacchus was coming up, so there shouldn't be a sad face during the festivity. Ludwig van Beethoven's music had a bittersweet side, which would tug the viewer's hearts. It wasn't hard to sense a happy ending, though.
There's room for comic relief. "Dance of the Hours" could have been a hilarious version of the food chain. It would be brutal in reality, but Amilcare Ponchielli's music turned it upside down. Viewers would watch a horde of elephants and troop of alligators in motion again and again.
