Review of Fantasia (2004) by Brandon W — 15 Sep 2011

Ever since Walt Disney began his revolution of animated film with Snow White, no other film has equaled the power of Fantasia. It was a project he devoted everything to have it made and he championed the hell out of it with his optimism that it would forever change the language of film and what the art form could do.

While, unfortunately, it did not meet this impossible standard, it's power is felt throughout the annals of music and film. It became a kind of precursor to music videos, which are so incredibly popular in this day and age that one really has to thank Disney for once again causing a revolution, it just took some time for it to go into effect, which kind of echoes the fact that the public never really embraces genius when it is first released.

Enough about the influence it held, the film itself is an absolute delight. My personal favorite sequence is the forest rendition of The Nutcracker Suite by Tchaikovsky, with dancing chinese mushrooms, twirling lilies, Russian-dancing dandelions, and arabian fish seductively twirling their fins.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice has always been the most iconic sequence of the film, and Mickey has never shined more brightly than as the novice wizard who bites off A LOT more than he can chew with the brooms.

The Night on Bald Mountain finale with the Ave Maria coda is the most thrilling of the set-pieces, as Chernobog the dark demon inspires great awe and terror at the same time as he releases hellish spirits upon a lowly village, only to find himself defeated by the light as the morning sun rises.

It really just goes to show that Disney was a true genius and Fantasia showed the incredible heights of his power. I will forever carry this film with me.