Review Copyright Rose Cooper, 2000

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[We interrupt this review for a wee bit of Personal History. Readers anxious to skip this somewhat excessive filler and Get On With It, are directed to the next section, "The Story".] I was, in my mother's words, a "peculiar child". I didn't like pizza until I was 18 years old. Unlike the other girls, I thought Barbie dolls were stupid, and much preferred collecting rocks. I had to be forced to wear a dress. And, oh yeah: I hated Mickey Mouse with a passion. To be sure, I loved (and still love) cartoons. But I was an old-school Tom & Jerry and Woody Woodpecker kinda Chick, and proud of it; who needed goofy old Donald Duck when you could have the much-cooler Daffy Duck (and Elmer Fudd, to boot)? Until Bugs Bunny And Pals were co-opted by The Man, I was right there with them. And though I'm definitely enamored of modern 'toons like A Bug's Life and the Toy Story series, I see them more as Pixar creations than true Disney productions. So it should come as no surprise that I missed the original Fantasia the first time around (which makes sense, since I'm not 60 years old. But I digress.) Okay...to be more precise (and somewhat less flippant), I never took the opportunity to see the first movie when I had the chance. After watching the dance of light and sound that played on my senses while watching Fantasia 2000, I came to the conclusion that dear ol' ma was right: I was a peculiar child. [We now return you to our regularly-scheduled review. As always, we thank you for your patronage.] THE STORY (WARNING: **spoilers contained below**) A blend of traditional animation artistry and modern-day computer technology, Fantasia 2000 melds visual delights with grand classical music scores to create a feeling of sorts more so than to tell a straightforward, scripted story - advancing the wish of Disney founder Walt Disney, 60 years after its original release, that Fantasia 2000 be a constant "work in progress". The modern version updates the classic segment "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", and adds six new segments, all done by different directors and creative teams, and introduced by famous (but in the grand scheme of things here, insignificant) entertainers-as-hosts. THE UPSHOT My description of "the story" is woefully lacking. It's hard to describe the beauty of the images and music in words that would make sense in this forum. But I reckon it's my job to try. The narrator introduced the first segment, set to Beethoven's "Symphony No. 5", by saying that there are three kinds of music: music that tells a story, music that paints a picture, and music for its own sake - and further saying that the segment that follows is an example of the latter. I would respectfully disagree with that statement; that first segment, with its beautiful colors which came alive, albeit with no specific purpose in mind, seemed an example of all three kinds of "music". Indeed, most of the segments painted a picture that resonated in a way that a traditional telling of the intended story, could hardly approach. And if the first segment, with its shapes that morphed smoothly from undefined objects to colorful "butterflies" and beyond, didn't exactly tell a story, I'd hazard to say the the remainder of the segments certainly did. The visual artistry of each segment was well-matched by the beautiful music chosen for it, though in some very unique ways ("What would happen if you gave a yo-yo to a flock of flamingos?", indeed!). From the surreal image of lighter-than-air whales (set to "Pines Of Rome") to the playfulness of a non-conformist flamingo ("Carnival Of The Animals"), and especially the wonderous mating of composer George Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" with artist Al Hirschfeld's unique view of New York City, Fantasia 2000 allowed me to re-live fond memories of a time where cartoons were fun without being overly hip, cynical, and devoid of inspiration. The remaining segments were a mixed bag. The classic "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" seemed to not have aged as well as I'd hoped (though you couldn't convince the kids in my audience of that; one squealed "it's Mickey Mouse!" in unrestrained delight). Likewise, Donald and Daisy Duck's turn at being helpers for Noah ("Pomp and Circumstance, Marches #1, 2, 3 and 4") was less than an unqualified success (but it won me over by reminding me of my youngest son's recent graduation from high school). And I'm of the opinion that "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" should've remained on that backshelf that host Bette Midler said it lingered on for so long; it was easily the weakest of all the stories. But all these sins were forgiven by way of the breathtakingly bittersweet closing segment, "Firebird Suite". This normally-jaded reporter is not ashamed to say that I smiled, I cried, and I cheered, at the end of this magnificent segment. That each of the seven segments could get my animation-loving attention, was not surprising. That they could grab my interest in their non-verbal storytelling to the point where I didn't want to leave at the end, was a delight - one that I am anxious to repeat again (and again). Next time, sans notebook and pen. If there was a low point to this film, it came with the Obligatory Famous Entertainers' "hosting" segments, in which the likes of Steve Martin, James Earl Jones, Penn and Teller, Bette Midler, and Quincy Jones, among others, served as a reminder that Hollywood thinks very little of its audience - and thus, we viewers need to have actors-as-cue cards read to us "explaining" what we're about to see, since we're obviously too unintelligent to either figure it out for ourselves, or individually read introductions that could've easily been splashed onscreen between segments. While I have nothing against the performers (and indeed was relieved that a Robin Williams or a Jim Carrey weren't invited to overpower what amounted to brief cameos), I do so hate having my intelligence insulted thusly. Fortunately, the brevity of each introductory segment - and the delight in hearing a surround-sound moment in one of those in-between moments (you'll have to go to see what I mean) - outweighed my irritation with them. One unexpected thing, though, was a great surprise for me: there was an actual Black Factor moment to be had, that had nothing to do with either of the Joneses, within the triumphant "Rhapsody In Blue" segment (I'd describe it in detail, but that'd just ruin it for ya, eh?). All-in-all, Fantasia 2000 was a brilliant production that will most def see me in the audience again. BAMMER'S BOTTOM LINE Fantasia 2000 is a visual - and aural - masterpiece; true eye candy in every positive sense of the term, it reminded me of all the reasons I loved the fully-orchestrated cartoons of the 40s and 50s. I feel sorry for today's generations; between all the butchering...er, editing...of classic cartoons, and the Saturday morning dreck they currently have to sit through, kids today truly don't know what they're missing. FANTASIA 2000:   back to top And that's the way I see it. Rose "Bams" Cooper 3BlackChicks Review™ Copyright Rose Cooper, 2000 EMAIL: bams@3blackchicks.com    ICQ: 7760005 http://www.3blackchicks.com/