A visual and audio treat in the same way that Fury Road and Dunkirk are.
REPPED: What a lovely blend of music and animation! Since it’s presented as an anthology of short segments, each segment has its own unique style that plays around with different themes and visuals. Some segments are lively and colorful while others are somber and muted and it’s very welcoming to see a Disney film deal with darker material. The Pastoral Symphony and Night on Bald Mountain were my favorites. The Pastoral Symphony has a lot of artwork that reminded me of Disney’s Hercules and Night on Bald Mountain is terrifying but is also a lovely celebration of all things spooky. Fantasia feels like the result of a drug-induced spark of creativity and the way the film balances color with music and sound gives the viewer a feeling of serenity amidst its operatic scale.
NEGGED: I don’t know who Deems Taylor is but having the film jump back to him in between segments was boring. The film has so much energy during the musical sequences that I didn’t want to take a break, I just wanted it to keep going. Deems Taylor does a professional job in presenting, but jumping from animation to live action disrupted the flow of the film. I was also up late at night trying to cram this movie in so the live action scenes added extra time I didn’t need.
FINAL VERDICT: Fantasia is like walking into a strip club: eye candy all around! Fantasia was meant to be a marketing tool for the character of Mickey Mouse, but in my eyes, it ended up being a creative endeavor that celebrates the art of film and its ability to move audiences through its marriage of music and animation.
The Cinebuff 