Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!: Anastasia (1997)

6/05/2022

Anastasia (1997) - Splendor!

♥♥♥♥♥

+ Best Musical of the Year

What could be thought of as a malevolent god above looms on this grand poster for Don Bluth and Gary Goldman's Anastasia

Anastasia is only a very young princess in the Russian royal family, when the revolution splits said family apart. As an adult she goes to Paris, where she learns of her true ancestry.

Anastasia is written by Susan Gauthier (The Carol Burnett Show (1991, TV-series)), Bruce Graham (Twisted (1986)), Bob Tzudiker, Noni White (The Lion King (1994), both) and Eric Tuchman (Eureka (2010-12)) and directed by Texan master filmmaker Don Bluth (The Secret of NIMH (1981)), whose 8th film it was, and Gary Goldman (All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989)).

The real-life story is taken up and spun around into a fantastical, original story, - really a fantasy about learning something truly fantastical (such as that you're really a Russian princess), and that very wild hopes can come true, - which moves several times in this great first Fox Animation feature, a film you'll have to made of stone not to be touched by.

The plot also has weak sides, - mostly in relation to the villain scenes, - and the mix of traditional cel animation and computer animation is sometimes very clear, (take it as a part of the technical development process of the time.) But Anastasia also has ravishing songs and enormously beautiful drawings and colors and is a an over-all lavish production, and a gift for every romantic out there.

1997 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 53 mil. $

Box office: 139.8 mil. $

= Box office success (returned 2.63 times its cost)

[Anastasia premiered 14 November (New York) and runs 94 minutes. The film is Fox Animation's first feature and highly historically inaccurate. Production took place in Phoenix, Arizona. It opened #2, behind Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, to a 14.1 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent another 2 weekends in the top 5 (#3-#4), grossing 58.4 mil. $ ( 41.8 % of the total gross). Reportedly more than 50 mil. $ was spent marketing the film in partnerships with commercial partners. Disney attempted to drown out Anastasia at the box office with several releases and re-releases of popular titles. More than 8 mil. home video copies of the film were sold in North America. The film was nominated for 2 Oscars: Best Song (Journey to the Past by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens), lost to My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion, James Horner and Will Jennings from Titanic, and Best Score: Musical/Comedy (Stephen Flaherty, Lynn Ahrens, David Newman), lost to Anne Dudley for The Full Monty. It was also nominated for 2 Golden Globes, among other honors. Roger Ebert gave it a 3.5/4 star review, equal in rating to this one. Bluth and Goldman returned with Anastasia spin-off, Bartok the Magnificent (1999, video) and theatrically with Titan A.E. (2000). Meg Ryan (Sleepless in Seattle (1993)) returned in City of Angels (1998); John Cusack (City Hall (1996)) in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997); and Christopher Lloyd (Cadillac Ranch (1996)) in The Animated Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1998, video), The Ransom of Red Chief (1998, TV movie) and theatrically in My Favorite Martian (1999). Anastasia is certified fresh at 86 % with a 7.10/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

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William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

Adopted from an orphenage at a young age, Liotta got hooked on acting in high school. He had various TV credits in the late 1970s and early 80s, with his film debut in The Lonely Lady (1983). Later credits include Something Wild (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Goodfellas (1990), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), Narc (2002), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Youth in Revolt (2009), The Details (2011), Killing THem Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Shades of Blue (2016-18), The Simpsons (2018, TV-series), Marriage Story (2019), The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Black Bird (2022, TV-series) and many more. Liotta passed away at age 67 in his sleep while on production in the Dominican Republic. R.I.P.

Philip Baker Hall has died

Born in Ohio, Hall didn't start acting until he was 30. His long list of credits include Zabriskie Point (1970), Miami Vice (1987, TV-series), Midnight Run (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Cheers (1993, TV-series), Hard Eight (1996), The Rock (1996), Air Force One (1997), Boogie Nights (1997), Seinfeld (1991-98), Rush Hour (1998), The Insider (1999), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003), Dogville (2003), The Zodiac (2005), Zodiac (2007), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-09), Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), Modern Family (2011-12) and many more. Hall passed away at age 90. R.I.P.

William Hurt has passed away

Born in Washington D.C., Hurt's first film role was the lead in Altered States (1980). Later credits include Body Heat (1981), The Big Chill (1983), Gorky Park (1983), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned his only Oscar as Best Actor; Chilrdren of a Lesser God (1986), for which he was also Oscar-nominated; Broadcast News (1987), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; Smoke (1995), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), A History of Violence (2005), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; The Good Shepherd (2006), Into the Wild (2007), Robin Hood (2010) and many more. Hurt passed away at age 71. R.I.P.

Ivan Reitman has passed away

Born in Chechoslovakia, now Slovakia, Reitman's family fled the Soviet regime to Austria, then Toronto, when he was 4 years old. Reitman broke into movies as a director with Foxy Lady (1971). Later credits include Cannibal Girls (1973), Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Kindergarten Cop (1990), Junior (1994), Father's Day (1997), Evolution (1998), No Strings Attached (2011), Draft Day (2014) and more. Reitman's son Jason Reitman is also a great filmmaker. Reitman passed away at age 75. R.I.P.

Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!

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6/05/2022

Anastasia (1997) - Splendor!

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