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| Beloved Mickey Mouse, with cherubs, a flying horse, intense darkness and a prominent foreign last name stand out on this original poster for Disney's Fantasia |
Fantasia is Disney's 3rd feature film, a grand, experimental expedition that combines animation with classic music; 8 sequences with each their piece of music.
The film has no less than 25 story and writer's credits, (too many to list here), and the following 12 directors handled the various segments: Debuting James Algar (The Wind in the Willows (1949, short)), debuting Samuel Armstrong (Dumbo (1941)), debuting Ford Beebe Jr. (Challenge to Be Free (1975)), Norman Ferguson (The Three Caballeros (1944)), David Hand (Pluto's Judgement Day (1935, short)), debuting Jim Handley (Pinocchio (1940, assistant director), T. Hee (Pinocchio), Wilfred Jackson (Cinderella (1950)), Hamilton Luske (Alice in Wonderland (1951)), Bill Roberts (Mickey and the Beanstalk (1947, short)), debuting Paul Satterfield (Bambi (1942)) and Ben Sharpsteen (Polar Trappers (1938, short)), all working under the ultimate leadership of the film's champion and father Walt Disney.
Some of the finest classical music ever made (conductor Leopold Stokowski) plays to more or less abstract animations; of the orchestra, lines and circles, Mickey Mouse, - who was reestablished as the iconic animated Disney character that he is with Fantasia, - grotesque gods, animals, ghosts etc.
Fantasia is Disney's fantastical gift to us, his audiences past, present and future, which is a playful time with musicality, movement and expressions. It is an enchanting and beautiful animation, (if a bit long at times.)
Watch a trailer for the film here
Cost: 2.28 mil. $
Box office: 76.4 mil. $ - North America only
= Mega-hit (returned more than 33.50 times its cost)
[Fantasia premiered 13 November (New York) and runs 126 minutes (several shorter cuts exist). Development began in 1936 with Disney's intent to reestablish Mickey Mouse with a film that used classical music actively and in a new way, and his meeting and cooperation with the enthusiastic conductor Stokowski was instrumental for the creation of the film. The Disney company, far from the established media giant of today, went financially out on a limb to create the very costly and risky endeavor, which among other things revolutionized cinema sound, presenting the first stereophonic sound experience for audiences. Developing this took approximately 1/5th of the film's total cost. The film originally played successfully in North and South America as a roadshow engagement with elevated prices, but as the new sound system had to be installed at every venue, - and because WWII shut the film out of most of Europe for its first several years, - it would not be until 1969 that Fantasia began to turn a profit, as college kids embraced the film for its psychedelic qualities. The film was re-released several times; the 1990 reissue grossed 25 mil. $ domestically. It also became a highly profitable home video title for Disney; one estimation puts its profits from this venue at 120 mil. $! Fantasia won 2 honorary Oscars in 1942. It also won a National Board of Review award. Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 star review, translating to a notch higher than this one. Disney had envisioned Fantasia as a film that would be shown in a new version every few years, which didn't happen, but a sequel was released with flop Fantasia 2000 (1999). Disney returned with Dumbo (1941). Fantasia is certified fresh at 96 % with an 8.6/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of Fantasia?
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