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I just got back from seeing
Fantasia 2K with friends and little kids. Overall, I'm a bit dissappointed.
Fantasia ("There can be only one!") was a magnificant piece
of animation. One of my all-time favorite Disney movies. F2K dosen't
live up to that standard, though it is a high mark to reach.
F2K follows the same basic layout as the original, but lacks the visual punch of the first. The IMAX system does make things much more grand, but the initial work is a bit lacking. The second act is Pines of Rome and is the scene involving the flying Humpback whales. The computer animation of the whales is excellent, but they made some odd choices and shortcuts. The eyes of the whales are classic hand-animation, and it looks out of place on the CGI whales. The use of computers have also made the animators a bit lazy. There are some rather obvious uses of pattern repetition. It's less obvious and excusable for things like crowds in Hunchback, but in a cornerstone work like Fantasia, its inexcusable. There are four acts that stand out for me: Rhapsody in Blue, Firebird Suite, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, and Carnival of the Animals. Rhapsody in Blue is quite nice, well excuted in the style of caricaturist, Al Herchfield. It flows well, has some nice humor, and is appropiate to the music. Firebird Suite is the best animated of all the parts. It has an obvious Japanese influence in it's style, and it shows the greatest attention to animatory detail. Where this part falls short in it's scope. This is the equavlent to Night on Bald Mountian in the first one. It lacks the grandeure, intensity, and stunning visuals of Bald Mountian, tho. It is less frightening for the children, however. The Steadfast Tin Soldier is the most well put-together of all the scenes, IMHO. The animation style is all even and the music and storyline flow well. According to my girlfriend, they cut a lot of the original storyline out, tho. Since I'm not familliar with it, I didn't miss it. My favorite of all the scenes, is Carnival of the Animals. This is a very whimiscal piece that is introuduced by James Earl Jones asking the questions "What would a flock of flamingos do if you gave them a yo-yo?" I find one bit of the animation style choices odd, but everything else about this one is great, and it really appeals to my sense of humor. |
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I'm not familliar with the typical
price of an IMAX movie. If it were a normal movie, I'd rate is a matinee.
So, I'll give it a value of $7.
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