Review for Fantasia DVD (2010)

Fantasia is possibly one of my most favourite ever films. Not just animations, but films in general. Made in 1940, this film was possibly Disney's most ambitious and though not the box office success they had with Snow White, it was certainly a critical one. Winner of two Special Academy Awards, selected for preservation in the National Film Registry it is certainly a film that deserves the respect it has gotten over the past seventy years since its release.

The funny thing about Fantasia is that if you ask anyone to tell you what is in it they say instantly The Sorcerer's Apprentice and then are stumped. However, as iconic as the appearance by Mickey Mouse is, it cannot be denied how good the other pieces throughout are. If you have an interest in classic music and would just like almost a 'Beginner's Guide' the best place to start would be this film. Music featured comes from some of the biggest composers Bach, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Beethoven, Ponchielli, Mussorgsky, Schubert and Dukas. Obviously the only 'Great' omitted is Mozart, but with so much great music on offer, this oversight can be forgiven.

Fantasia is a mix of montages of music that are more abstract paintings, at times it's almost like watching a screensaver, but as well as though pieces there are some great character based pieces. Of course the most famous, is Mickey Mouse as The Sorcerer's Apprentice. This is possibly the only piece from Fantasia that could be viewed away from the film as a whole, which is how it was originally conceived. However viewed as a whole, Fantasia is an amazing achievement both in animation and music and the only thing that I would say lets the whole piece down is the introductions by Deems Taylor. In the commentary it is revealed that due to the reaction to these later additions were released with these omitted and I do wish that had been an option here as his interruptions between the pieces don't add the information they were aiming for and more stilted the film as a whole. However the film looks and sounds amazing and I can only imagine how much better it looks and sounds on Blu-ray, however I was only able to review the DVD version which was still pretty good.

Released along with Fantasia 2000, the DVD/Blu-ray set comes with an amazing set of extras. Unfortunately I was only able to get my hands on the main film to review, however based on that and the commentary I would say that Disney have pulled out all the stops to show the new generation just why this film is so cherished. However, the commentary on this disk is a wonderful analysis of the film and answers every question about its creation from concept to execution.

Fantasia is a film that will live forever, whether you remember just for Mickey making a mess in that iconic blue wizard hat or whether you know every single frame off by heart. For those who have never seen the film, this is a perfect time to watch Disney at its best.