Fantasia 2000

We had watched Fantasia, and it was okay, even though I fell asleep at "intermission."  However, Jason insisted that I would like Fantasia 2000 better.  As it turned out, he was right.  They did make it more modern, and more friendly to the average person.  It's shorter, more of the music is familiar, the sketches are less abstract and tell more concrete stories, and there are more Disney characters involved.  In addition, there are famous and familiar celebrities introducing each of the pieces.

While I liked Fantasia, my main problem with it was probably just that it was too long.  This one, however, is only about an hour and half, a perfect length.  Apparently the original concept behind Fantasia would be that it would come out every year, with a few new songs added in and some of the old ones taken out.  That never actually happened, but Fantasia 2000 follows the format in a way by having the old Sorcerer's Apprentice appear in this movie as well.

Some of the pieces I really enjoyed.  One was Rhapsody in Blue, a fun jazz number that tells the story of a few different characters living in NYC during the Great Depression.  There was also a number that tells the story of The Steadfast Tin Soldier - but true to being Disney, the ending of the story is changed so that it all ends happily, and I at least like that better.  We also get a fun piece set to the tune of Pomp and Circumstance and telling the story of Noah's Ark, with Donald Duck as the star.  The Pines of Rome, with flying whales, was also a graphically interesting one.

The Music
Again, the music is the main focus here.  We have a lot of similar tunes to the original, with a majority set to classical pieces.  However, we also get some jazz thrown in.

The Villain
Once again, no real villain, since it's really just a bunch of mini stories.  But that Jack in the Box during the Steadfast Tin Soldier is one creepy dude.  He definitely wins worst villain award out of these stories.

The WDW Connection
See the entry for Fantasia.

Becky's rating:  7 out of 10
Jason's rating:  8.5 out of 10