Fantasia is not the kind of movie that has a coherent plot or features a battle of good versus evil. It's an experience movie. It's a movie that reacts to classical music and changes it's tone to fit it.
The film is basically The Philadelphia Orchestra performing various classical pieces(The Rite of Spring, The Pastoral Symphony etc.). But the pieces are set to animation from the Walt Disney Company. The animation is some of the best Disney has ever done.
There are some pieces like Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor and The Nutcracker Suite that are just random events happening one after the other. While others like The Rite of Spring or Dance of the Hours have a sort of plot. There never is a main character or real plot in any of the stories. Except one.
Possibly the most famous bit of the film is The Sorcerer's Apprentice starring Mickey Mouse. He takes his master's hat and starts enchanting the brooms to do his work for him. This... doesn't end well. This is the only original music composed for the film and it is by far one of the best appearances of Mickey Mouse.
But by far my favorite scene is the end. Night on Bald Mountain depicts a demon on top of a mountain summoning the dead and damned to dance and party around him atop his mountain. He casts a few into the pit, transforms them into beasts and demons and does it only for laughs. But he is eventually driven back into slumber by the church bells and the film closes on a procession of priests through a forest. All mixed with Ave Maria. This ending is one of the strongest endings to a film I've ever seen, animated or otherwise.
Fantasia isn't just a film, it's an art. The visuals are magnificent, the score is beautiful and it is really one of the best animated films to ever be conceived. If you haven't seen this amazing movie I definitely recommend it. While you may not come out of it with the same feelings I have, it is a must see for any fan of Disney or animation.
The film is basically The Philadelphia Orchestra performing various classical pieces(The Rite of Spring, The Pastoral Symphony etc.). But the pieces are set to animation from the Walt Disney Company. The animation is some of the best Disney has ever done.
There are some pieces like Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor and The Nutcracker Suite that are just random events happening one after the other. While others like The Rite of Spring or Dance of the Hours have a sort of plot. There never is a main character or real plot in any of the stories. Except one.
Possibly the most famous bit of the film is The Sorcerer's Apprentice starring Mickey Mouse. He takes his master's hat and starts enchanting the brooms to do his work for him. This... doesn't end well. This is the only original music composed for the film and it is by far one of the best appearances of Mickey Mouse.
But by far my favorite scene is the end. Night on Bald Mountain depicts a demon on top of a mountain summoning the dead and damned to dance and party around him atop his mountain. He casts a few into the pit, transforms them into beasts and demons and does it only for laughs. But he is eventually driven back into slumber by the church bells and the film closes on a procession of priests through a forest. All mixed with Ave Maria. This ending is one of the strongest endings to a film I've ever seen, animated or otherwise.
Fantasia isn't just a film, it's an art. The visuals are magnificent, the score is beautiful and it is really one of the best animated films to ever be conceived. If you haven't seen this amazing movie I definitely recommend it. While you may not come out of it with the same feelings I have, it is a must see for any fan of Disney or animation.