Remember This Scene: 'Fantasia 2000'
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"Rhapsody In Blue" uses Al Hirschfeld's caricature style to depict a tale that is unique among 'Fantasia' shorts. (Disney)
Last week, we took a look at "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" from the legendary Disney film, 'Fantasia.' This week, let's take a look at a truly unique little short from that film's equally excellent sequel, 'Fantasia 2000.'
'Fantasia 2000,' much like its predecessor, is sort of a mixed bag. There are some genuine moments where the Disney animators get to strut their stuff, such as the beautiful finale inspired by Igor Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite." Others, like the flamingo with the yo-yo dancing to the finale from "The Carnival Of The Animals," are really nothing special. But while the first film was a mixed bag because some experiments the animators tried worked and others didn't, this film feels like a mixed bag because some of the segments feel more like attempts to appeal to the casual moviegoing family than to really go for some bold moves.
Indeed, many signs point to '2000' being made with box office security in mind. The run time is about forty minutes shorter than the first film to prevent the youngsters from squirming around in their seats during ridiculously long segments. The stately narration of Deems Taylor in a dark concert hall is replaced by celebs like Penn & Teller doing cheerful intros with big grins, and while the awakening of the aforementioned Firebird is suitably dramatic and diabolical, there really isn't a segment that becomes a prolonged, wide-awake nightmare like the "Night On Bald Mountain" sequence from the original.
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Even Donald Duck's appearance in this film feels more like a marketing gimmick than an effort to do something really adventurous with the character like they did with Mickey in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice." While Mickey nearly got waterboarded to death by an army of brooms, Donald bumbles around with animals in a slapstick interpretation of Noah's Ark set to "Pomp And Circumstance." Yes, they try to ratchet up the pathos by making Donald think his girlfriend Daisy drowned in the flood and vice versa, but we know both of them are alive, so the dramatic reunion of the two at the end feels like an eventuality rather than a truly emotional moment. 'Fantasia' is at its best when it defies the expectations of what Disney animation will bring. "Sorcerer's Apprentice" did that. "Donald's Ark" didn't.
But there was one segment from 'Fantasia 2000' that manages to both push the envelope and preserve that quintessential Disney feel, and it ends up being the best piece from either film: "Rhapsody In Blue."
While all 'Fantasia' pieces are influenced by classical music composers, "Rhapsody In Blue" has both a musical and a visual inspiration. On one hand, we have George Gershwin, a composer known for blending classical and jazz music together. On the other, there is Al Hirschfeld, arguably the greatest caricaturist of the 20th century. From age 17 and continuing on right up until his death at age 99, Hirschfeld drew Broadway and Hollywood stars in a distinct style that conveyed their subjects' personalities and talents.
From the get-go, "Rhapsody In Blue" pays homage to Hirschfeld's talents with a pen and pencil by drawing the New York City skyline through a single, continuous line that darts across the screen in time with the clarinet that marks the opening of Gershwin's seminal work. From there, a story unlike any other seen in the 'Fantasia' films unfolds. All the other segments deal with elements of fantasy, like flying whales or ballerina hippos. "Rhapsody In Blue" is the only human story to be found in 'Fantasia.' It takes place during the Great Depression, a time when Hirschfeld rose to prominence and Gershwin released his famous musical 'Porgy and Bess.' We follow four characters through the Big Apple, each with a dream on their minds. In the end, though they never meet each other, they inadvertently help each other reach those dreams.
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The slapstick comedy and "dreams come true" ending are unmistakably Disney, but this is the only 'Fantasia 2000' piece that feels like a labor of love on behalf of the animators. Eric Goldberg, the director of this piece, was a lifelong admirer of Hirschfeld. Goldberg was the man responsible for animating the Genie in 'Aladdin,' and the design of that character was also based around Hirschfeld's style of using a single, continuous line to describe physique. In "Rhapsody In Blue," the characters bounce around with the same exuberant energy that made Genie so famous, yet slow down into gentle elegance during the more melancholy points. Complementing this movement is Goldberg's wonderful use of color, using shades of blue and purple to reflect both the time period and music of the piece but then allowing brighter and hotter colors to cover the city when the mood brightens.
Goldberg showed this piece to Hirschfeld on his 96th birthday, and it was met with resounding approval, with his wife calling it "the best birthday present he could have received." It's not hard to see why they loved it so much. "Rhapsody In Blue" embodies the ambition and love for the craft that form the core of 'Fantasia' at its best. Many of the other shorts simply take a classical piece and build a concept around it, but Goldberg went the extra mile to make the animation a spectacle that could stand on its own if you watched the short on mute. This is truly a unique little gem in Disney history.
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