In the late 1930’s, Walt Disney and crew began creating some of the most well-received animated films in history. Their stories, characters and inspiring music would leave audiences awestruck and continuously wanting more. While each of these aspects have been and continue to be impeccable, it is the animation that sets Disney apart from most other animation companies. Not long after Disney’s first full-length animated film--Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)--Fantasia was released and set itself apart from nearly every other animated film before and after it. Dialogue is such a pivotal part of creating and delivering stories in cinema and, yet, this film contains next to none. Other than a very short conversation between Mickey Mouse and Leopold Stokowski (conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra) the film consists of only animated visuals and music performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra to convey a story. LIke always, the animation throughout the film is vivid, exotic and full of life. The animation is unparallelled and allows the mind to flow quite fluidly through the film; one segment that contains Mickey Mouse is unbelievably fun and would have been a treasure to any young viewer. Between the animation studio and the work of Stokowski, a truly vibrant and miraculous product was born. The issue with the film being led entirely by music and animation rather than one, cohesive story and/or any form of dialogue is that just over two hours of story after story and endless music becomes repetitive and tiresome. The idea behind Disney’s Fantasia was incredible and unique and while it had many positive qualities, its length and lack of elements other than music and animation made the film difficult to follow. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032455/?ref_=tt_sims_tt
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