Summer's Sleepers and Keepers
Fantasia/2000
(Disney) What they did right: Advanced Walt's original
vision sixty years later. Left "The Sorcerer's Apprentice"
segment in the film. Showcased the latest digital technology extant,
including the overpowering particle generator. Proved in the outstanding
"Rhapsody
in Blue" segment that, given fifty years, Disney could
finally grasp what UPA had been trying to do. Better musical selections
than those of the 1940 film, with no radical alterations needed in
the scores. No major embarrassment like the "Pastoral" among
its sequences. Benefited from revisionist histories that now judge
the original Fantasia to be among animation's greatest masterpieces. What they didn't do right: Weak and distracting host segments. Released
it to the general theaters while their other feature Dinosaur was
still red-hot. Restricted it to IMAX theaters for far too long; even
if this was a test run prior to making a bid for IMAX, the experiment
cost Disney considerable profits. Some unconvincing animation in the
"Pines of Rome" sequence. "Steadfast Tin Soldier"
sequence was not even up to Pixar's standards. Production problems
and changes in direction tied this feature up in the studio for over
a year past the originally planned release date. What we learned: New entertainment formats may be a major draw in
the future. An increased number of theaters using IMAX-type technology
may be a major showcase for animation. In this case, the format made
a good, if not outstanding, feature a special event.
Current gross: $58,653,569 (IMAX and theater receipts
combined)
The Road to El Dorado (DreamWorks SKG) What they did right: Released the feature in late March, avoiding
the summer blockbuster/holiday season wars. Used con-artist rapscallions
as heroes rather than clean-cuts, and a female lead as sharp and crafty
as her male foils. Great chemistry between Kevin Kline and Kenneth
Branagh. Hired proven success from Disney: ex-animators, ex-screenwriters,
and the duo of Elton
John and Tim Rice for the tunes. What they didn't do right: The idea should have been to compete
with Disney, not become them. If Katzenberg wants to raid studios,
he might try some of the bigger and more successful entities in Europe,
Canada and Asia. Despite the film's sassy attitude, too much of El
Dorado is reminiscent of Disney circa 1994. Oh, and didn't
an evil master of sorcery also create a climactic set-piece by turning
a massive bunch of stone into a savage attacking animal in that other
movie? That one with the Russian princess in it? Come on, you know
which one I mean... What we learned: Recycling both talent and ideas will only get a
studio so far, even if the talent is awesome and the original idea
is a sound one. In this case, it got DreamWorks as far as the $50
million mark, but it could have turned out better. Much.
Current gross:
$50,802,661
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