ANASTASIA (1997) A Film Review by Ted Prigge Copyright 1998 Ted Prigge
Directors: Don Bluth and Gary Goldman Writers: Susan Gauthier, Bruce Graham, Bob Tzudiker, Noni White, and Eric Tuchman (based on the screenplay Arthur Laurents which is in turn based on the play by Marcel Maurette) Starring: Meg Ryan, John Cusack, Kelsey Grammar, Christopher Lloyd, Hank Azaria, Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters, Kirsten Dunst, Liz Callaway, Lacey Chabert, Jim Cummings, Jonathan Dokuchitz
I can't even remember the last animated feature that had big promotion that wasn't a Disney film. Maybe it was "An American Tail" (or it's ill-fated sequel). Nevertheless, Disney has been the king of animated features, for better or worse. And while it's not a great film, it is a breath of fresh air from the Disney trend, which has been getting kinda lackluster as of late, and proof that Disney isn't the only company who can make a really good enjoyable film.
Of course, Twentith Centry Fox, who advertised the film over a year before its release, have pretty much given themselves a harder job than Disney does. Instead of adapting something that's relatively fantasy-like anyway (stories about mermaids, genies, and gods and godesses), the filmmakers have chosen to adapt a story based on real life, that of the disappearance of the daughter to Russian Czar Nicolas and his wife Alexandra, who was overthrown by the people, led by Lenin. It's even been made into a 50s film, which served as Ingrid Bergman's comeback film after a long drought of nothingness.
Of course, they needed to make it universal to kids and adults, so decided to make the creepy Russian personage of Rasputin into the film's chief villain (the film exploits the old curse put on the family by Rasputin, who is out for vengeance after Nicolas screwed him over). When the palace falls due to the revolution, the family flees, but accidentally leave behind little Anastasia (voiced by Kirstun Dunst; sung by "Party of Five"'s Lacy Chabert), who conks her head, and receives some nasty amnesia.
After a brief introduction to all of this, the story follows a woman named Anya who is about 18 years old (voiced by Meg Ryan; sung by Liz Callaway), and we see her trying to figure out what to do with her life now that she's kicked out of the orphanage she's lived in what seems to her all her life. We're also introduced to two con artists in St. Petersburg, Dimitri (voiced by John Cuasack; sung by Jonathan Dokuchitz) and Vladmir (voiced and sung by Kelsey Grammar), who have heard that there is a possibility that Anastasia still lives, and her grandmother, an Empress (Angela Lansbury) who fleed to Paris before the revolution, is looking for her. They begin holding auditions to find a girl who looks like Anastasia, and who is willing to be trained to act like her so they can receive an award. Anya wanders in, and after a bit of conversation, agrees to go overseas with them to maybe discover her past. Of course, Anya is really Anastasia, and it'll just take some time for her employers to figure it out.
All the while, Rasputin (voiced by Christopher Lloyd; sung by Jim Cummings) is a living corpse, having sold his soul to the devil for the ability to exact revenge on the Russian family, and is constantly falling apart (it was funny the first two times...). When he discovers that Anastasia is still alive, and begins to attack the trio on their way to Paris.
Although a cartoon, this film is actually a really entertaining film for everyone. Sure, I was a little appalled at some of the historical inaccuracies, but, like I did with Disney's "Hercules," I soon got over that and just tried to enjoy the film. The film has the same kind of magic of a Disney film, filled with lots of very good music (I can probably hum two or three songs from this; from "Hercules," none), and some definite magical moments, like a sequence where Anya enters the run-down palace of her youth and all the ghosts from her past burst out of the windows and re-enact a dance from earlier on. And there's even some very suspenseful moments, most notably an excellently crafted runaway train sequence.
The animation is more mature than Disney's, with very human facial expressions from many of the characters. And the writing and voices are both excellent, with Meg Ryan and John Cusack seen as having great chemistry in several of the scenes. Throughout the first half, they're constantly bickering, and it actually sounds realistic. I was very shocked and impressed by all of this, and also how they could also work well with more cartoony characters, like a bat named Bartok (voiced by the great cartoon voice actor, and all-around great actor in general, Hank Azaria), who serves as the main comic relief.
If there's anything wrong with it, it's that it's too brief. I know it's an animated feature, and most of them have to adhere to around 90 minutes or less, but maybe more time and less editing would have fleshed out some more of the supporting characters. Rasputin is only shown a couple times, and although we fully understand his intentions, sometimes his appearances are so far apart from eachother that you almost forget he's there. And sadly, Vladmir is in much of the first act, but seems to have disappeared during the second, who falls in love with the Empress's friend, Sophie (voiced by Broadway great Bernadette Peters).
Nevertheless, "Anastasia" has a lot of energy, and is evenly paced, which is very impressive as a lot of animated films are choppy and way too episodic for their own good. You also have to like how it doesn't insult our intelligence, and gives us a romance between Anya and Dimitri that is based on that of a Howard Hawks/Frank Capra film, which is more than helpful in giving it a lighthearted feel. This is not high drama, and thank goodness for that. Save the high drama for the live action, and reserve the lightheartedness for the cartoons.
MY RATING (out of 4): ***
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