Anastasia Directors: Don Bluth and Gary Goldman With the Voice talents of: Meg Ryan, John Cusak, Christopher Lloyd, Kelsey Grammar, Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters, and Hank Azaria Approx Running time: 90 min.
The battle between ex-Disney animator Don Bluth and his former employers began back in 1982 when Bluth's company created the marvelous "The Secret of NIMH". At the time, Bluth hit Disney when it was most vulnerable; the animation market was down, and cartoons were merely for children. As Disney regained its prominence in the industry, Bluth was unable to compete, and subsequent films failed both critically and at the box office. (With very few exceptions.) Thanks to 20th century Fox (and a hefty budget) Bluth has managed to combine state-of-the-art computer animation technology with a sort of live-action feel that sends a loud and clear message to Disney; there's a new kid in town.
Anastasia tells the story of a young princess separated from her family at the age of 10. The evil Rasputin sells his soul in order to wipe the Romanov family out of Russia. What he doesn't count on is the young girl being left behind. She soon forgets her past and is raised by peasants, only to be given hope by a couple of con-men who think they can pass her off to the queen as the real princess.
Anastasia is replete with standard ingredients of an animated film. There is romance, characters spontaneously bursting into song, and an evil bearded character with gruff voice and a goofy sidekick. But Anastasia also offers inventive storytelling, and some breathtaking sequences (one in which the characters step into a Monet-like painting and continue to dance in front of impressionist backgrounds)
Somehow, the "Magic of Bluth" created for me a feeling that I was watching something real, something very human. There were few, if any, moments that made me think that this absolutely had to be a cartoon. Of course there is the fantastic element, and a talking albino bat, but the 3 years Bluth and Co. put into this picture really shows that they wanted to capture something important, emotion.
Anastasia is brimming with color and excitement. Plenty of computer razzle dazzle, and some fun vocal performances. There couldn't have been a better choice for the lead character than Meg Ryan. She brings her feisty attitude (much like her character in French Kiss) and plenty of feeling to her character. Christopher Lloyd follows the villain school of voice overs, rule number one, "you must either be British or throaty." Since Rasputin was Russian, he chose "throaty" but was menacing nonetheless as a living corpse who's gimmick was that body parts fell off at random. (Eyeballs popping out, hands falling off, lips sliding down his beard.) His sidekick, Bartok the albino bat, was voiced by the marvelous Hank Azaria who really brings his style of humor to the character. His adorable character is reminiscent of Nathan Lane's fantastic "Timon" from the Lion King, though sadly, Azaria has half the screen time.
Anastasia didn't have for me the power that Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King did, but it is more than a "valiant effort" at dethroning the Disney champs. If Bluth in his collaboration with 20th Century Fox can manage to string together a few successes like Anastasia, the history of animation in film will change forever.
3 1/2 stars out of 4 Copyright (C) 1997 Nick Amado
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