Fantasia first came out in 1940 by the animated film producer Walt Disney and was a failure. That’s hard to believe with how popular and beautiful the beloved musical creation has become. It is now known and loved so much it is considered to be a Disney Classic. There were quite a few changes made and variations on it some were completely pulled, but the classic we all know and love is quite a delight to watch and now with the magic of Blu-ray I’m able to share it with my kids. You can share it with yours too, and save 10.00 on Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 at Disney Movie Rewards.

On November 30th, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released FANTASIA/FANTASIA 2000: 2-Movie Collection Special Edition. We can experience the magical legacy of Disney all over again and some of Fantasia 2000 is from the original creation of Fantasia made by Walt. The unique combination of music and animation in FANTASIA and FANTASIA 2000 broke the boundaries of imagination. With the release of Fantaisa and Fantasia 2000 you can, as I will, introduce the kiddos to the animated musicals and dig deeper into the history of Disney with bonus material that includes a tour of the Disney Family Museum in San Francisco, CA and the highly acclaimed Walt Disney & Salvador Dali animated-short film collaboration, Destino! Available for the first time ever on Blu-ray, the seven minute film is the result of a unique collaboration between Walt Disney and Salvador Dali begun in 1946, but put on hold due to studio financial concerns. In 2003, Roy E. Disney worked with a team of modern day animators to complete the film as a tribute to Walt’s pioneering artistic vision. Accompanying the highly anticipated short is an all-new feature length documentary entitled “Dali & Disney: A Date With Destino,” which explores the origins of the relationship between Disney and Dali, their collaboration on Destino, and ultimately how the film came to fruition so many years after its inception.

I have always loved watching Fantasia. I haven’t shown the kids Fantasia yet, when we put the movies in we started off with Fantasia 2000 and it had Mickey and the Socerer’s apprentice on it. Miles was so happy to see Mickey. He said

“Look Mom, it’s Mickey…  I Like Mickey Mom”

Zoe said,

“mom, what’s Mickey doing?”

He’s working I said,

“why mom”

and I didn’t really know what to say

Needless to say though, the kids loved watching all of the fanciful scenes, creatures dancing, and music playing. There was one scene though that both of the kids said was too scary. There was umm water I think, or something like Mother nature, and a very evil naughty volcano that hurt her and the forest. Wow, it was intense for the kids but overall, we really liked Fantasia 2000.

Fantasia DVD Bonus Features:

•    New Audio Commentary with Disney historian Brian Sibley
•    Disney Family Museum (running time: approx. 5 minutes) – Walt’s daughter Diane Disney-Miller takes viewers on a tour of the new Disney Family Museum in San Francisco, California featuring a very large exhibit on Fantasia and most importantly, the Schultheis notebook with long lost Fantasia production notes found in more recent years in the walls of a convent.

Fantasia Blu-ray Bonus Features: Everything on the DVD plus:

•    Disney View – This viewing mode maximizes the Blu-ray viewing experience with a 16 x 9 aspect ratio. Original artwork created by a Disney artist, in a style that complements the beauty of the film.
•    The Shultheis Notebook: A Disney Treasure (running time: approx. 14 minutes) –An in depth look at the recently discovered Schultheis Notebook. The detailed log was created by Herman Schultheis, an effects man on Fantasia, and intricately breaks down the film from a technical view. Many of the special effects used in Fantasia were a mystery to modern day animators until this notebook was recovered.
•    Interactive Art Gallery and Screensavers – Viewers can explore the artwork of Fantasia as never before, in HD resolution with unique Blu-ray interactivity and programming.
•    Audio Commentaries from Fantasia Legacy Collection o With executive producer Roy E. Disney, conductor James Levine, animation historian
John Canemaker, and Scott McQueen, manager of film restoration.

Audio commentary with interviews and story note recreations by Walt Disney, hosted by John Canemaker.

Fantasia 2000 DVD Bonus Features:

•    Musicana – Walt’s Inspiration for a Sequel (running time: approx. 10 minutes) – This documentary reveals rarely-seen art created for Musicana, a late 1970’s project intended as a Fantasia sequel with a focus on exploring other cultures via their greatest musical compositions. Viewers are offered a look at the origins of pieces that were started by Walt, such as “The Emperor and the Nightingale” which was then taken over by a very young John Lasseter. Ultimately, Musicana was stopped to begin production on “Mickey’s Christmas Carol,” but the memories of this piece still live on with the animators who conceived it.

Fantasia 2000 Blu-ray Bonus Features: Everything on the DVD plus:

•    Dali & Disney: A Date With Destino (running time: 82 minutes) – This feature length documentary explores the collaborative relationship between Walt Disney and Salvador Dali, revealing how and why the Destino short came to fruition under the lead of Roy E. Disney in 2003 so many years after its inception in 1946.
•    Destino (running time: approx. 7 minutes) – The legacy of Walt Disney and Salvador Dali lives on in this highly anticipated short film.
•    Disney’s Virtual Vault — BD-Live Feature Original DVD Bonus Features from Legacy Collection
•    Audio Commentaries from Fantasia Legacy Collection (total running time: 84 minutes) With executive producer Roy E. Disney, conductor James Levine, and producer Don Ernst. Audio commentary with the directors and art directors for each segment.