Even though Fantasia received an official sequel in Fantasia 2000, 1946’s Make Mine Music could be an appropriate sequel as well but with Popular Music being showcased instead of classical. The third package film of the 40’s, this one featured a lot of my childhood favorite shorts that I had no idea were part of a full length feature film. My generation of Disney Channel had very little original programming and consisted mostly of old Disney shorts spliced together to make various half hour programs. All the Cats Join In, Peter and the Wolf, Johnny Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet, and The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met being some of my all-time favorite cartoons happen to originate from this film.
The similarities to Fantasia start from the beginning with the short Blue Bayou. In fact, the animation is recycled from a cut segment from Fantasia. It’s a beautiful opening with a stunning tracking shot in the middle of the piece. Sweeping shots like this never cease to amaze me in animation.
Next in the program is the fantastic All the Cats Join In. Done in the distinct style of Disney Animator Fred Moore, this short follows a set of teenagers living it up at a local dinner. Everything about it screams fun. From the swing music to the bright color palate, so much energy is comes out that you can’t help but want to party with this group of kids.
The short titled Without You is a great atmospheric piece about love lost. The perspective is of one staring out a window on a rainy day looking out to a weeping willow. It goes one to get pretty abstract before returning back to the starting point. There was so much mood and emotion that I actually got a bit choked up.
I’m sure we’ve all seen Casey at the Bat, and it’s just as hilarious as ever. Strange choice as I don’t see the connection to the music theme other then it being a recited poem? Other than that, I could watch Casey strike out over and over again.
Two Silhouettes features, oddly enough, two silhouetted live action ballet dancers performing against an animated backdrop. It’s kind of a stalling point in the film, it’s a bit dull but luckily pretty short.
The classical piece of Peter and the Wolf features some brilliant character animation. You can tell they had a lot of fun bringing these characters to life using only the instrument assigned to each one as their voice. Sonia the Duck has always been a favorite of mine, his low, lazy oboe perfectly fitting his carefree but oblivious personality.
After You’ve Gone is another short little interlude, but is a bit more fun while we watch the instruments featured in the song do their thing in a cartoon land.
If you ever wondered if you could buy a love story between two anthropomorphized hats, then look no further than Johnny Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet. Told through song by the tight harmonies of the legendary Andrews Sisters, this short has always had a little spot in my heart. I don’t know if it’s the beautiful tones of the Andrews Sisters or the fact that this story can only be told in an animated world but the moment I saw that department store window I was always glued to the screen.
The finale short is the tragic The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met. Without giving too much away, the story takes you to fantastic highs as we see the meteoric rise of Willie the Whale as he becomes an opera star, but takes us to a really low, dark place. There is still a happy ending, but not the happy you normally associate with Disney. It’s pretty sophisticated storytelling for a little short. Mention has to be made to Nelson Eddy who provides all the vocals.
As you could probably tell, this is definitely my favorite of the package films, probably due to a huge case of nostalgia since so many of these were already among my favorite Disney cartoons and seeing them all together is a treat. If you haven’t revisited these ones in a while, I high recommend giving the film a view. You’d be surprised that they work well separately as shorts but work harmoniously together as a film.
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