Anastasia (1997)

Looking back on the career of former Disney animator Don Bluth can be an interesting experience. While he did manage to do well early in his solo career, his reputation started to decline after All Dogs Go to Heaven failed to compete against Disney’s The Little Mermaid, as well as his follow-up feature Rock-a-Doodle being not as well received. When Fox attempted to compete against Disney (years prior to the merger) by opening up their own animation department, Fox Animation Studios, Bluth was brought at the helm and his career found a bright spot with the studio’s first film, the acclaimed Anastasia (1997). Unfortunately, the failure of their second theatrical film, Titan A.E., led to the entire studio shutting down and Bluth to all but fall off the face of the Earth. Along with Anastasia’s acclaim came the long-standing misconception that it was Disney film due to sharing a number of elements with their output at the time; while it actually is a Disney film now by virtue of their ownership of Fox, it is, for all intents and purposes, a Fox Animation Studios film and not an entry in the Disney Animated Canon. This confusion is what eventually led to me watching Anastasia out of curiosity, though it was pulled from Disney+ by the time I got around to it and I had to watch it on demand through Starz, and I ended up enjoying it more than I anticipated.

In 1916 Russia, as Dowager Empress Maria (Angela Lansbury) presents a music box and a necklace that reads “Together in Paris” to her daughter Anastasia (Kirsten Dunst) at a ball, Grigori Rasputin (Christopher Lloyd) appears, seeking revenge on the Romanov family, having sold his soul to obtain the power he needs to do so. Though Anastasia and her mother escape with the help of a servant boy, the music box lost in the confusion, Maria is the only one who safely makes it onto a train while her daughter falls down and hits her head, leading her to be left behind. Ten years later, a conman named Dimitri (John Cusack) and his friend Vlad (Kelsey Grammer) have been seeking a woman to play the part of the legendary Anastasia, as her mother has put out a high bounty to be reunited with her. Meanwhile, an amnesiac Anastasia, going by the name of Anya (Meg Ryan), leaves the orphanage where she grew up to go to Paris, feeling a connection to it thanks to the inscription on her necklace. At a crossroads with little idea where to go, Anya decides to follow a stray dog that takes a liking to her, feeling that it might be leading her to where she wants to go. After following the dog to her old home, now abandoned, Anya meets Dimitri, who convinces her to play the part of Anastasia in his scheme. At the same time, an albino bat named Bartok (Hank Azaria), who has been hanging out at the mansion, becomes aware that Anya might be the long-lost Anastasia, leading his master Rasputin to begin making his grand return.

 

Dimitri (John Cusack, center) convinces Anya (Meg Ryan, right) to go along
with his scheme. Left: Vlad (Kelsey Grammer) holding the dog, Pooka.

 

While I am aware that this movie is a work of historical fiction, I personally cannot speak to the (in)accuracies in the plot due to my own unfamiliarity with the events surrounding the real Anastasia Romanov. That aside, on its own merits, the plot is well-written, if a little tonally inconsistent, in that the running joke of Rasputin falling apart under extreme emotion makes him come off as slightly less of a threat than was likely intended. The main plot of Anya, and by extension Dimitri, finding out her true origins is well-paced and has some interesting twists, however her memories finally coming back seemed to occur a little fast to me. While not perfect, it does follow some similar story beats to other Disney films at the time, making its confusion for one a little more understandable, while still doing its best to stand apart from them.

Regardless of the quality of Don Bluth’s films, one thing that can be said is the consistency of their animation quality. This film is no exception, featuring some highly expressive and fluid animation on par with some of Disney’s better movies. That said, it’s very easy, especially nowadays, to tell when the animators used CG, as well as whether or not rotoscoping was utilized for certain shots. To give credit though, the traditional and computer animation are blended near-seamlessly, though the music box, which is obviously a CG model, stands out quite a bit, especially when a character is holding it.

 

The music box, seen near Pooka, is an obvious CG object.

 

This film also touts an all-star cast, which is put to great use here. Meg Ryan and John Cusack bounce off each other really well, making the development of Anya and Dimitri’s relationship believable and their initial banter amusing, plus Kelsey Grammer shows some range as Vlad with a believable Russian accent. Another standout is Christopher Lloyd, who, much like he did with Who Framed Roger Rabbit, proves how effective he can be at playing a villainous role with Rasputin. Much like the Disney films it was made to compete with, Anastasia is a musical. While the songs are well-made, in particular “Once Upon a December” and “In the Dark of the Night”, I personally didn’t find them quite as memorable as some of Disney’s better songs, plus the number of songs in this movie is arguably a little much.

If you’re a fan of Don Bluth’s early work, Anastasia represents a highlight of his later career that’s worth watching regardless of how you feel about the premise. If you’re a Disney animation fan looking for non-Disney films that are similar in tone, Anastasia is an overall solid choice.