Bartok, der Großartige

I didn't expect to like the movie as much as I did Anastasia and I was right.

They chose the character I didn't care much for, but as I said in my Anastasia review he was very appealing to the kids. So when it comes to Bartok the magnificent, this cartoon is more for just children. So the drawing is not as beautiful, there are less details of Russia and songs are not as great.

Also, as somebody who grew up over there and had a lot of Baba Yaga in my childhood, I really didn't like the portrayal of her or her house, was so different from what it was in my childhood. This of course wouldn't make a difference for most viewers and kids but this is where movie lost some points with me. I wish it was her old house with chicken legs in the middle of a beautiful Russian forest.

It is still not a bad movie for kids. And I personally liked to have more of Kelsey Grammar in it who now had a bigger part as Bartok's friend the bear.

I liked Anastasia, but it suffered from one particular thing, the "Bluthiness" or what you'd call it. It tried to juggle the darker stuff with the 90's Disney aesthetic, and it worked out fine, but with this spin-off movie about the little fast-talking bat we get an all-out Bluth movie with some bizarre characters and more spookiness and that's its biggest strength.

If you like Bartok, this movie is for you, but even if you don't you'll get a handful of enjoyable side characters voiced by well-known actors like Kelsey Grammar, Tim Curry and Jennifer Tilly.

It was an enjoyable watch even if the production value was noticably lower, because of its smaller budget and the story was kind of predictable. Not a must watch, but harmless kiddie fare with an unmistakable Bluthanian aesthetic.

I liked Anastasia. It wasn't the best animated movie ever, but it was nice. And Bartok was my favourite character, so.... .... I was all the more disappointed with this movie. The idea of giving him his own story to star in is great. But please, please, give the movie a story! This one mixes an old Russian fairy tale about a witch (in the original she lives in a house with 4 chicken legs, so the house can walk around, I believe) with a PC-game-alike plot:

1) Go on quest. Get item 2) return from quest. bring item to whoever requested it. 3) get sent on another quest to get another item.... 4) repeat until you feel sick

First quest: find the kidnapped prince. Then the witch sends him on 3 or 4 quests of her own before being willing to help him. Etc. etc.

Add in some poor songs, some really really obvious morals, and you've got one of the worst direct-to-video sequels ever devised for a major animated feature. Only Lion King 2 comes off worse, from those that I've seen so far...

Admittedly, in parts the animation quality leaves a lot to be desired. It, like quite a few aspects of the film, feels quite rushed, especially in contrast to the scenes which are quite polished.

But that would be my only criticism. Sure, it's a touch cheeseball and tacky, full of cliché, but deliberately and well-timedly so. It works with the context of the scenes.

The characters are utterly adorable and the talent behind them really shines through.

I absolutely would rate this far higher than the movie it is a spin-off of, and a littlemore time spent polishing this little gem could have made it great.

In this follow-up to ANASTASIA, the title character (and most of the others) are gone, so I can only suppose that BARTOK THE MAGNIFICENT portrays the future of the Romanoff family (Prince Ivan looks like he could be Dimitri's grandson or something). Bartok, after the demise of Rasputin, now works in his own two-man circus act that reinacts his fictitious heroic deeds. After Prince Ivan is kidnapped by the evil witch Baba Yaga, the gullible people of Moscow force Bartok (whom they totally believe to be the real McCoy) and his supposedly dead bear friend, Zozi, to rescue him from the evil witch.

When I first saw this on the shelf, I was dismayed. I was horrified that they were going to ruin ANASTASIA. Thankfully, my fears were dispelled as soon as I heard and saw the opening sequence telling the tale of Baba Yaga. The animation is smooth, flowing, and the lip-synching actually works. The voice of Kelsey Grammer for Zozi fits like Mickey's glove; you can tell Zozi is Frasier. The use of CGI in certain places, normally backgrounds and inanimate objects, is a good touch. The story isn't quite as poignant as ANASTASIA: this time 'round, Bluth and co. have opted for a comedy in the form of BARTOK THE MAGNIFICENT. If you liked ANASTASIA, certainly watch BARTOK THE MAGNIFICENT, if you didn't like ANASTASIA, watch it anyway! It will be worthwhile.