How could the audio tracks for the Deems Taylor deterorirate? - Fantasia (1941) Discussion

[–] starbond8 14 years ago

Maybe because after the less than impressive results at the theatres, they figured the animation segments would be more viable to save? They could cut out the live-action parts and just show the shorts as needed (theaters or otherwise)
In that mindset, they probably gave the audio roll a "standard" storage, which was not good enough as we know now.

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[–] vnisanian2001 14 years ago

What I don't get is why did Disney go so far out of their way to redub ALL of Taylor's lines? When Bedknobs and Broomsticks was extended, all they did was redub the missing scenes. Other than that, the rest of the dialogue was unchanged. Same thing with MGM and the restored edition of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

And how about Spartacus from Universal? For the newly-restored edition, all they did was redub one scene (the bath scene) by having Tony Curtis re-voice his part, and having Anthony Hopkins do a spot-on Laurence Oliver impersonation. Other than that, the rest of the dialogue was, again, unchanged.

Disney could have just redubbed the missing Taylor footage, and leave the ones that were intact in the 1991 VHS/laserdisc releases alone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NL5skeYNRD8

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[–] Blackjack254 14 years ago

I wouldn't mind it if they had just stuck with the 1991 version with the shortened narrations (as the full narrations spoil the segments before you watch them when showing it to someone for the first time)

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[–] bok602 14 years ago

The original -complete- audio tracks for the Deems Taylor narration were perfectly good and used without any problem for the VHS and laserdisc releases of FANTASIA.

It was only when the DVD release came out that somehow "portions" of the original audio tracks mysteriously became 'unavailable."

I complained about it at the time, asking when they couldn't just lift the missing portions from the digital tracks mastered for the laser disc and/or VHS releases.

I am disgusted that now with the blue-ray release the whole of Deems Taylor's distinctive narration and vocal inflections have been replaced by a bland and jarringly out-of-place voice-over.

"If you don't know the answer -change the question."

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[–] frederik olsen 14 years ago

The original -complete- audio tracks for the Deems Taylor nrration were perfectly good and used without any problem for the VHS and laserdisc releases of FANTASIA.

It was only when the DVD release came out that somehow "portions" of the original audio tracks mysteriously became 'unavailable."

Not really; the VHS and Laserdisc releases (the 1991 version, if I'm not mistaken) contained the shortened Deems Taylor narrations from the theatrial re-release.

These are not to be confused with the complete narrations from the first release - the so-called roadshow release - for which the audio elements have apparently deteriorated beyond the point of repair. Oddly, the footage itself still exists in pristine condition as it has obviously been used on the most recent releases of "Fantasia".

As for the reason why Disney didn't keep Taylor's voice where it was available instead of dubbing over the whole thing, consistency would seem to be the reason. As film buffs, I know you guys would have no problem with the resulting inconsistencies had Disney chosen to do the former instead. But would the same apply for the typical consumer, or to the children who seem to be the intended audience of Disney nowadays?

Even though Disney's decision may be disappointing from an artistic standpoint, it is probably the smarter one business-wise. If the voice had changed between Taylor and Burton constantly, Disney would probably be flooded with angry telephone calls from airheaded customers complaining that "there is a problem with the sound".

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[–] nataloff-1 14 years ago

I'm glad to see this discussion because the re-dubbed narration has galled me for over a decade, particularly since I grew up on the original Deems Taylor narration, as hokey as it was. I agree with others that the Disney audio people -- who are just about the best in the business -- should have used as much of the original as they could have salvaged. They also could have digitally altered Corey Burton's voice to more closely resemble Taylor's in the fill-ins. Moreover, it is incomprehensible that there isn't an IB Tech print of the complete roadshow version in the Disney vault, worn and shrunk though it may be.

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[–] vnisanian2001 14 years ago

Yeah usually Disney is really good with audio. I just don't think they utilized it well in the newest DVD/Blu-Ray releases of this film at all.

Plus, you gotta love how the real Mr. Taylor pronounces musicians as MUS-ATIO-NS!

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