Anastasia ** (1997, voices of Meg Ryan, Christopher Lloyd, Kelsey Grammer, Hank Azaria, Bernadette Peters, Angela Lansbury, Kirsten Dunst) – Classic Movie Review 2649

Directors Don Bluth and Gary Goldman’s 1997 animated feature Anastasia is a rather feeble, none too specially animated musical feature film retelling of the famous story. Despite all the talent involved, it proves an awkward subject for an animation, stubbornly resistant to this treatment.

Meg Ryan voices Anastasia, supposedly the last surviving member of the Russian royal family. Christopher Lloyd gives it a boost as the voice of the villain Rasputin, the undead Svengali who seeks her death. But the film is not in the Disney class, either for story or animation, and the songs are weak too.

Also in the voice cast are Kelsey Grammer, Hank Azaria, Bernadette Peters, Kirsten Dunst, Angela Lansbury as the Dowager Empress Marie and Rick Jones as Czar Nicholas.

The famous story is best known from the 1956 Hollywood movie with Ingrid Bergman.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2649

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