Fantasia is Marmite- either you love its whimsical melody and Mickey Mouse's wild antics as a Sorcerer's Apprentice or you think the premise is plain boring and find the whole experience rather tedious. While at times I tend to venture towards the latter, the concept of a modern recreation- now dubbed The Sorcerer's Apprentice- was interesting to say the least. And, with stars Nicholas Cage and Alfred Molina lending a hand to the latest real-world Disney motion picture, the pieces are certainly set for an epic tale. Why, then did the casting managers choose such a lame lead star? Jay Baruchel, fresh off his likeable role as Hiccup in this year's animated treasure How To Train Your Dragon (8/10), comes across as unexciting and predictable, which while Sorcerer's constantly tells us is part of the story, most viewers will find hard to enjoy watching this mid-20s adult portray an awkward teen such as David (a name which in itself is so infrequently mentioned I had to look up the name of the main protagonist before writing this having forgotten). Oh well, I hear you cry, at least we've got old Nicky and Alfred to liven things up? Nope, in fact at times Cage borders on sheer stupidity in his role as Balthazar, an apprentice of Merlin (though sadly not the loveable BBC incarnation, due to make his return this September), as does Molina as Harbrew. It's a god-send that The Sorcerer's Apprentice is wrapped up in just over an hour, since its predictable plot, rubbish casting and dull references to British and American folklore, only saved by a soundtrack not unlike the original Fantasia, has even me longing for the days of Mickey Mouse and Fantasia.
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