ollowing along with the blueprints of “Fantasia” and “Make Mine Music,” this latest collection of short, unrelated stories stitched together into a feature-length production (a gimmick used during World War II when animators and resources were spread thin) doesn’t do much to spice up that formula. It reuses concepts, such as a paintbrush drawing out characters that then speak and act in the vignettes, along with wordless little romances that unfold as a Disney regular croons in the background – such as with the first sequence, featuring Frances Langford, involving ice skaters in wintertime. And, just as in “Make Mine Music,” a traditional narrative isn’t as important as crafting a mood, a rhythm, and rhymes – along with cuteness and slapstick.

Unlike “Fantasia,” which boasted stirring classical arrangements, this latest assortment uses pop music and folk tunes, which may be more accessible for audiences of the era, but doesn’t have the lasting impact over the decades for that exact same reason. The animators, however, likely had just as much amusement in its making, as their imagery moves and reacts to the sounds of various instruments with artistic precision and creativity. One of the prime examples of matching movement with music is in “Bumble Boogie,” a jazzy take on “Flight of the Bumblebee,” performed by Freddy Martin and his orchestra, which uses zipping pianos and percussion as a diminutive insect battles against abstract instrument/creature hybrids that wage war on his existence. It’s visually exciting though notably brief.

Longer, more routine narratives crop up when Dennis Day narrates and sings the legend of pioneer Johnny Appleseed (portraying all of the characters, from an old-timer to the titular role himself). But while it may be fitting for youthful viewers, it isn’t nearly as remarkable as the artsier sequences; in fact, it’s rather curious that this particular persona was chosen, as his contributions to the American frontier aren’t as obviously cinematic as the other folk tales mentioned at the start of the piece – including Davy Crockett and Paul Bunyan. Following that is “Little Toot,” with the Andrews Sisters singing the story of a tiny, troublemaking tugboat, which poses a far more memorable moral concept, even if it’s much smaller in scope. Plus, the Andrews Sisters’ harmonizing is quite pleasant – and it would be their last collaboration with Disney.

Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians recite a Joyce Kilmer poem for the segment “Trees” (adding yet another different type of lyrical presentation for this anthology), which is certainly the most comparable section to something that might have appeared in “Fantasia,” while “Blame It on the Samba” brings back Donald Duck and Jose Carioca, as well as a live-action bit – something that was, excluding a ballet silhouette, absent from the previous package film. And the final short is “Pecos Bill,” featuring Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers doing some impressive yodeling, though it’s strangely slow to get to the animated versions of the buckaroo and his faithful steed. Coincidentally, just like with “Make Mine Music,” which notably removed an entire chunk due to gunplay, this Western bit was eventually sanitized too, to cut out smoking – though, curiously, Sweet Sue’s cleavage and Bill’s pistols self-firing in bliss didn’t seem to bother modern censors. In the end, though the production is a worthwhile venture for the art form, it largely lacks any truly poignant portions; it’s as if the best ideas were already exhausted for the previous endeavors, leaving “Melody Time” with the leftover, less iconic premises – allowing it to be more forgettable than its predecessors.

– Mike Massie