Allegro Non Troppo



Allegro Non Troppo (but there are tropes) is an Italian animated film functioning as a parody of Disney's Fantasia. Like Fantasia, Allegro Non Troppo melds classical music with animation, the sequences ranging from utterly bizarre to depressing beyond belief. Between the pieces are short, sepia-tone, live-action shots of the orchestra and the animator. Pieces played in the film are:
 * Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune by Claude Debussy--A parody of Beethoven's Pastorale from Fantasia, where an elderly faun tries to get a nymph for himself, but fails every time.
 * Slavonic Dance No. 7 Op. 46 by Antonín Dvořák -A caveman sets out to build better dwellings than the other cavemen, who repeatedly mimic every act he does.
 * Boléro by Maurice Ravel--Possibly the film's most famous sequence, where a soda bottle left on a wasteland creates an evolution of bizarre creatures in a parody of The Rite of Spring from Fantasia.
 * Valse Triste by Jean Sibelius--The film's saddest piece, in which a small cat is left in a destroyed house, remembering the good times spent there only to have reality come crashing upon it.
 * Concerto in C major for 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, Strings and Continuo RV 559 I. Larghetto - (Allegro) by Antonio Vivaldi--A bee tries to enjoy a meal on a flower only to have a rowdy couple thwart her attempts.
 * The Firebird by Igor Stravinsky--God makes Adam and Eve and the serpent tries to get them to eat the apple of knowledge. When they refuse, the serpent eats it himself and is thrown into a hellish environment of Western materialism and commercialism.

This film provides examples of:

 * Affectionate Parody: Despite needling Disney, this movie does a great job of capturing Fantasia's flavor.
 * Alternate Continuity: Ever wonder what would happen if Adam and Eve didn't eat that apple?
 * Barbie Doll Anatomy: Averted. Since it's a European film, it's not afraid to show some nudity.
 * Black Eyes of Evil: The monkey in Bolero.
 * Big Damn Hero Moment: Though it's more True Neutral as it is done during the march of evolution, a sauropod creature saves an aquatic life form from being eaten by a squid life form.
 * Breather Episode: You'll be glad for the lighthearted piece with the bee after "Valse Triste".
 * Deliberately Monochrome
 * Deranged Animation: The Firebird sequence is this, without a doubt.
 * Downer Ending: Especially Bolero
 * Everythings Better With Monkeys:
 * Family Unfriendly Death
 * Fauns and Satyrs
 * From Nobody to Nightmare: The evil monkey starts off as a confused inhabitant of the forest, who later leaves with the rest of the animals. Bitter about it, the monkey starts off as a Jerkass whose purpose is to frighten the other animals during the march. However as it discovers the use of tools, it becomes more vile as it begins murdering other animals in order to take their place in the line of evolution and begins to burn animals to death with sickening delight after discovering fire and by the finale (through leaping ahead of the line by a long shot) the monkey has become a Complete Monster
 * Glowing Eyes of Doom: The  at the end of Boléro.
 * Hilarity Ensues
 * Intoxication Ensues
 * Its Been Done: The director gushes about the originality of his concept. Then he gets a phone call...
 * Panspermia: Spoofed on "Boléro". Apparently, the primordial soup was actually Coke.
 * Public Domain Soundtrack
 * Roger Rabbit Effect: The cartoon characters occassionally wander into the live-action.
 * Scare Chord
 * Take That
 * The conductor couldn't care less that they're ripping off some guy called "Grisney".
 * In-universe example: After seeing the conductor torment the animator for three full segments, is it any wonder that the man  at the end of Boléro so strongly resembles him?
 * What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic
 * What Do You Mean It Wasn't Made On Drugs