"You got the makings of greatness in you, but you got to take the helm and chart your own course." -- John Silver
Initial thoughts before viewing: Yawn. That's all I really remember about this movie.
If you have never seen Treasure Planet or need a refresher, here is a link to the movie's Disney Wiki page where you can read the plot summary.
Highlights:
-It looks nice. Treasure Planet has that "classic storybook illustration" thing going on. It has a painterly feel to it, and is composed of a lovely warm color palette. While designing for Treasure Planet, the crew operated on rule they call the "70/30 Law", which meant that the overall look of the film's artwork should be 70% traditional and 30% sci-fi.
-"I'm Not Here" Sequence. Treasure Planet is not a musical, but it does feature one musical sequence sung by John Rzeznik from the The Goo Goo Dolls. The song is GREAT and the sequence drives across some necessary story points about protagonist Jim's abandonment and subsequent daddy issues. I'm a Goo Goo Dolls fan, so I fell for this bit immediately.
-Talented voice cast. Emma Thompson. Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Laurie Metcalf. These are some of my favorite actors! Huzzah for fantastic casting. Except that...
Disliked:
-The characters are just so-so. All the human character are kind of meh and not very memorable. Even with some of my favorite people voicing them, these ordinary characters can only go so far. Some of the robot character are downright insufferable (see B.E.N. voiced by Martin Short, sometimes called the Jar Jar Binks of animation).
-John Silver is a screwed up role model for Jim. I get that Jim is starved for a father-figure, but John Silver has questionable morals and a long history as a murderous pirate. His crew is responsible for at least one on-screen death (RIP Mr. Arrow). I'm all for morally dubious pirates with hearts of gold (see Captain Jack Sparrow), but Silver's character development leaves a lot to be desired.
Closing Thoughts:
I'll be blunt: Treasure Planet is boring. I didn't hate the movie -- I was more indifferent (which, some would argue, is much worse). If you want to see Disney do animated sci-fi, I'd recommend 2001's Atlantis: The Lost Empire, a movie with its own set of issues but at least has a much more engaging story and set of diverse characters to enjoy.
The bottom line: Treasure Planet tries really hard with beautiful artwork, but its weak characterizations and lack of an interesting plot makes this a truly disposable addition to the Disney canon.
My Rating: 3.75/10
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