Disney was at an all-time high in the late eighties and early nineties, releasing major hit movies like The Little Mermaid in 1989 and The Lion King in 1994. During the early 2000s however, Disney's success was waning, and at a terrible rate. Releases around this time were panned or heavily criticized and usually had low Box Office returns. It was around this time that the company released movies like Brother Bear, Chicken Little and Atlantis: The Lost Empire. This would continue until Disney released The Princess and the Frog in 2009. Though a few of these movies have become nostalgic and underrated classics to many today, but is that warranted? Well, to answer that, let's take a critical look at my favourite movie from this time, Treasure Planet.
After a stint with the police, Jim Hawkins brings a dying pirate to his mother's inn, where he is given a map to the rumoured Treasure Planet. Getting on a ship, with a crew hired by his mother's friend Doctor Doppler, he is put in the service of the ship's cook, Long John Silver. Who starts putting Jim to work, but also growing a bond with him. However, Long John is also looking for the fabled Treasure Planet and will let nothing get in his way. Plot wise, the movie is solid. The bond that Jim and John Silver grow seems natural, as do many of the relationships in this movie.
I'd be foolish not to mention the major shift between this movie and the original book "Treasure Island" by Robert Louis Stevenson. Now, I have read some of the original book, but it is very different from this movie, and I honestly don't recommend the book too much. If you want a piece of classic literature you can read to your kids, I'd recommend Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. As for the genre and setting change, I honestly don't mind it too much. I find the idea of a sci-fi take on Treasure Island to be interesting, and while I do think they tried too hard to mix the original time-period designs with futuristic technology, often to the point of not really making any sense, I do think the change in genre suits this story well. I also appreciate the nod they gave to the original author by naming the ship "RLS Legacy" instead of the "Hispaniola".
When it comes to the characters of this movie, most of the main cast is strong. I like how the opening segment introduces Jim's character, he's a thrill seeker with a disregard for the rules. It is all brilliantly given to us in the opening scene with very little dialogue. Long John Silver is probably one of my favourite Disney characters of all time. A large portion of the movie, if not the entire movie, is based around the relationship between Jim and Silver, so both character would have to be strong for their bond to have any effect. Thankfully, both the bond and falling out between the two comes off as natural and their reconciliation makes for one amazing ending.
As for other characters, Doctor Doppler is amusing at times, though he also has his more serious moments which make him more than a comic relief character. Sadly this movie has two others, a cartoonish blob named Morph and Sentient Bio-Electric Navigation droid by then name of B.E.N. who has lost a piece of his mind. B.E.N. is loud, a bit clueless and fast-talking. Many have called him annoying, and I can personally see why, he is not the best character in the movie. As for Morph, honestly, Morph is one of the greatest things this movie has. Morph is adorable, but that isn't all he has going for him. The movie does show moments of Morph being of some help, and that just makes him all the better. I'm also very fond of the energetic and in-charge of everything Captain Amelia and the sinister and cunning Scroop. I think that when it comes to characters, this is one of the better casts Disney had in its modern era.
Animation wise, I don't think I'm alone in saying that this is one of Disney's best looking animated movies of all time. The characters are well designed and the space scenery makes for really good backdrops. Locations like the Space-port have interesting designs and the mix of CG animation is often really good, especially when it's cel shaded. That being said, there is a bit of Dated CG in this movie, and it does look really bad, kind of like a low-tier video game, but the rest of it, especially when it's on the characters looks really good. Also worth noting is that, around this time, Disney was putting more attention into subtle details in the animation. You can notice this in things like minor facial expressions, body movements and even things like Amelia's eyes getting bigger and smaller depending on what she sees. I don't think anyone would disagree that this is one of Disney's best looking animated movies.
As a whole, I think Treasure Planet is a really strong movie. Taking a critical look at it shows strong and likeable characters, amazing animation and some interesting world-building that really should have been expanded on. While the movie has a few problems, I think they are minor enough to be overlooked. To answer the question I proposed at the start, I do believe that some of the love for this movie is warranted. There is a lot to grab onto her rather than just nostalgic connection. While the 2000s might not be remembered as one of Disney's high points, but I personally think that this was one of there best movies released in this time-period. It's certainly one of my all-time favourite animated movies as well. It's worth the watch, and it's definitely worth a second try, just maybe not as a live-action remake, though a TV series might be cool. As a movie though, I think it is one of Disney's better modern classics.
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