Anthomation Assesses Titan A.E.

Howdy guys, Anthomaton here. Today, I shall review the last film made by Don Bluth: Titan A.E.

Titan A.E. is a 2000 animated film directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman, in their last feature film. They were the creators of such classics as The Secret of NIMH (1982), An American Tail (1986), and The Land Before Time (1988). The film was produced by Fox Animation Studios, the second and last film they would produce coming after Anastasia (1997), also from Bluth and Goldman. Titan A.E. was theatrically released on June 16, 2000 by 20th Century Fox in the United States. The film received mixed reviews from critics and lost money as much as $100 million at the box office. It was such a box office bomb that it led to the closure of Fox Animation Studios. Rough! 

A science-fiction film that combines traditional animation with computer generated images, “Titan A.E.” takes place in the distant future, after Earth has been obliterated by a mysterious alien race known as the Drej. Cale is a human teenager who has been given a mysterious map by his father, leading him on an unforgettable journey.

The story is not very well conceived and uses ideas from better animated films that are similar to it. Tell me if this sounds familiar. A rogue teen with daddy issues goes on a high-flying quest with bumps and turns along the way. Gee, I wonder what film that sounds like (totally not Treasure Planet (2002)). But critic, Titan A.E was released BEFORE Treasure Planet, how could it be ripping it off? Well, Titan is still the lesser of the two and therefore is the little brother to Treasure. The father-son relationship between Cale and Corso is a lot like the relationship between Jim and Silver, but less developed because there is a minimum amount of screentime with them together not bickering at each other. The betrayal of Corso is laughably weaker than Silver’s because it came right out of left field with no prior scenes showing his backstabbing scheme. Silver’s betrayal was hinted at multiple times before it actually happened and the developed relationship between him and Jim made the decision a lot less black and white. You just don’t get the same amount of emotional depth with this sci-fi flick. 

The animation of the film combines 2D traditional hand-drawn animation with the extensive use of computer-generated imagery. With that said, the 2D animation is really good but the 3D animation is lackluster. From watching the film, it’s easy to tell that the effects were put in at the last minute just to appeal to the millennial rebels who were craving the newly discovered CGI. The backgrounds of the New Earth are rendered terribly, looking more like an early-2000s screensaver than an immersive new world. After watching Treasure Planet soar with much better 3D effects, this cannot say that it did not have the capability. The Drej do not look like they are in the same environment as the hand-drawn characters and the effects are really dated for the current times. On the flip side, the 2D animated characters are drawn well, with fluid movements and nice characters expressions. This creates for a visually jarring experience, as it looks the effects and backgrounds of Minecraft are being shoved into a Don Bluth film. There’s no continuity. Also, the color schemes were surprisingly unimaginative. Everything on the Drej scenes is smothered in bright blue. Everything on the spaceships is covered in bleh shades of brown. Everything on a human space station called New Bangkok is bright red. There’s a lack of variety in the movie’s color palette, making the audience feel like they have to squint to make out everything on the screen.

The characters come off as being standard without a ton of emotional depth. There is Cale Tucker (voiced by Matt Damon), a yard-salvager who carries the map to Titan in his ring. He looks like the blonde-haired twin of Dimitri from Anastasia. There’s Akima Kunimoto (voiced by Drew Barrymore), pilot of the Valkyrie and Cale’s love interest. There’s Capt. Joseph Korso (voiced by Bill Pullman), former soldier and captain of the Valkyrie who ends up being a traitor. And then there is Preedex “Preed” Yoa (voiced by Nathan Lane), a fruit bat-like Akrennian and Korso’s first mate. These characters can be spoken about just on their one trop and don’t allow for proper arches as the story progresses. The acting performances are fine, but do not do nearly enough to add an extra intrigue or likeability to the characters they are voicing.

With a flat story, contrasting animation, and meh characters, it makes for a dated and colorless experience. It’s a shame that this is the film that Don Bluth had to end his career and with a long production history it’s easy to see why it bombed. It’s still competent enough for true sci-fi fans to give a watch, but it’s a pass for most others.

Score:

5/10