Titan A.E. Review

by Tim Wick

I wasn't sure how I would feel about this movie. I mean, the first animated picture to come from Don Bluth was The Secret of NIMH, a film I really enjoy. Everything since then has ranged from mediocre to bad. Some, like The Land Before Time, have seen endless sequels that are meant to appeal to kids but really appealing to no-one. I wasn't really that impressed with the preview, but consider that the preview for The Iron Giant was awful and the film itself was a gem. Roger Ebert liked the movie and I tend to agree with him (though certainly not all the time). Some of my friends liked it and some were not thrilled with it. That pretty much meant I had no clear idea of how good or bad the movie would be.

But I will tell you that I was pulling for it. I'm always pulling for animation that is not made by Disney because it stretches boundaries that Disney refuses to stretch. Animation is the most versatile medium for film in my opinion. You can't do a film like Toy Story or Aladdin with live actors. It just wouldn't work. Titan A.E. was a story that would not have been nearly as effective had it been filmed live action.

So there I sat in the theatre pulling for this movie. And pulling for it. And pulling some more. I was fighting to like it, but I walked out of the theatre frustrated that I hadn't been able to get there. The movie got me so close so many times, but then it let me down.

Now let me first say that the animation was wonderful. I was not convinced that they would do a good job of mixing computer and cel animation, but for the most part the mix worked extremely well. At times the clarity of the computer animation was jarring against the cel animation, but that was rare. Several sequences (like the Ice field sequence near the end of the film) simply would not have been possible with hand animation. I can't say that this was the best mix of computer and hand animation - for my part I would say that award still goes to The Iron Giant - but it was far better than I expected.

Having made the monumental mistake of casting big name actors for the voice-over work, Bluth managed to make most of it work. Matt Damon played the lead character, Cale. I was impressed that I lost Damon in the character and really never thought about the fact that it was him after the first few lines. The rest of the cast did an equally impressive job with their work. My only quibble was Drew Barrymore as Akima. Her work was good, but I never forgot it was her. Given her character was supposed to be oriental, the voice just wasn't right. I'm not sure why they couldn't have gotten Lucy Liu or even Michelle Quan to do the voice over for that role.

That's what worked. Now for what didn't.

The central problem with any science fiction film is that it is ultimately a simple task to poke holes in the plot. One starts asking questions and not coming up with adequate answers (The Matrix was a rare exception to this problem as the filmmakers actually provided the answers if you were paying attention). What separates a good Science Fiction film from a merely mediocre or downright bad one is how much you care about those plot holes. Pitch Black was full of plot holes, but it was so fun that I didn't worry about them.

Titan A.E. was plagued by plot holes and the film itself could not overcome. To make matters worse, the film had the tendency to break into alternative rock videos at inopportune times as if the filmmakers realized they only had a 75 minute film on their hands and they needed some padding. Much of the ending was meant (seemingly) to be a homage to Star Wars, but it ended up being little more than a badly thought out rip-off.

I can't say much without spoilers, so let me try to remain as vague as I can. The character motivations were completely unbelievable. Bill Pullman's Korso (the captain sent to find Cale so he can save the universe) does things for reasons I'm not even sure he understands. Cale carries a planet sized chip on his shoulder, but we missed the fifteen years where we could have figured out why. Because his father left him? He doesn't give a rip about the human race because his father left him? It just didn't add up for me.

I found myself asking all sorts of questions that the movie didn't offer answers to. As I've mentioned, that is the risk with a Science Fiction movie. The story, however, did not manage to be engaging enough to get me past the questions. The visuals were stunning, but I can only stare at a work of art for so long before I need to move on.

I am desperately searching for an American studio to mount a serious threat to Disney. It would force Disney to push the envelope and it would enrich a medium that I love. Warner Brothers had a chance with The Iron Giant and they blew it. That film's director has flown to Pixar, so we can count Warner Brothers out. Pixar has produced fantastic films, but requires the Disney distribution arm to get their films seen. Dreamworks has done some good stuff, but is unwilling to stray too far from the Disney mold (Prince of Egypt and The Road To El Dorado both had fantastic animation but were plagued by awful pop music). Titan A.E. was put out by Fox and it's major stumbling block is a weak story.

For now, I guess I will have to keep searching. After 1999 was such a good year for animated film (Toy Story 2, The Iron Giant, Fantasia 2000), this year has just not quite stacked up.

But let me remind you that especially when reading reviews of arm chair critics like myself, you should decide whom you most often agree with, read as much of their review as you feel comfortable and then chuck it and go see the movie if you want to.

Titan A.E.

Two and a half beakers
(out of five)

I am desperately searching for an American studio to mount a serious threat to Disney.