summer animated blockbuster Atlantis: The Lost Empire is an action-adventure
film more akin to the world of video games than the fairy tales that have
been staple fare for the House of Mouse over the last 50 years. In their
place is a relatively straightforward adventure story that owes as much to
anime as it does to Jules Verne and the Indiana Jones movies.
The story is simple enough (and simplistic), Nerdy Milo Thatch (voice of
Michael J Fox) is chosen to participate in an early 20th centry expedition in
search of the lost city of Atlantis. Milo is part of a party that includes a
burly doctor, Sweet (Phil Morris); a wisecracking cook, Cookie (voice by the
late Jim Varney); an explosives expert, Vinny (Don Novello); a teenage
mechanic, Audrey (Jacqueline Obradors); and The Mole (Corey Burton), an
expert in dirt. The group is led by the no-nosense Commander Rourke (James
Garner) and his second-in-charge, Helga (Claudia Christian). After taking a
submarine under Iceland, battling a giant sea monster, and falling into the
bowels of a dormant volcano, the group encounters Atlantis, led by the pretty
Princess Kida (Cree Summer) and her wary father, King Nedakh (Leonard Nemoy).
Atlantis contains less dialogue than most Disney features, replacing the
songs and talking with action scenes. The look of characters is more angular
and imcomplete than usual Disney fair. The animation is a cross between
Anime, 1950s Superman serials and Archie Comics. In terms of script and wit,
Atlantis is a notch below the Disney standard. Milo is a likeable enough
character, but in many ways the presence of so many supporting characters
dilues his importances. His character is stunted. As a love interest,
Princess Kida has potential (and provides some animated sex appeal when she
strips down to a bikini), but she isn't on screen much of the time.
Too many gun battles, subtitles and a story that has more holes than a coral
reef could leave one wondering what happened to all of the love, goofy
characters and singing. The forced cultural diversity of the cast of
personalities offers a few good one-liners along the way, but this movie's
often too big for its britches. And not so see-worthy after all.
Rating: 2 stars (out of 4)