Review of Titan A.E. (2000) by Arnold K — 17 Apr 2012

"Titan A.E. (After Earth)" is a pretty basic movie in terms of story. It is an action adventure sci-fi pic about the human condition and finding where you belong. The characters set out on an adventure to find a space ship that would ultimately transform into a planet for the human race, who are become extinct. However the film never reaches the level of emotional involvement that is required for a film about the end of the human race. As the audience I can't sense the desperation for their cause. Another thing is that the movie is pretty cliched, I have nothing against cliches, but man can you see almost everything coming. You know who the bad guy is, the twists barely catch you off guard, and there isn't enough in the story to care about it.

Another low part of the movie is its characters. It's your typical character archetypes, the jaded hero, the love interest, the funny side character that have little to do with the plot, and a threat. While the side characters aren't all that great, the hero is fairly interesting, love interest, and threat are decent to good enough. Cale is a decent enough hero, but their isn't anything that takes him to the next level as the hero. He is likable, but fairly bland. The love interest Akima is pretty cool. She's smart and can be a fend for herself. The threat, the drej, are interesting, but are probably the best characters. They pose such a threat that at time I feel like the characters are screwed.

Where the movie lacks in story and character, it makes up for it with its animation. This movie is Don Bluth's magnum-opus in terms of animation. The visuals are stunning and the character animations are fluid and beautiful. I was constantly amazed by the visuals even though they are over a decade old. The way cgi and hand-drawn animation blended together was something "aw" at. I really like the steam punk look of the film. The visuals are magnificent and it was the one thing keeping my attention.

The music is used well to enhance the overall movie. It adds the right amount of emotion to keep you invested, which is lacking in the characters and story. Songs are quite good for the movie, but forgettable.

Overall, "Titan A.E." is a decent movie that you can have a good enough time with. While the story and characters are weak, the animation and music make up for it. I give it a 3/5, gorgeous animation and good soundtrack that are dragged down by sub-par story and characters.

"Alrightness".