When I first saw the previews for Treasure Planet, I thought it looked like it would be good and I wanted to see it. I wasn’t able to see the movie when it was in the theaters, but I recently got the DVD version of the movie and I really enjoyed it.

Jim Hawkins was a teenager who had a history of getting in trouble. His mother, Sarah, was raising him by herself. Jim’s dad left when Jim was young. Jim ended up getting a treasure map from Billy Bones after he got into trouble yet again. The map showed the way to Treasure Planet, a planet that was supposed to be filled with treasure. Jim had heard stories of the planet since he was a little boy. Billy had been running from someone when he gave Jim the map. Doctor Doppler was friends with Jim and his mother. Doppler was excited about the map too. Doppler helped Jim convince Sarah to let him go on a trip to try to find Treasure Planet. Doppler was willing to pay for the trip and he was going to go along.

Doppler found a ship and a crew. Captain Amelia and her assistant Mr. Arrow were less than thrilled with the crew, especially considering that they were looking for a treasure. She didn’t trust the crew. The map was locked in a safe in her office. She made Jim work in the kitchen with John Silver, a cyborg. He’d lost an arm, leg, and eye that were replaced with robotic parts. Silver had a strange little pet named Morph that could change shapes. Jim and Silver were both unhappy about being stuck together.

Jim was upset about having to work in the kitchen. He seemed a bit wary of Silver at first, but they grew closer. Silver stepped in when one of the crew was harassing Jim. The two started to spend more time together and Jim started to think of Silver as a father figure. Silver was teaching Jim many things. Jim and Morph were getting along.

The ship ended up near a star that exploded. Everyone had to work together to get the ship to safety. Doppler was able to help Amelia deal with the situation. One of the crew made sure Mr. Arrow went overboard and then made it look like Jim’s fault.

Not long after that Jim heard Silver and the crew talking. They were planing to take over the ship and get the treasure. Silver claimed that he had just been nice to Jim to gain his trust. Jim was very upset by what he over heard. He didn’t want Silver to get the treasure. Once they reached the planet, Silver decided it was time for them to take control of the ship. Jim, Doppler, and Amelia had to save themselves and try to get to the treasure before Silver. Once on the planet, they received some help from B.E.N., a robot who had been alone on the planet for years.

VOICE TALENT

Roscoe Lee Browne - Mr. Arrow
Corey Burton - Onus
Dane A Davis - Morph
Joseph Gordon Levitt - Jim Hawkins
Austin Majors - Young Jim
Patrick McGoohan - Billy Bones
Laurie Metcalf - Sarah
Brian Murray - John Silver
David Hyde Pierce - Doctor Doppler
Martin Short - B.E.N.
Emma Thomspson - Captain Amelia
Michael Wincott - Scroop

Ron Clements and John Musker - Directors

Treasure Planet was released in movie theaters in November of 2002. The movie was released on DVD and VHS in May of 2003. Treasure Planet was 95 minutes long and rated PG for some action and violence. Young children might be scared by some things that happened in the movie. I think it would be ok for older children to see. Parents should watch the movie first if they are unsure about letting their children watch the movie. Treasure Planet was based on the book Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson.

I really enjoyed Treasure Planet. I thought it was entertaining and interesting. I wasn’t bored by any part of it. The movie was based on a book, so the plot wasn’t completly original, but that was ok with me. I don’t have a problem with movies or books that aren’t completly original as long as they are entertaining. I have heard that some people complained about this movie because the story wasn’t unique, but I didn’t think that was a bad thing. The basic story was the same and has been told in other movies before, but it was told in a new way. There was a twist to how the story was told by setting it in space and having the map leading to another planet instead of an island. I think that the movie could expose new people to the story of Treasure Planet. I have not read the book and the only other movie version of it that I have seen is Muppet Treasure Island, which I also really enjoyed. I thought it was really interesting how the story was set in a different time and place.

There was a unique blend of old world type things and futuristic things in Treasure Planet. The people dressed in an old fashioned style. Most of the women wore only dresses. There was some advanced technology used by the characters and space travel was common. I didn’t see any televisions in any scene, but there were books with moving pictures that depicted the stories. The map itself was some sort of gadget that used holograms. The ships looked like the huge sailing ships used by pirates long ago, but they flew through space. The people on the ship didn’t need any sort of space suit and the ship was equipped with something that created artificial gravity. Silver had several robotic parts, including an arm that had all kinds of attachments enclosed within the arm. He could switch them to use different things, like a hand or a knife.

There was some action in Treasure Planet. Jim and Doppler went on an adventure to find a planet full of treasure. Jim was already an adventurous teenager before he left on the trip. The crew had to deal with being too near a star that was exploding and work to get away safely. Once they arrived at the planet, Jim, Doppler, and Amelia were trying to get to the treasure before Silver and his men, who were determined to get the treasure. More happened on the planet to add to the action of the movie. If I explained exactly what happened, then I would be telling too much about the plot. There was some shooting, but I don’t remember anyone getting shot. I didn’t think the movie was violent. There were a few scenes that might upset some younger children, but the movie really wasn’t scary.

Treasure Planet was an animated movie from Disney. The animation in the movie was beautiful throughout. There was a mix of hand drawn animation and CGI used in the movie. Silver’s robotic arm was done with CGI, but the rest of his body was hand drawn. I didn’t realize that until after the movie was over and I watched some of the extras talking about how the movie was made. The hand drawn animation and the CGI blended in together very well. The animators created a new world for the movie that blended old world style and futuristic technology together. I thought that the animation was a bit better than what was used in Lilo & Stitch. It was a different sort of animation than what was used in Monsters, Inc., and I think both of those movies had very good animation.

There was music throughout Treasure Planet, but there was only one song that had words. That song was I’m Still Here by John Rzeznik of the Goo Goo Dolls. The song did tie in with the movie and what was going on when the song played. The other music that played at different times was the instrumental score. I really liked the music that was used in the movie. It fit perfectly with the movie and what was going on.

Treasure Planet was nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Movie. It didn’t win the Oscar. Spirited Away won. I have seen that movie as well and I really like both of them. When Treasure Planet was first released, I read some things where some people thought it was an awful movie. I don’t think it was. I really liked it. The movie didn’t do too well when it was in the theaters, but there were a lot of other good movies out at that time and it just got lost in the pack.

Some of the characters in Treasure Planet were humans, like Jim and his mom. Others were some sort of alien, like most of the crew. Doppler had a few elements that looked like he was some sort of dog, and one of the animators said that is what they were aiming for with his character in one of the extras on the DVD. Captain Amelia was made to look cat like, and she also was very agile like a cat. I think Silver was just a human who had some robotic parts, but I could be wrong. B.E.N. was a strange little robot. The rest of the characters were different types of aliens. I thought that the voices matched the characters very well. The character that Michael Wincott provided the voice for was not a nice character at all. His voice fit perfectly with how the character was drawn and made the character seem that much more menacing. David Hyde Pierce was absolutely perfect to provide the voice for Doppler. Doppler was a bit of a bumbling nerd, and the voice matched perfectly with how Doppler was acting. Pierce has provided voices for characters in other animated movies. He plays Niles Crane on the popular television show Fraiser. Doppler did remind me a lot of Niles. Pierce is very good at playing that sort of character.

CHARACTERS

Jim - He was a teenager being raised by his mother. His father left when he was a little boy. Jim tended to get into a lot of trouble. He was given a treasure map that showed the way to Treasure Planet. He managed to convince his mother to let him go on a trip to the planet. Jim was headstrong and didn’t always think things through before he acted. He missed not having his father around when he was growing up.

Sarah - Jim’s mother. She worked to support herself and her son. Her husband had left many years before. She loved Jim, but she got aggravated at him when he kept getting into trouble.

Dr. Doppler - He was a friend of Sarah and Jim. He helped to convince Sarah to let Jim go on the trip. Doppler was funding the trip and went along as well. He had no idea what to expect from a voyage across space. He was a bit of a nerd, but he was able to help out a few times.

Captain Amelia - She was the captain of the ship that Doppler hired. She was not happy with the crew she had to work with. She was strict and wouldn’t put up with any nonsense.

Mr. Arrow - He was Amelia’s assistant. He was serious. He didn’t trust the crew either.

John Silver - He was the cook on the ship. He had a robotic arm and eye. He seemed to befriend Jim at first, but he was really wanting to get the treasure map. Jim seemed to be conflicted about some things he was doing.

Morph - Strange little creature that stayed with John Silver. Morph was a pink color and he floated around. He could transform into other objects.

B.E.N. - A robot that Jim discovered on the planet. B.E.N. had been there all alone for a long time. He seemed to have a memory problem.

DVD

I have the DVD version of Treasure Planet. My copy is the widescreen version. I think there is also a full screen version available. The picture was beautiful and the audio sounded great. The DVD contains Dolby Digitial 5.1 Surround Sound. There are French and English language tracks. The DVD also included some extras.

Behind the Scenes had twenty behind the scenes featurettes that show how different things in the movie were done. I watched those and found them to be very interesting.

There is an audio and visual commentary. I have not checked out those things yet.
There is an alternate ending, an alternate prologue, and one deleted scene.
The music video for the song I’m Still Here by John Rezenik is included. The song was in the movie.

Disney’s Animation Magic shows things related to how animated movies are made.

DisneyPedia: The Life of a Pirate Revealed shared some interesting facts about real life pirates and theories about buried treasures. I thought this was interesting information.

There is also a game, RLS Legacy: An Exploration Adventure Game on the DVD. I did not play the game. I usually don’t do too good with those things.

There were several previews the played automatically at the beginning of the DVD, including one for the new Pixar movie Finding Nemo.

I really liked Treasure Plant. It was entertaining and enjoyable to watch. It really is a shame the movie didn’t do better in the theaters when it was released.

Animated Movie Reviews
The Emperor's New Groove ~ Sleeping Beauty ~ Monsters, Inc. ~ Lilo & Stitch ~ Finding Nemo ~ Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius ~ Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas ~ Brother Bear ~ Looney Tunes: Back in Action ~ The Cat in the Hat ~


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up Ages 8