

Titan A.E. (2000)
Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5.0 stars

Cast: Matt Damon, Drew Barrymore, Bill Pullman, Nathan Lane, Tone-Loc,
Jim Breuer, Jim Cummings, Janeane Garofalo, David L. Lander, John
Leguizamo, Ron Perlman, Charles Rocket, Alex D. Linz 
Written by: Ben Edlund, John August, and Joss Whedon 
Directed by: Don Bluth, Gary Goldman, and Art Vitello 
Running Time: 97 minutes 

In the year 3028, an evil race of aliens made up entirely of energy
known as the Drej fear that humanity has become too technologically
advanced, upon learning that the humans have recently finished
construction on a device known only as the Titan Project.  Young Cale
(Alex D. Linz), a boy whose father designed the Titan, is whisked away
by a few of his father's friends as the Drej begin a harrowing attack on
the planet.  All of humanity boards various spacecraft in the hopes of
getting away from the chaos before the Drej wipe them out.  Before he
departs alone on the Titan, Cale's father gives him a ring and tells him
that the future of humanity will depend on him.  They go their separate
ways and Cale is able to see his father escape just as the Drej
completely obliterate Earth.  

Fifteen years later, Cale (Matt Damon) is working in the salvage
business, cutting up large derelict spacecraft that clutter space. 
During a break he runs into Korso (Bill Pullman), an old friend of his
father's who has been sent to find Cale, because the ring his father
gave him contains a map that reacts with a device in his hand that will
track down the whereabouts' of Cale's father and the Titan.  Cale is
reluctant to go until the Drej show up and try to kill him, forcing him
to join Korso's ragtag team consisting of Preed (Nathan Lane), Gune
(John Leguizamo), Stith (Janeane Garofalo), and much to Cale's pleasure,
the lovely Akima (Drew Barrymore).  With Korso and his team's help (and
the assistance of some bizarre alien races they meet along the way),
Cale must beat the Drej to the final resting place of the Titan so the
human race may once again thrive.  

Titan A.E. springs from an amazing pedigree.  All of the writers and
directors on the film have come from an excellent background of
animated, sci-fi, and action genre projects, so why doesn't it seem like
the film worked as well as it should?  It's hard to blame the writers
considering where they come from: Ben Edlund is the creator of the
wonderful Tick comic and animated series; John August is the
screenwriter of the incredibly fun mini-Pulp Fiction homage Go! and the
big screen update of Charlie's Angels; and Joss Whedon is the
uber-writer behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer (both the film and the TV
series), Toy Story, Alien:Resurrection, and the X-Men movie (plus he
also did uncredited work on Speed, Waterworld, and Twister).  The same
applies for the directors: Don Bluth and Gary Goldman have worked
together on many decent animated films such as The Secret of NIMH, An
American Tail, All Dogs go to Heaven, and Anastasia (and a few not so
good like Thumbelina, The Pebble and the Penguin, and the absurd
Rock-a-Doodle) and Bluth alone created two of the most important video
games in my life as a child, Dragon's Lair and Space Ace; while Art
Vitello has been the story editor on "The Tick", key animator for ILM on
Poltergeist, director of the animated series' "The Tick", "Tiny Toon
Adventures", "The Real Ghostbusters", and "Disney's Gummi Bears", plus
he also produced the "G.I. Joe" animated series that I used to rush home
to watch everyday after school.  

NOTE: Could part of my problem with the film be attributed to the two
men who get the "Story By" credit?  Randall (Speed 2: Cruise Control)
McCormick and Hans (Anaconda) Bauer are the men behind the original
story and I'm glad that it was handed off to the other writers,
especially after seeing the mess that Speed 2 was.  Both men have only
written three films apiece and Titan A.E. is one (while the other
unmentioned films by both men are virtually unheard of).  

The visuals in the film are amazing and it even plays like it could be
the tamer younger brother to the Heavy Metal series, but ultimately it
feels a little empty.  I never really felt like I was given much of a
chance to sympathize with the characters (although the characters in
Titan A.E. are far more three-dimensional, both emotionally and
physically, than the ones in Lucas' droll "epic" The Phantom Menace). 
The film basically moves from set piece to set piece without much
thought to fleshing out the characters' relationships better.  As a
result, too many things seem rushed into and forced (particularly Cale
and Akima's relationship, which only gets a chance to truly strengthen
towards the end of the film).  Like Disney's recent Dinosaur, Titan A.E.
seems more concerned with showing flashy animation than presenting a
decent story (although Titan A.E. is the better of the two films by a
large margin). 

A big complaint I have about the film is Cale's father giving him the
ring.  By all accounts, there is no need for him to pass the ring along
considering that he now has nothing to do while hiding out in the Titan
except to wait for fifteen years for someone to track down Cale (who
could have been dead for all he knew) and bring him and the ring.  I
could understand if two rings had been made, one with the map and one to
activate the ship's ultimate function, but that is sadly not the case. 
Instead, the father gives away the key to unlock the secrets of the ship
to his son as an excuse for some Star Wars-like "immature young boy must
grow up and save a universe" type story.  If any element of the story
seemed forced it was certainly this one. 

I was impressed by the dark subject matter that was presented in this
film.  Considering its PG rating and animated style, it naturally leans
more towards being a children's film than an adult action film, but
there are some very strong elements in it.  Characters bleed profusely
when shot, necks are broken, and, in the ultimate example, the planet we
call home is completely destroyed within ten minutes of the Fox studio
logo's appearance on screen.  If a better story had been thrown into the
mix, I would have proclaimed this one of the best films of the year. 

Thankfully, the film does keep the annoying sidekicks down to a minimum
(are you listening, Mr. Lucas?) and there are no annoying breaks where
the cast progresses the story in song.  Luckily Bluth and gang, in
another parallel to Heavy Metal, decided to go with modern rock as their
soundtrack.  Unfortunately, the Creed song "Higher" featured in the
trailer is nowhere to be found in this film, but there are some other
fine songs by Lit, Powerman 5000, and others.  A soundtrack is available
for the film and some CD stores are even giving away a free Titan A.E.
comic with the purchase of it. 

Overall, Titan A.E. should have had a little more work put into it. 
Although individual sequences stand out (particularly the scene
featuring the chase through the ring of ice chunks), the bulk of the
movie collapses under its own weight.  At just a little over 90 minutes
though, the film is never dull nor does it wear out its welcome.  I was
just hoping for something with a little more substance.  

If you're just looking for something to kill time, Titan A.E. is a
decent bet whether you're young or old.  If you're looking for a thought
provoking study on how the human race will evolve and move on from where
we currently are, then you may want to look elsewhere.  This film is
pure summer fluff with some decent talent behind it... and who can argue
with that?  [PG]

Reviewed by Brian Matherly - [email-masked]
AOL Instant Messenger: Widescreen25
The Jacksonville Film Journal - http://www.jaxfilmjournal.com/