Atlantis: The Lost
Empire
Directed By: Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise
Review By: Katie Rose
For
those of us who are super Disney nerds, there are terms for different eras of
Disney animated movie making. There was the Golden Age, which was 1940-1958,
and includes classics like Snow White and
Sleeping Beauty. Then there was the
Disney Renaissance, which ran from 1989-1999. Those are all the films I grew up
with such as The Lion King, The Little
Mermaid, and Aladdin. Then
something happened. Disney branched out from their normal story telling style,
and even animation styles, and created a wide range of films that were
financially not very successful. There are many different names for this period
of movie making (including the unflattering “Dark Ages”), but I prefer to call
it The Experimental Era. Despite that lack
of money that came from these movies, many of them were very good! The one I
want to tell you about is my favorite from this time period, Atlantis: The Lost Empire.
Atlantis is the first story I am
bringing you which has a male lead. However there are more “minor” female
characters in this film than there are main female characters in any other
Disney, film and they are extremely diverse both in personality and ethnic
background. Heck, this is one of the most ethnically diverse Disney films ever
made, if not the most.
Atlantis, as the name suggests, deals
with the lost city of Atlantis that has fascinated people throughout history.
It is set in 1914. The main character is a young scholar named Milo. Milo is
adorable, period. He is the quintessential nerd with a heart of gold. He was an
orphan who was raised by his grandfather. His grandfather gave his life to the
search for the city of Atlantis, and eventually was thrown out of the academic
community for it. He died a broken man. This has created an obsession in Milo
to find the city and prove that he and his grandfather were not crazy. As luck
would have it, his grandfather’s best friend was an insanely wealthy recluse,
who sponsors Milo on his mission to the bottom of the ocean to find the city.
And so the adventure begins!
Spoiler,
but not really a spoiler…they find the city full of very alive people in a cave
in the ocean. These people are beautiful, strong, and seemingly immortal.
However, they are in danger. Their isolation from the rest of the world is
smothering them, and their culture is slowly fading away. Their princess, Kida,
is the only one intelligent enough to realize what is happening to her people,
and is at odds with her father’s secrets. Kida is a Disney princess and do not
let anyone, especially Disney, tell you otherwise. She is a warrior, clever,
strong, and silly. She is curious and open to new ideas and knowledge. Her
leadership is what her people desperately needs, but she is trapped by her
father’s secrets.
This
story is a wild ride. It deals with a lot of things that children’s movies
don’t always go into. There is a lot of death in this story. There are the
usual deaths that occur in battles, but there are also straight up murders in
this movie. They deal with greed, corruption, and how some people are willing
to place money over the lives of thousands of people. It is pretty dark at
times, and there is plenty of moral ambiguity when it comes to many of the
heroes. Despite all the darkness around him, Milo is a fantastic hero. He may
not be the strongest person on this adventure, or even the best leader, but he
has a heart that does not waiver. Did I mention he is adorable?
As I
mentioned in before, the women in this movie are fantastic. The first woman we
meet is the sultry Helga Sinclair, who is a blonde bomb shell who will punch
you in the face, then shoot you in your knee if you get in her way (that
doesn’t actually happen in the movie, but it is pretty easy to imagine). Helga
is second in command to the entire expedition, something unheard of for 1914.
There is Packard, an elderly woman who is in charge of communications. Packard
is sarcastic, cynical, and has some of the best lines of the movie. Audrey
Ramirez, a Puerto Rican teenager, is the head engineer of the trip. Then there
of course is Kida, who is completely flawless. Okay, that isn't true, but I
adore her so I am biased.
And
those are just the women! The men in this movie are just as diverse and
interesting. There are great role models for little girls and boys. I am
particularly fond of Joshua Sweet, an enormous and highly muscled man who looks
intimidating, but is actually a compassionate and kind doctor.
This
movie is fantastical, fun, thought provoking, and exciting. It is a type of
movie Disney took a gamble on, and has not attempted anything like it since.
This is one of the movies I used to watch as a kid over and over again (In
fact, I still have a copy it on my laptop and I watch it every few months). I
wanted to be like Kida. I wanted to be like Audrey. Too bad I grew up to be
more like Packard! Most of the women in this movie are ones that little girls
can look up to, and there are others that demonstrate how villainy can be found
in all types of people.
Final recommendation? Watch it! Watch it with your little
girls, your little boys. Watch it with your entire family…or alone in your room
at 2am like I do. Whatever works for you!
Side Note: If anyone is interested in the actual city of
Atlantis, in 2011 archeologists announced that they found what they believed to
be the lost city. No one can agree of course, but it by far matches the
description of Atlantis more than anything found before. You can read about it here
:
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/42072469/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/lost-city-atlantis-believed-found-spain/
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