The film premiered in 2002 and sports a voice cast of Emma Thompson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, David Hyde Pierce, and Martin Short. The film's plot is based on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic published in 1883, Treasure Island. And so here is Disney's take on one of the world's most famous pirate adventure stories.
As the film opens, we meet Jim Hawkins (a young man who's taste for adventure oftentimes finds him on the wrong side of following the rules) and his mother (who runs an inn). A mysterious (badly injured) stranger arrives at the inn and gives Jim a map (before his untimely demise). Soon after the inn is set upon by pirates and the entire place is burned to the ground. Jim and his mother escape with their friend Dr. Doppler - and soon Jim and Dr. Doppler find themselves on the adventure of a lifetime.
If the title didn't give it away, you should know that this film is set in the future. In outer space. With aliens and cyborgs and black holes and... other very not-classical pirate things. It's a science fiction adaptation of the traditional pirate story. There's still pirates and captains and cannons and villainy and general swash-buckling, but it's decidedly low on sea monsters, sand, and... humans.
Nevertheless, it is still the tale of a lonely youth set out on adventure to find a lost treasure only to find himself betrayed and in a race to save his friends, find the treasure, and beat a nasty group of scallywags.
I ended up somewhat enjoying this film. I had never seen it before, and I was interested to see Disney's version of this classic tale. It did not delight me as much as it had the potential to. The first 30 minutes of the film left me entirely nonplussed. However, at the 30-minute mark, we have a musical montage sequence of Jim learning and finding his place on board the ship and bonding with the ship's cook, John Silver, interspersed with scenes from Jim's childhood. I'm fairly certain this musical montage saved the film for me.
Treasure Planet does have an interesting array of characters, some credible humor, and a classic plot, but it does not have the Disney magic like the films from Disney's Golden Age a decade earlier. Also, I should probably confess that my frame of reference for the classic "Treasure Island" tale is Muppet Treasure Island. I have actually never seen a pure film production or read the novel. I will say that I enjoy the Muppets' version very much. :) However, I am still at a bit of a loss to a few parts of this story. For example, whatever happened to Jim's father? And how does the tale end for Silver? I'm thinking the Muppet's ending and the Treasure Planet ending might not be the most accurate...
Feel free to draw your own conclusions regarding this film. As per my above confession, I'm not exactly an expert on the subject... But I will leave you with words of wisdom from an expert on entertainment (Walt Disney):
There is more treasure in books than in all the pirates' loot on Treasure Island and best of all, you can enjoy these riches every day of your life.
Coming Up Next: Brother Bear
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