Treasure Planet (2002)

Once again Disney decided to do another take on ‘Treasure Island’ during the early 2000’s. This time, they turned the beloved pirate tale into a sci-fi film.

Sadly, upon its release, it hadn’t been very well received by a lot of people. Most likely because it was one of the few Disney animated films that wasn’t a musical.

For years I hadn’t taken much of a interest in ‘Treasure Planet’. Not until the last couple of years because of it essentially being a sci-fi version of ‘Treasure Island’ and normally I’m not a massive fan of sci-fi. However I decided to finally give it a try a year ago or so and I wasn’t disappointed.

The story starts off with young Jim Hawkins reading a book on the legend of Captain Flint’s treasure. Many years later after being caught for speeding, teenage Jim is sitting on the roof of his mother’s inn when a ship crash-lands in front of the inn.

As Jim is about to investigate the wreckage, he spots what looks like a pirate crawling out from it. Seeing that the pirate is fatally injured he tries to help him but the old pirate refuses his help, insisting that Jim takes the treasure chest from him. It isn’t before long before Jim goes on a adventure of a lifetime and to make up for the mistakes of his past.

The main standout for this film to me would be some of the incredible cgi that’s used on some of the scenes…including a memorable one that involved a massive black hole. For its time, the cgi on that scene must’ve been outstanding. This was when Disney was experimenting with such things and would soon make most of their animated films cgi in the coming decade.

If you’re wanting a break from the musical aspect of Disney and want a good sci-fi animated film, I very much recommend it. Especially if you enjoy a good pirate adventure.