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Atlantis - The Lost Empire (Collector's Edition)

Atlantis - The Lost Empire (Collector's Edition)

List Price: $39.99
Your Price: $35.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I Liked this great Adventure from Disney So did My Dad
Review: When I first saw POCAHONTAS I thought it was a welcome change of pace from THE LITTLE MERMAID and BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE is a change of pace and beyond. I liked this movie very much. It's not real flashy or in-your-face, a trend that started in animated films ever since ALADDIN. We actually get a straightforward adventure film with no musical numbers and in place of the prerequisite animal friends are some really quirky characters. It is an interesting and enjoyable movie filmed at a deliberate pace. As the film unfolded I recognized influences from Jules Verne and Indiana Jones or at least those were the impressions I felt. What I really like best was the way the film started out. The introductory scenes of Milo Thatch in the museum seemed very reminiscent of the animation and pace of the films that Walt Disney personally produced. I thought that was a nice touch. In fact most of the animation in this film looked like it was actually hand-drawn for a change. Even though there are many modern influences in technique and dialogue, overall it has good old-fashioned look to it. The artwork is fantastic and so is the score. It's the kind of entertainment you thought they never make anymore. This is a real good movie for dads and their kids too.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Stunning Vision, Fun and Action, But a Confusing Plot
Review: Overall, this is good fun. It's an exciting film, highly imaginative, and visually spectacular, with a story that moves very quickly albeit thoroughly confusingly. I happily recommend it for family viewing.

Compared to recent Disney releases such as Cinderella 2, 101 Dalmatians 2, and all of the other poorly done and profit-driven knockoffs, this film is an original gem. The animation is excellent, the characters are interesting and fun to watch, and the overall story is compelling, as well as very fast-paced. The movie certainly is suitable for kids as young as three or four, despite some of the more esoteric, non-sensical plot twists. We've got spectacular scenery, gadgets, battles, action, and explosions and fire, more than enough to keep the little ones fully engaged throughout. No sex, no drugs, no profanity, and only a little bit of blood (although the bad guys most certainly do get killed, neither graphically nor gloatingly).

Most impressive in this film is the artistic vision. Atlantis provides a fantastic opportunity to be creative, and the animators do not disappoint. The relatively modern (1907) setting allows some technical and scientific freedom for the animators, which was taken full advantage of. Everything is huge, massive in scale, from the steamship and its submarine, to the Leviathan guardian, to the tunnels and artifacts of Atlantis. For me, this is the most enjoyable part of the film, simply looking at the landscapes and backgrounds the animators have provided as backdrops for the action. This is excellent work, truly spectacular.

The cast is wonderfully diverse, ethnically, physically, and in terms of education, abilities, and hygiene. It's a really truly honestly and genuinely wonderful rainbow of diversity and teamwork, because, you know, it's only when we let go of our prejudices and overlook stereotypes that we can triumph over adversity. That being said, the strangest and filthiest member of the crew is the non-stop butt of jokes, derision, and less than thoughtful treatment by the rest of the team.

There's a minor problem, though. As dad to a six- and three-year-old, I've seen this film maybe 60 times in the past three months. As many times as I've watched it, I still don't grasp the entire concept of the Atlantean power crystal, how it "chooses" a host, what the crystal-host does, what exactly becomes physically of the crystal-host, and how the chosen individual interacts with it. Sure, the impossible-to-miss end-state is a human-interfaced and -generated automatic defensive system which protects the entire city, but all of the story elements don't make it clear how this all comes together. This is a bit anal, I know, but it just doesn't make sense.

Violence, yeah, there's enough of it, but precious little blood, and no gore. It's family-friendly violence, where the bad guys disappear neatly and completely in spectacular swirling, spiraling balls of beautifully rendered, parti-colored fire, with no suffering depicted. Early on we see an entire submarine and crew go down, and a little memorial service to commemorate the loss of 200-odd folks. There is also some good explosions during the final battle, with ball-of-fire ends to both bad guys and much fewer non-star Atlantaean good guys. None of the bad guys make it out alive, and the two bad-guy leaders die more or less visibly, but again, without blood or gore. The one, probably most direct instance of violence, is the bad-guy leader punching the enfeebled king of the Atlanteans in the stomach. The king later dies of his (internal) injuries, but the time-separation between the act and its results lessens the impact of the killing.

The uplifting aspects are just as powerful, and in the end the focus of the story. We have the love story between the leads, as well as a totally predictable yet nonetheless powerful shift in alliance from the established team members to that of the Atlanteans when it comes time to do the right thing. We see love and sacrifice, traits my six-year-old picked up on with no prompting from me.

All in all, this is a very enjoyable film. I dwell on the violence to inform only, so don't take it to mean that the film is full of violence; it is not. Overall, it's about adventure, the excitement and wonder of discovery, and what can be done when you choose the hard right over the easy wrong.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Entertaining but not up to Disney's usual standards
Review: My five year old likes this movie, but my 13 and 12 year olds think the plot is thin, the humor weak, and complain, "There's no music!" After all, you need some catchy tunes to make a Disney classic, right? But all in all, it was pretty good.

Michael J. Fox does a great job voicing the lead character, Miles, who is following his grandfather's dream quest to find the lost city of Atlantis. Unfortunately, evil forces also want to find it, but for all the wrong reasons!! A tale of sacrifice, conservation, and belief in yourself and your dreams.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Atlantis-The Lost Empire
Review: Average watching if you are bored! This movie takes too long to get to the point!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Rourke Rules!
Review: The only reason I ever rent Disney animated films is because of the Villains. At first I was losing my hopes about a Villain because Commander Rourke was kind of... well kind. That all ends when Milo starts getting on his nerves. And at the end he turns into a ferocious guy. (I really like the hot air balloon part at the end of the movie). Rourke is now one of my top 10 villains

1. Jafar (Aladdin)
2. Judge Claude Frollo (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)
3. Ursula the Sea Witch (The Little Mermaid)
4. Scar (The Lion King)
5 Commander Rourke (Atlantis)
6. Hades (Hercules)
7. Clayton (Tarzan)
8. Cruella DeVil (101 Dalmatians)
9. Yzma (The Emperors New Groove)
10. Proffesor Ratigan (The Great Mouse Detective)

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Disney blew it !!
Review: Unlike previous Disney Classics this movie is much like the hunchback and other recent Disney flops. Disney needs to wake up and go back to the innocent days of Peter Pan, 101 Dalmations, Mary Poppins, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Etc... Bring back the Classic songs and stay away from the liberal agenda that has nothing to do with Walt Disney and would surely make him angry at what is being done to his company and name.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Disney comes of age
Review: Yes, it's flawed, no doubt about it, but then so are most Disney movies - The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh and The Little Mermaid being notorious examples, which contain everything from continuity errors to total breakdowns of story logic.

Atlantis is a very welcome departure from endlessly whining crabs, unimaginably moronic donkeys and blundering, insensitive tiggers. (I have four kids, so I have suffered the lot, believe me.)

The technical excellence that one would expect from Disney is right there from the outset, in the epic opening scenes, as a fleet of high speed aircraft swoop into Atlantis just ahead of a massive tidal wave.

As Atlantis itself comes into view, you can tell straight away that the Disney people have done their homework. The concentric circles of land and water are all there and the architecture is entirely believable. The combination of an excellent musical score and breathtaking panoramic views lifts this movie onto another level.

Michael J. Fox and the mighty Jim Garner head a superb vocal cast, which includes Babylon 5's Claudia Christian as Helga. The characters are a well rounded mixed bag, which makes for a lot of entertaining interactions. Yet even though this is almost a Child/Adult hybrid movie, I cannot recall any of the highly questionable innuendo that has tainted movies such as Little Mermaid II, in which Morgana, the Sea Witch, refers to her minion's "size issue". Thankfully, Atlantis does not go in for sleazy laughs.

Disney have got so much right in this movie that I hope they will create others in the same vein. Even if this was just a one-off, it was a totally worthwhile experiment, which, to my mind, succeeded brilliantly.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Adam does Atlantis
Review: "Atlantis" is an unusual example in the field of animation. The production crew are European, which provides the film with a look very unlike mainstream American animated films or anime. The film has a strong steampunk style, advanced in a blur of fascinating could-have-been-but-never-were machines and ideas, supported by well-researched costuming. The characters are distinct and believable. The story contains the usual action, romance and heroic themes, together with the environmentalism vs. mercenary capitalism conflict that is common in contemporary children's films. This film entranced me with its unusual style. I was put off at first by the stylised way the characters are depicted, but the costumes, the cool tech, the pseudo-historical plot threads, and the funky characters soon had me grinning like a loon. Like the best contemporary kid's films, there are elements in 'Atlantis' that will appeal to adults while the kids are still caught up in the wonder of it all. I found this film stood up to several viewings, so I could see more details. One of the very best animated films of the last few years.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: a great movie
Review: I agree that Disney isn't doing too well with their recent movies. They are getting worse as they create sequels to almost every other original movie. It's not helping them at all, but I still love Disney movies, though I prefer to skip the sequels.

I enjoyed this movie actually. For once it wasn't all about a love story. This was more adventurous and based on the legend of Atlantis.

It's interesting to think that Atlantis actually looks like it does in the movie. It gives you another perspective to it, than your own view.

The way the culture of the people is displayed shows a different
world than ours, even if it may not be real. You expand your imagination when you watch this movie.

If you simply like movies and have a big imagination and the heart of a kid then you won't be disappointed.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Stop thinking and enjoy
Review: So many people i know absolutely hate this movie, and you're probably one of the same. That's because you're thinking too much. This movie is an action film. There's no point trying to connect the dots in the plot. It's an ACTION film.

Disney breaks from the traditional fairy tales and gives us a gritty journey to the center of the earth movie voiced by an all star cast led by Michael J. Fox!

I am a fellow animator and i must say i'm impressed by this latest film. Past Disney films havn't been able to live up to their standards (herculese and PeterPan 2 come to mind). With very simple character designes by Mike Mongola (creator of the comic book series hellboy) Atlantis will keep you entertained.

The action is pretty intense for a disney film, though not really on-your-seat-gripping-in-sweat intense. Be prepared for some fantasy though in the 2nd half of the film. Don't try to figure it out, just enjoy. (they explain it all on Disk 2 anyway)

If you're looking for something different and not too brain taxing, check out this film.


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