Something about Titan A.E feels just a little… I’m not sure I can place my finger on what gave me feelings of vague dissatisfaction. And yes, the short-lived Fox Animation Studios closed after this film… but that doesn’t really describe the movie at all.

It looks nice and the story is fun, for one.

Titan A.E (2000)

And the world-building has some pretty interesting aspects too, and amongst the usual Hollywood cast for the era, I really enjoyed Nathan Lane as Preed and Drew Barrymore as Akima also, but taken as a whole, I’m still not sure what it was about Titan A.E that didn’t quite satisfy.

The story follows war orphan Cale as he and the rest of the cast search for the mammoth Titan, a ship & DNA bank, on a quest to restore humanity and save the dwindling species from extinction. Just on that, I found myself wishing for an entire series, rather than a film. I think it could have been a great epic.

Nevertheless, it was a film – 90-odd minutes, and it does cover a bit of ground.

But even with a twist or two, I wasn’t surprised by the storyline, overall, it was probably more a case of enjoying the world-building and settings. The burning planet stood out, as did the drifter colony ship, but also small places like Akima’s dressing table with her keepsakes/relics. Elsewhere, I really enjoyed the slight Art Deco look of the Titan’s interior.

(To stick with the visuals a touch longer before finishing, that crashing-ice scene was a nice twist on the ‘house of mirrors’ trope).

Definitely worth a look if you like the era, or science-fiction in general perhaps, but especially so if you’re curious about director Don Bluth working on something perhaps not really aimed at children.

3 Stars