Treasure Planet: Disney's biggest flop?

Just a little heads-up for anyone who might be riding that high after watching Ice Age and thinking about hitting up the theater for something else. DON'T!!! Why? Well, here's why:

Location: Mall of America, Minneapolis.

Time: 3:03 PM (yeah, yeah, I was late for the screening because the lady at the ticket booth was too busy messing around on her phone instead of actually selling me a ticket). Luckily, I didn't miss anything.

Attendance: 8 people, including myself.

So, if you think low attendance is bad, you clearly haven't seen "Treasure Planet." I can honestly say it’s one of the worst—if not THE worst—Disney's animated films ever made.

It’s pretty obvious that this animation giant has completely run out of ideas, creativity, shame, and common sense. They're just pumping out garbage like this and shamelessly ripping off everything in sight, not just other animated flicks, but live-action movies too.

Basically, Treasure Planet is just another retelling of Treasure Island, and easily one of the worst versions I've ever had the misfortune of seeing, except this time they set it in space. And honestly... that "space" setting is some of the most idiotic, unrealistic stuff I've ever laid eyes on, even for a cartoon.

The story doesn't save the terrible design (and I mean everything, not just the characters), mostly because the plot itself isn't even original and is executed so poorly that it feels shallow and totally unconvincing.

The animation itself doesn't really bring anything new to the table, though it isn't exactly bad. Still, once again, we have the classic Disney's move of throwing unnecessary effects at the screen—probably just to dazzle five-year-olds, since nobody else will care—and it’s a real shame to see where all that time went (apparently it took four years to make) instead of coming up with something fresh. No, I guess it was just easier for the animators and producers to just rip off Star Wars and Captain Harlock.

Bottom line... avoid this thing if God knows what. Don't even bother renting it on video when it comes out, because even $3.25 is way too much for something this bad.

It strikes me as an absolute marvel that anyone actually still consumes Disney products, or rather, spends their precious time even caring about what kind of movies they’re putting out lately.

Richard Howard2 said:I honestly find it mind-blowing that anyone actually still follows Disney—like, genuinely cares about their movies.

Hmm... let's not go down that rabbit hole... 😛

First off, I’m a huge Disney fan, though lately, I’ve been asking myself why 😕. I still maintain that they produce the best feature-length animated films, American productions, hands down. The fact that they've been sucking lately is a whole different conversation.

Secondly, I just love animation (maybe even more than live-action), so I'll sit through pretty much any feature film, and only then will I decide if it's worth "following" or not.

Besides, I recently watched Disney's "Atlantis," and I can't say it was bad, even if it had its flaws. I really wanted to see what Disney's take on Shrek or I. A. would be.

thanks a lot. seriously, thanks. after this, there’s zero chance I’m watching that...
yeah, it's neither the first nor the last Disney movie I've skipped.

though I read somewhere that the robot he finds on the Planet is actually kind of alright... I guess that's probably not even true, huh? 🙂

I read somewhere that the robot they find on the planet is actually kind of alright... but I'm guessing that’s a bit of a stretch, isn't it?

That robot, B.E.N., is easily one of the most irritating things in this movie, but since Martin Short does the voice and I have a bit of a soft spot for him, I guess I managed to tolerate the character.

Honestly, seeing Ben just immediately made me think of Bender from Futurama, even though there's no actual connection—since people always bring up Ben Gun—but looking at how much they ripped off other stuff, I wouldn't be surprised if they did. Come to think about it... they basically did rip off Futurama. This B.E.N. character didn't strictly need to be some chatty robot. They could have just gone with an alien or something else entirely.

All in all, it was a huge disappointment.

Man... and don't even get me started on the spaceport in the film... it looks like it was lifted straight out of Star Wars, and even the soundtrack leans pretty heavily toward William's style.

I'd say Treasure Planet is just one big Star Wars knock-off.

Richard Howard2 said:It blows my mind that anyone actually still buys into Disney—like, people actually care about their movies.

Hold up, now we’re just being extra.👎
Look, Disney and his whole empire basically invented the cartoon! Besides a few other legends, Disney himself was this massive visionary and absolute genius, and everyone following him just wanted to keep that legacy alive.
If things aren't what they used to be, why would anyone be an idiot and keep looking for that old-school Disney magic?
Personally, I haven't sat through many of the recent Disney's studio flicks because they just don't grab me (even though I love animation), but I'll always be riding for Disney.

Check this out. http://www.gamersattic.com/roleplaying/space_1889.htm 🙂

lonemarlin40 said:Hold on just a second, because this is getting seriously pretentious now.👎
Look, Disney and his corporation built the animation industry from the ground up! Disney himself was a massive visionary, a genuine genius, and his successors have simply been trying to preserve his legacy.
If things aren't what they used to be, why would anyone be an idiot enough to keep chasing the standard that Disney originally set?
Personally, I haven't sat through many of the recent films from Disney's studio—they just don't grab me (despite being an animation fan)—but I will always remain loyal to the name Disney.

I am not talking about the "real" Disney animations, which I absolutely adore; I’m talking about all this new stuff coming out since The Lion King, along with those mindless, suburbanized "kid-trap" movies that flood the market every single day without anyone even noticing them...

Richard Howard2 said:Look, I'm not hating on the "real" Disney classics—I actually love those. I'm talking about this recent stuff they've been pumping out since The Lion King, plus all those mindless "suburban kid-trap" movies that drop every single day and nobody even notices...

Alright then, fair enough.
I was honestly starting to worry you were gonna come at me for liking legendary characters, like Lucifer from Cinderella.😁

Peace😉

lonemarlin40 said:I was actually worried you were going to start trashing legendary characters, like Lucifer the cat from Cinderella.😁

Yeah, right.😘 🙂

a) those suburban traps have been around since Mary Poppins, if not even earlier—it’s all just typical Disney stuff and honestly, it’s pretty mediocre 😛

b) The Lion King is alright, I guess, but I don't see how it's any better than Tarzan. Just think about Elton John... remember "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" 🙂

😛

Hey "Ja", what is that link up there even for?

Anyway, this whole messaging thing is ridiculous. Americans always feel the need to shove some kind of agenda down the throats of the younger generation through their animated movies. Usually, it’s just heavy-handed moralizing disguised by some sugary, sweet scene so the kids don't catch on, but it still hits them subconsciously.

For us older folks, that kind of nonsense doesn't fly because, first off, we spot it immediately. Besides, we already have established views that some cartoon isn't going to change—not to mention our brains were already fried by similar garbage when we were their age.😁
I'm talking about feature films, obviously.

I can't remember if I've mentioned this yet, but if I had to pick one word to describe Treasure Planet, it would be "unconvincing," and that's the biggest issue.

The only real praise goes to the character Scroop, that giant spider. When he showed up on screen, the kids actually got spooked and needed the adults to calm them down. (And honestly, it wasn't great for me either since I'm not a fan of spiders 😲). But hey, at least we finally got a bad guy who actually possesses the qualities needed to be intimidating.

Here’s a link to some Space 1889 RPG books. The worldbuilding in them is incredibly similar to what you'd see in Treasure Planet; honestly, even though I haven't sat down to watch the movie yet, I'd love to 😳

I honestly don't see what the big deal is with this animation. It’s certainly not the best thing ever made, but then again, it isn't the absolute worst either (even if it is one of Disney's offerings).

Larry Martin4 said:I don't see the issue with the animation. It’s certainly not the best, but it isn't the worst thing ever put to film—even if it is Disney's.

The movie was a failure—both creatively and at the box office. Disney set a pretty high bar for their animation, and their last truly great one was Tarzan.

Hahaha... My God, I have to wonder how this topic was even dug up... it feels like it's been sitting in a dusty attic for decades...

But all jokes aside, this would actually make for a pretty decent thread for comparing Disney's output as a whole. If we're being honest, since 2003, they've released plenty of movies that are way worse than their classics, but honestly, plenty of much better ones too.

Some of the absolute low points include:

Chicken Little (easily the worst cartoon I have ever watched in my entire life)
Robinson

Eric Jackson68 said:Hahaha... My God, I have no idea how this topic was even dug up... it feels ancient...

All jokes aside. This would actually serve as a decent baseline for comparing Disney's output as a whole. Let's just say that since 2003, there have been plenty of much worse Disney films—but also many better ones.

Some of the worst:

Chicken Little (the absolute worst movie I have ever watched)
Robinson

Chicken Little is genuinely terrible. Robinson isn't quite as bad, but it's very mediocre, much like Bolt. Call of the Wild is poor, as is Animal Farm. Brother Bear isn't anything special either. However, Princess and the Frog is an excellent film.

Since someone decided to drag this ridiculous topic back up, I felt compelled to step in and defend this underrated gem. Honestly, I’ve thought Treasure Planet was an incredible animated feature since the old days of the industry. They stayed true to the original pirate essence while wrapping it in these fantastical space settings, which turned out to be such a clever, innovative fusion. They basically built their own unique universe.👍 Besides, J. J. Abrams pulled half his ideas for his Star Trek film right from this very concept (some elements are practically IDENTICAL, yet audiences swallowed them whole in the movie while people just roll their eyes at this animation—so who’s actually crazy here?🤣). My point is, there is definitely an audience for movies like this, and it’s a shame they don't make them anymore.😢 If this thread is going to stay dedicated to comparing Disney's cartoons, the moderators should at least change the title to reflect that.

I mean, Disney's movies are made for kids. And honestly, a little roughhousing isn't the worst thing for them, right?

lonemarlin40 said:Hold up, this is getting seriously pretentious.👎
I mean, Disney and his crew basically invented the modern animation game. Disney himself was a total visionary and a genius, and everyone who came after him just wanted to keep that legacy alive.
If things aren't what they used to be, why would anyone be an idiot and keep chasing the magic Disney originally built?
Personally, I haven't sat through many of the recent movies from Disney's studio because they just don't grab me (even though I love cartoons), but I'll always be a fan of the Disney name.

Look, Disney has definitely gone downhill, but half the people hating on them ten years ago were only doing it because of the brand name and the institution itself.