Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3907 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-04-09
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Czech, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Polish, Portuguese
• Dubbed in: German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 91 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
A visual knockout, Titan A.E. is an ambitious animated feature that combines traditional animation, computer-generated imagery and special effects in the service of a science fiction adventure plotted with narrative conventions familiar from Star Wars and Star Trek. Credit directors Don Bluth (An American Tail, The Secret of NIMH, Anastasia) and Gary Goldman with crafting a vivid, convincing look to this deep space saga, which conjures some stunning images: a tense opening sequence climaxing in the destruction of Earth; a watery planet where delicate but deadly hydrogen trees float; joyriding in a starship while pursued by playful "space angels"; and a nerve-wracking journey through a lethal maze of massive ice crystals each qualify as mesmerising sequences in any film context.

What's visually stunning proves intermittently stunted on the narrative front, however. Orphaned when the evil Drej atomise Earth, protagonist Cale (voiced by Matt Damon) must journey across space to unlock the mystery of his late father's final project, the Titan spacecraft, in a test of faith and filial identity that echoes Star Wars. The Titan itself ultimately poses a cosmic potential familiar to admirers of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Comical sidekicks (Nathan Lane, Janeane Garofalo, John Leguizamo), a sultry love interest (Drew Barrymore) and a roguish mentor (Bill Pullman) all verge on the generic, narrowly redeemed by dialogue from a writing team including Buffy the Vampire Slayer-creator Joss Whedon.

It's likely that Titan's target audience of young males prompted the filmmakers to walk a tightrope between softer family features and more violent, hard-edged anime. Although it's brief bloodshed and coy nudity stops short of more adult terrain, younger viewers might be unsettled by the violence. Young teens will find the proceedings tamer than the video games and anime fantasies that have influenced it. --Sam Sutherland, Amazon.com

Video Description
DVD Special Features:

Two Theatrical Trailers
Director's Commentary
22 minute documentary
12 minutes of deleted scenes
TV Spots
Music Video: Over My Head
Stills Gallery (including conceptual images)
Multiple language subtitles

Synopsis
Spectacular animation, combining two- and three-dimensional techniques with stunning special effects, is TITAN A.E.'s mark of distinction. Directors Don Bluth and Gary Goldman (ANASTASIA) make their first foray into science fiction with this film, which is the first U.S.-produced animated science fiction film in more than 20 years.
The story is a classic bildungsroman, following the journey of Cale, a young man who holds the destiny of humankind in his hand--literally. Opening with the stunning destruction of earth as seen from space, the film launches the audience into a seamlessly imagined universe in which the alien Drej have turned humans into homeless emigres, searching desperately for a new world. Cale (voiced by Matt Damon) is haunted by the legacy of his father, who abandoned him but created the spaceship Titan, which holds the key to the new home of humankind. With the plan for Titan imprinted in his hand, Cale is swept from a life of lonely drudgery devoid of female companionship into the colorful crew of mysterious Captain Korso (voiced by Bill Pullman). On the Valkyrie ship, Cale enjoys Korso's crew, including the kind, beautiful, and expert woman pilot Akima (voiced by Drew Barrymore) along with a strange but fascinating band of aliens.

Customer Reviews

Not perfect but still a most enjoyable ride
Animated sci-fi adventure set in the 31st century in which evil alien forces known as the Drej destroy the earth, wiping out most of mankind (hence the `A.E.' in the film's title, which stands for `After Earth'). Fifteen years after the earth's destruction a handful of the dwindling human survivors from that awful day seek out the fabled Titan, a spaceship that represents mankind's last hope. But they must find the ship before the Drej do. This was a very enjoyable animated adventure, with Matt Damon providing the voice of the hero of the film Cale who leads the search for the spaceship Titan and Drew Barrymore the voice of his main female companion Akima. The beginning and end of the film are magnificent, both in terms of storytelling and animation. In this film we get to go on a journey of personal growth with the main character Cale, who starts off as a selfish and quite frankly not very pleasant person but matures as the film goes on as the quest to find the Titan becomes the making of him as a hero. The Drej are indeed frightening villains who destroy the earth near the beginning of the film but I felt that these characters were not fully fleshed out during the course of the film as their reasons for trying to wipe out the human race are never explained by them but merely speculated on by the film's human characters. Because of this the film is not perfect but it is still a most enjoyable ride which is even more impressive considering that most of the film's characters are rendered in traditional 2-D animation, as opposed to the computer generated animation which has taken over from 2-D animation in recent years. A good effort.

Boys own action sci fi.
Its a shame films like this don't do well comercially, its like starwars et al. Pulp sci fi, which many may call dumb, but it certainly has its place. I enjoyed this, which I watched at the age of twenty three, and while it probably has more appeal to ten year old boys it certainly has enough going for it to entertain the family.

"The human race is circling the drain - it's outta gas kid!"
For a studio unknown for supporting and creating animated films, this time they created one of the most enjoyable science fiction animated movies in years.
A typical space action adventure for both the Star Wars and Star Trek generations, this movie will delight fans of both and is great fun for kids and adults alike.
The basic story centres around Cale, a young boy who was forced to leave the Earth when it was attacked and destroyed by an alien race called the Drej.
Humans have now become outcasts in the universe and regarded by aliens as second class citizens. Cale is 'rescued' from his life as a slavage worker by Korso, captain of the Valkyrie, who says that he is very important to the future of humanity and that he is the only key to finding the ship that Cale's father built, The Titan. He is propelled into an adventure that crosses the galaxy and back, with the Drej hot on his tail in search of the Titan.
The film has all the elements of a classic sci-fi movie; great locations, space battles, adventure, aliens, comedy and an evil species determined to exterminate the entire human race.
The animation is first rate, a mix of traditional hand painted cells and CGI giving a rich and clean image for the film. Some elements are almost photo-real, making you forget that this is an animated feature.
The characters are all well realised and voiced with talent by the likes of Bill Pullman, Nathan Lane, Drew Barrimore, Matt Damon and many others. The interplay between Korso's crew is well written, full of humour (especially the guard sequence on the Soros!) and fun.
There are some truly spectacular moments in the movie including when the Earth is detroyed and the amazing fight in the ice fields of Tigrin - a worthy successor to the classic Battle Of The Mutara Nebula in Star Trek II.
All in all, Titan A.E. is one of the best animated sci-fi films in the last decade and well worth a look.