Diving into ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’ 20 Years Later

June 28, 2021

Let me start this off by saying I am a massive Disney fan. I’ve seen almost the entire catalog of Disney’s classic animated films, not including the slew of straight-to-video sequels, like Fox and the Hound 2 or Cinderella III: A Twist in Time. However, one of the few classic Walt Disney Animation films that slid through the cracks for me was Atlantis: The Lost Empire. It’s not that I actively never wanted to see it, it just released at a point in my life when I was a 15-year-old that was “too cool” for cartoon Disney films, but too young to really appreciate the art of animation. With that being said, Atlantis turned 20 this month, so I thought now was as good a time as any to check it out.

For those unfamiliar with the story, Atlantis: The Lost Empire follows Milo Thatch (voiced by Michael J. Fox), a professional linguist often criticized for following in his historian grandfather’s “crazy” footsteps (in a very National Treasure way). Milo discovers The Shepard’s Journal, a book that that contains directions to the mythical lost city of Atlantis. With his ideas of an expedition rejected by the Smithsonian, Milo is recruited by a rich historian friend of his grandfather’s, Preston B. Whitmore (voiced by John Mahoney), and begins his quest to find Atlantis, alongside a crew headed by the military-minded Commander Rourke (voiced by James Garner).

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I had no clue the animation was so vibrant and colorful in this film. It’s impressive, especially after 20 years. The animation style reminded me a lot of Treasure Planet (2002) and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), which isn’t surprising considering the amount of crossover that art departments have across Disney’s animated filmography. In fact, the directors of Atlantis, Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, were the duo behind Hunchback and the 1991 Beauty and the Beast. The gorgeous animation was paired perfectly with an equally fantastic score from another Disney veteran and composer, James Newton Howard (Treasure Planet, Raya and the Last Dragon).

Atlantis: The Lost Empire also boasts a cast that was perfectly curated for the sci-fi feel it needed. Michael J. Fox voiced Milo, a bit of a bumbler but also a confident, intelligent hero when he needed to be. The villains were superbly picked, showcasing the strong militant voices of James Garner (The Rockford Files) and Claudia Christian (Babylon 5). John Mahoney (Frasier), Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek) and Jim Varney (Ernest films, Toy Story) all filled supporting roles extremely well.

I think the biggest surprise with this being my first watch, was how so incredibly sci-fi/adventurous this film was. I guess I expected it to be more of a princess film, but it was very much inspired by late 1800’s Jules Verne books like Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Journey to the Center of the Earth. It also has a Moby Dick and King Kong feel of modern (for the time) humans going on a dangerous expedition and taking on the powers of nature. I certainly didn’t go into this think I was going to see giant underwater mech-guardians and laser battles.

I hate that it took me 20 years to watch this film, but I’ve also found that I don’t seem to be alone, as I’ve noticed this one slipped by to a lot of people in my age group. Watching it for the first time in my thirties allows me to truly appreciate it for the artwork that it is. If there’s one thing I can do on the anniversary, it’s that I can recommend that Disney and sci-fi fans alike should go back and enjoy this film. Atlantis: The Lost Empire can be found streaming on Disney+.