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Directed By: Aristomenis Tsirbas
Starring:
Evan Rachel Wood as Mala
Luke Wilson as Jim Stanton
Brian Cox as General Hemmer
Battle for Terra is the latest film to cash in on the Real-D 3-D craze. Leaving the era of blue and red paper glasses far behind, it is a fairly good example of why I enjoy films that explore all three dimensions rather than just two. If done properly, the effects can immerse you into a movie and bring a whole new world to life. For this film, that world is Terra, the only planet left in the universe that can sustain human life. Because we destroyed not just Earth, but also Mars and Venus, humans have now arrived to claim Terra for their new home. But, the peaceful Terrians refuse to surrender their planet without a fight. Who can blame them? They are a friendly species who enjoy art and music and celebrate life whenever they get a chance. They are a stark comparison to the humans presented here, most of whom seem directly lifted from the Bush administration.
The humans, led by the treacherous General Hemmer (voiced by Cox), arrive on a space ship called the Ark and deploy T-shaped fighter ships that suck up the horrified Terrians for research. There is great irony in the idea of humans invading an alien planet; usually, we see things the other way around. It is this compelling approach that really kept me invested in the film. Unfortunately, the film’s execution is not nearly as intriguing and is surprisingly flawed from the very beginning. A cautionary tale about our abuse of the world, Battle for Terra is so blunt with its message that we often feel as though we are being bashed over the head rather than watching a film with a moral message. Obviously, its warning should be heard and a film like this one could have been a powerful tool for motivating the next generation to stop making the same mistakes that we have made. But, the filmmakers fail to understand that subtlety is key when making a film like this. Rather, they craft a robot that, not only explains how irresponsible the humans were, but also features video evidence.
Still, the ineffective use of its moral is overshadowed by a rather disjointed and occasionally dull narrative structure. The film establishes its plot within the first fifteen minutes and then the rest of the film is a cycle of set-up, action scene, set-up, action scene, and so on and so forth. Many of these beautifully-filmed, but nonetheless hollow scenes only serve to display the use of 3-D technology, a fact that becomes bothersome when they begin to take up much of the film’s already slim runtime. We crave more of the characters, especially of our heroine, the fearless Terrian named Mala (voiced by Wood), and the human who inadvertently becomes her friend, Jim Stanton (voiced by Wilson). Alas, much of what we desire will not come to fruition; Battle for Terra is too busy rushing off to its next high-flying space fight and it has a tendency to drag its characters along for mere plot explanation.
Of course, to criticize the film for this and to not provide some form of disclosure would be hypocritical of me. Honestly, Battle for Terra marketed itself as a space war; the title is straight-forward and the trailer is not misleading. If you were intrigued by its marketing, then it is fair to say that you will probably enjoy the film as well. And, I did, but, like this week’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, I could not help but feel as though there was so much material left unexplored. Both films are good enough, but neither is as good as it should be. Battle for Terra is perhaps the better of the two, but only because it manages to engulf us in a creative and beautiful world that is surprisingly exhilarating to see in 3-D. The film is technically delightful and features a cast that is perhaps more impressive than that of any other film scheduled for release this summer. Children will probably enjoy it…but, more important than that, Battle for Terra, despite its many flaws, deserves that enjoyment because of its sheer technical prowess and its compelling story.
The humans, led by the treacherous General Hemmer (voiced by Cox), arrive on a space ship called the Ark and deploy T-shaped fighter ships that suck up the horrified Terrians for research. There is great irony in the idea of humans invading an alien planet; usually, we see things the other way around. It is this compelling approach that really kept me invested in the film. Unfortunately, the film’s execution is not nearly as intriguing and is surprisingly flawed from the very beginning. A cautionary tale about our abuse of the world, Battle for Terra is so blunt with its message that we often feel as though we are being bashed over the head rather than watching a film with a moral message. Obviously, its warning should be heard and a film like this one could have been a powerful tool for motivating the next generation to stop making the same mistakes that we have made. But, the filmmakers fail to understand that subtlety is key when making a film like this. Rather, they craft a robot that, not only explains how irresponsible the humans were, but also features video evidence.
Still, the ineffective use of its moral is overshadowed by a rather disjointed and occasionally dull narrative structure. The film establishes its plot within the first fifteen minutes and then the rest of the film is a cycle of set-up, action scene, set-up, action scene, and so on and so forth. Many of these beautifully-filmed, but nonetheless hollow scenes only serve to display the use of 3-D technology, a fact that becomes bothersome when they begin to take up much of the film’s already slim runtime. We crave more of the characters, especially of our heroine, the fearless Terrian named Mala (voiced by Wood), and the human who inadvertently becomes her friend, Jim Stanton (voiced by Wilson). Alas, much of what we desire will not come to fruition; Battle for Terra is too busy rushing off to its next high-flying space fight and it has a tendency to drag its characters along for mere plot explanation.
Of course, to criticize the film for this and to not provide some form of disclosure would be hypocritical of me. Honestly, Battle for Terra marketed itself as a space war; the title is straight-forward and the trailer is not misleading. If you were intrigued by its marketing, then it is fair to say that you will probably enjoy the film as well. And, I did, but, like this week’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, I could not help but feel as though there was so much material left unexplored. Both films are good enough, but neither is as good as it should be. Battle for Terra is perhaps the better of the two, but only because it manages to engulf us in a creative and beautiful world that is surprisingly exhilarating to see in 3-D. The film is technically delightful and features a cast that is perhaps more impressive than that of any other film scheduled for release this summer. Children will probably enjoy it…but, more important than that, Battle for Terra, despite its many flaws, deserves that enjoyment because of its sheer technical prowess and its compelling story.
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