Films are works of art. As such they are not all equal and, more importantly, can’t please all the people all the time. Sometimes, for an indeterminate number of reasons, they just don’t connect with the audience. In other cases, a film might just be ahead of its time or looking for that niche fan base who will, one day, take to the rooftops and proclaim it a triumph.
Critics are valued and trusted voices in the entertainment world. They serve as sign posts directing us toward the good and away from the bad…but they are not always on point. In fact, there are numerous instances where these gatekeepers of what is quality storytelling and what is inferior entertainment have made some films float while sinking others. Over time, whether it is the public consciousness that does a 180 or the actual critics themselves, yesterday’s bad news can actually become tomorrow’s featured headline. It’s with that mindset I seek to call attention to one particular film that got bumped and bruised upon its release.
Twenty five years ago, and maybe just a little before that, many people didn’t associate Walt Disney Pictures with high-flying entertainment, risk taking, or a steady stream of heart-pumping properties. Sure, we got The Rocketeer in 1991 and three years earlier Who Framed Roger Rabbit (under the Touchstone Pictures banner) was a colorful, clever, and cartoonish take on a mature whodunnit. So there were big swings taken, but not consistency. There was no MCU, they hadn’t purchased Lucasfilm yet, and the studio was trying to determine what style of animation would be its future.
But while the house of mouse was still on a high from their legendary renaissance, the era of formulaic sing-songy princess yarns was drawing to a close. After all, there are only so many stories of far away lands with talking four-legged sidekicks and/or magical inanimate objects we can see before it all becomes stale. In the middle of that that success, however, there was a talented brain trust that was trying to pivot from gowns to slightly more grown up tales. They were inspired by Disney’s Adventureland and sought to make homages to what made them fall in love with cinema in the first place.
Directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale, producer Don Hahn, and screenwriter Tab Murphy were hot off The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Before that, Kirk and Gary helmed Beauty and the Beast, and they did not want to give up their close-knit creative team at the end of the project. In one afternoon, the group cobbled a story idea that sounded like they were speaking to their younger selves. Imagine this: The Dirty Dozen meets Journey to the Center of the Earth. Over a full plate of nachos, the foundation of Atlantis: The Lost Empire was laid. What followed was a sci-fi/action adventure that charted its own, and a mantra of “Fewer songs, more explosions.”
In June of 2001, their ambitious and carefully crafted animated adventure film was released to the world. From a creative standpoint, this highly stylized and energetic effort was one of the most complex features in the entirety of Walt Disney Animation’s output. It was a lot of fun that plucked heart strings and then made it race in the very next scene. Yet critics and theater-goers didn’t know what to do with it, and its box office haul was cut short due to competition from different adventure films and a more popular animation style at the time. But, a quarter century later, fans have been helping raise this lost empire so it can finally get its due.
Now here we are in 2026, and every talented department associated with the film gets to celebrate a note-worthy anniversary. In the time since Atlantis premiered, the story has found audiences with younger generations. Likened very much to the newfound appreciation of the George Lucas’ prequels, people are finding a lot more to love about linguists, mercenaries and the epic subterranean dogfight to save the titular empire from plunder.
Also, if cosplay and the growth of niche conventions tells you anything about how much people love a property, it seems that the masses are starting to speak up. Sales of a movie on home video, or sharing it with their family and friends are one thing. It’s quite another when those fans want to be the characters. Do a search for “Milo” or “Kida” and you’ll quickly find a lot of people making costumes. I guess that’s what you call the great circle of life which is funny because Kirk and Gary were two of nearly thirty people credited with the story of The Lion King.
I cannot state this more clearly. I love Atlantis: The Lost Empire. To me, it’s my Star Wars, and this comes from the guy who grew up with Star Wars. While I have a fondness (and weakness) for under-appreciated films/cult classics, Atlantis cannot be easily categorized. It didn’t go the way the studio wanted, sure, but that doesn’t mean it was a failure. It does not deserve to be passed over, and of all the opinions out there about why it didn’t work, there’s no real consensus save for one: there was too much going on and not enough runtime to contain it. That leads to less time spent on, among other things, character growth.
But after talking with the creators about paths not taken, scrapped plot ideas, and numerous characters cut down or simply eliminated, it is true that they did put a lot into the mix. But so did Avengers: Endgame. And what we got in 2001 was a comparatively manageable amount. The creative team got the film down to fighting weight and, in my eyes, delivered a knockout.
Atlantis is a love letter to grand and sweeping cinema of old. In so doing it opens the door to those who don’t know David Lean or Akira Kurosawa. Millennials may not have grown up with Indiana Jones and, if that’s the case, this might be the closest thing to it. As time marches on, more and more people are starting to call this their own. While our sole purpose here is to call attention to things that surprise, entertain and delight us, we are thrilled to see people find what we knew all along: Kirk, Gary and crew succeeded on all fronts.
Today we celebrate twenty five glorious years of a hard-fought battle to gain a larger audience and win back naysayers. As a fan myself, it was a dream to be able to speak with Kirk and Gary about what went into the film. For almost two hours, they shared behind-the-scenes stories, offered insight into characters and themes, and give the highest praise to their trusted and talented team. Additionally, we got some hilarious tidbits about making Beauty and the Beast, Cranium Command, and more. Our entire objective was to have a good time, and it’s nice to think that we gave them as much satisfaction as their film gives us.
So now, five degree down bubble, there’s a world that waits for you. Enjoy the treasures and delights of Atlantis: The Lost Empire on this episode of The GoSeeTalk Podcast Experience!
