Special Review
This review was requested by Discord user Loopy. If you'd like to join the server, click the button below. Visit DiscordBorn in Montreal in 1967, Aristomenis Tsirbas graduated from Concordia University with a degree in film production. He moved to Los Angeles in 1996, and he worked on the visual effects for James Cameron’s Titanic. After working on the visual effects for My Favorite Martian in 1999, Tsirbas worked on several animated short films. One of his shorts was Terra in 2002, which he decided to turn into a full-length feature film. He originally wanted it to be live-action with photo-real CGI backgrounds, but producing partner Snoot Entertainment had other ideas. They decided to have the project be fully animated and toned down from its original hard-edge to reach younger audiences. After premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2007, the film was delayed to convert the film to 3D. Finally, Battle for Terra saw a wide release in May of 2009 in both 2D and 3D.
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Synopsis
On the planet Terra, the inhabitants live a peaceful existence, though advanced technology is strictly forbidden without the council’s approval. One night, Mala (Evan Rachel Wood) builds a telescope and sees some scout ships arriving to abduct Terrarians. She manages to crash one of the scout ships, though she rescues the pilot, Lt James “Jim” Stanton (Luke Wilson). After nursing him back to health, she helps recover his ship, but if he rescues her father Roven (Dennis Quaid). Through Jim’s robot Giddy (David Cross), Mala learns that humanity is dying and in search of a new home. While looking for Jim’s ship, they discover that the Terran leader Doron (James Garner) has been keeping Terra’s military technology. Meanwhile, General Hemmer (Brian Cox) is planning to launch an assault on Terra to terraform and conquer the planet. Who will survive in the Battle for Terra?
Review
While not an amazing animated sci-fi film, Battle for Terra is a very unique film that’s worth a one-time viewing. It has an interesting story that takes familiar story tropes and puts a few different spins on it. For one, neither the humans nor the Terrarians are presented as all good and all evil, each being more complex. The Terrarians are living a peaceful existence unaware of the advanced weapons technology their leaders are hiding from them. Meanwhile, the humans are just looking for a new home while avoiding the mistakes their ancestors made to ensure survival. Even if you disagree with the methods of either group, you can understand where each is coming from. There’s also a lot of interesting lore and backstory to both groups, and it makes you want to learn more. It’s a great example of using existing tropes to craft an interesting story.
Given the film had a $4 million budget, the animation is decent and flows well, though it hasn’t aged well. The Terrarians and humans all have a similar design, which can make it hard to distinguish between who is who. Granted, there are some small changes made for the main characters, but they’re very minor and aren’t all that noticeable. Voice-acting wise, everyone does a fine job, particularly Evan Rachel Wood, Luke Wilson, David Cross, and Brian Cox. Cox easily stands out as General Hammer, delivering a very commanding performance and giving the character plenty of gravitas. Classic actor James Garner does a decent job as Doron, the Terran leader, though there isn’t much to his character. There are some fun action sequences, and at roughly 80 minutes, the film won’t take up much of your time. Overall, Battle for Terra isn’t great, but it’s a decent rental.
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