Treasure Planet (2002)
A science fiction adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1883 adventure novel Treasure Island.
On the planet Montressor, young James Pleiades Hawkins (Jim) is enchanted by stories of space pirate Captain Nathaniel Flint and his ability to strike suddenly and disappear without a trace, hiding his loot on the fabled "Treasure Planet”.
Twelve years later, Jim has grown into an aloof troublemaker after his father abandoned him when he was a child. He reluctantly helps his mother Sarah run the Benbow Inn, and is caught by police after recklessly skysurfing with a rocket-powered sailboard. A spaceship crashes near the inn, and the dying pilot, Billy Bones, gives Jim a sphere and warns him to "beware the cyborg". Pirates attack, burning down the inn, and Jim flees with his mother and their dog-like friend, astrophysicist Dr. Delbert Doppler. Jim discovers that the sphere contains a holographic star map, leading to the location of Treasure Planet, and decides to seek out the legendary fortune.
Doppler commissions the ship RLS Legacy, commanded by feline Captain Amelia and stone-skinned first mate Mr. Arrow however the motley crew was hired by Doppler. Sent to work in the galley, Jim is supervised by half-robot cook John Silver, who cooks Bonzabeast stew and whom Jim suspects is the cyborg he was warned about, as well as his shape-shifting pet, Morph. It is revealed that Silver secretly runs the motley crew which includes the ruthless insectoid crew member Mr. Scroop and they are planning a mutiny. Silver learns about Jim’s lack of a father figure and decides to teach him everything he can and they form a tenuous father-son relationship (“I’m Still Here”). When the ship encounters a supernova, Jim secures the crew's lifelines. As a black hole forms, Scroop cuts Mr. Arrow's lifeline, sending him to his death. The ship rides the shock waves to safety, and Jim is framed for neglecting Arrow's lifeline, but is comforted by Silver.
Reaching the Treasure Planet, Jim discovers the crew are indeed pirates led by Silver, and a mutiny erupts. Doppler, Amelia, and Morph abandon ship, and Jim retrieves the map, while Silver cannot bring himself to shoot Jim, allowing him to escape with the others. The group is shot down, injuring Amelia, and discover that the map is Morph in disguise, with the real map still on the ship. The group meet B.E.N., an abandoned navigational robot with knowledge of Flint and his treasure, but missing much of his memory. Cornered by the pirates, Jim, Morph, and B.E.N. hijack a longboat and return to the Legacy to retrieve the map. Scroop attacks them, and the artificial gravity is disabled; Scroop attempts to cut Jim loose, but Jim kicks him overboard into deep space. Returning, they are caught by Silver and his crew, who have already captured Doppler and Amelia.
Silver forces Jim to use the map, directing them to a portal that opens to any location in the universe, allowing Flint to conduct his raids. They open the portal to the core of Treasure Planet, which is actually an ancient machine Flint commandeered to stow his treasure, but trip a hidden sensor. As the pirates collect the loot, Jim finds the skeletal remains of Flint, holding the missing component to B.E.N.'s cognitive computer. He reinserts it, and B.E.N. immediately recalls that Flint rigged the planet to explode upon the treasure's discovery. As the planet collapses, Silver attempts to escape with a boatload of treasure, but abandons it to save Jim. The survivors board the Legacy, which becomes damaged and unable to escape the planet in time. Jim rigs a makeshift sailboard and rides ahead, setting the portal to Montressor Spaceport as he and the others clear the planet's explosion.
Jim finds Silver below decks and allows him to escape, and Silver gives him Morph and a handful of treasure, to pay for rebuilding the inn, believing Jim will "rattle the stars". Sometime later, a party is hosted at the rebuilt Benbow Inn; Doppler and Amelia are married with children; B.E.N. has become a waiter at the inn; and Jim, matured under Silver's mentorship, has become an interstellar cadet. He looks to the skies and sees an image of Silver in the clouds (“Always Know Where You Are”).
TRIVIA
Visual Style
To get away with the characters not having to wear space suits and helmets in space, the filmmakers created the concept of the "Etherium," an "outer space filled with atmosphere".
While designing for Treasure Planet, the crew operated on a rule they call the "70/30 Law" which meant that the overall look of the film's artwork should be 70% traditional and 30% sci-fi.
The overall look of Treasure Planet was based on the art style promoted by illustrators associated with the Brandywine School of Illustration (such as Howard Pyle and N.C. Wyeth), whose illustrations have been described by the film's crew as being the "classic storybook illustration," having a painterly feel to it, and being composed of a warm color palette.
Technology
The animators took Deep Canvas, a technology which they had initially developed for Tarzan, and came up with a process they called "Virtual Sets," wherein they created entire 360 degree sets before they began staging the scenes. They combined this process with traditionally-drawn characters in order to achieve a "painted image with depth perception" and enabled the crew to place the camera anywhere in the set and maneuver it as they would maneuver a camera for a live-action film.
The character of John Silver was developed using both 3D and 2D animation methods.
Animators also used maquettes, small statues of the characters in the film, as references throughout the animation process. Maquettes also helped inspire the way actors would portray their roles.
Easter Eggs
A plush version of Stitch from Lilo & Stitch can be seen in toddler Jim’s room.