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Treasure Planet mixes Disney animators' work in traditional drawing and in digital invention. They sketch a whole new take on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic adventure, making it an interplanetary thrill-ride for the family. Young Jim Hawkins jumps aboard a ship that, at times, bears a striking resemblance to Captain Hook's pirate ship. There, he makes the acquaintance of a cantankerous captain named Silver who is questing for buried treasure.

Michael Elliott (Movie Parables) calls the movie "a rip-roaring thrill ride of a movie that will excite young and old alike. Both [Silver and Jim] set out to find riches, adventure, and personal glory only to discover something that proves to be far more valuable and rewarding." As a caution, he adds, "The very young may want to sit this one out, however. The action is loud, frenetic and full of life-threatening situations which may be overly frightening to them."

David DiCerto (Catholic News) praises the film's animation and story, which "explores the complexities of father-son relations, the alienating repercussions wreaked by severed bonds. The film's timeless theme of empowerment through the realization of one's true self-worth is much needed for a generation lost in space." But DiCerto is not entirely satisfied. "Unfortunately, eclipsing [Disney's] acumen and artistry are the omnipresent merchandising efforts sure to accompany the film's release. This strategy that dominates much of Disney's corporate thinking is ironic, given the picture's strong message of valuing personal relations over material gain."

The film opens Friday, and Film Forum will offer more reviews next week.

What would you do if you could get your lost loved ones back? Solaris, the new film from Steven Soderbergh, asks that question and a host of others.

They are not new questions, and Solaris is not a new story. Author Stanislaw Lem wrote the novel on which it is based. And film buffs are already well aware of the 1972 film version made by the greatest Russian filmmaker and, according to some, the greatest filmmaker of all time: Andrei Tarkovsky. Tarkovsky's film is a rewarding epic, but it also requires subsequent viewings, and a lot of patience, because of its complex tapestry of plots, themes, and mysteries. It's 165 minutes long, while Soderbergh's film tells a simpler version in only 95 minutes. Thus, this new take might seem more like a lost Twilight Zone episode or a more cerebral Star Trek.

But it is remarkable how much Soderbergh accomplishes in that short space, and just how artfully he pulls it off. Solaris is the most subtle and abstract commercial American movie of the last few years. Many viewers will find it hard going, vague, and frustrating. Those who love it owe some credit to Tarkovsky and Lem, whose work clearly inspired much of Soderbergh's vision. But Soderbergh deserves some measure of applause as well for his courage in re-inventing a challenging work of art for a larger audience after stumbling with the frivolous, star-crowded Oceans 11.

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November (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46