Battle For Terra 3D
Jumping on the 3D bandwagon which has carried Avatar to the largest worldwide box office haul in history, Aristomenis Tsirbas's computer-animated fantasy is far less ambitious in scope than James Cameron's behemoth.
Jumping on the 3D bandwagon which has carried Avatar to the largest worldwide box office haul in history, Aristomenis Tsirbas's computer-animated fantasy is far less ambitious in scope than James Cameron's behemoth.
However, Battle For Terra 3D does embrace many of the same themes: Mankind's plundering of planet Earth, our intolerance of other cultures, and that primal urge to destroy the things we do not understand.
Made independently over the course of three years, Tsirbas's feature is expanded from his award-winning 2003 short film Terra, which subverted the way invading aliens were portrayed.
Instead, humans storm a tranquil, alien community and compel the peace-loving inhabitants to take up arms to protect their loved ones.
On the idyllic planet of Terra, the elders keep the population in check and everyone tows the line, apart from a few free thinkers like Mala (voiced by Evan Rachel Wood), who dares to fly her hand-made glider into the forbidden zone.
Her best friend Senn (Justin Long) and father Roven (Dennis Quaid) try to curb Maya's rebellious ways, but it is impossible to tame the free spirit.
Human spaceships capture some of the Terrians for experimentation but one pilot, Jim Stanton (Luke Wilson), loses control of his craft and crash-lands on the planet surface.
Although her own father was seized in the recent raid, Mala takes Jim to her home and nurtures the astronaut back to full health in a cleverly constructed oxygen tent, aided by his robot dog Giddy (David Cross).
President Chen (Danny Glover), the head of Earthforce, is torn between the survival of humankind and the devastation being wrought on Terra.
When he fails to follow the advice of warmonger General Hemmer (Brian Cox), the grizzled veteran stages a coup and unleashes his ships upon the planet.
Doron (James Garner), the leader of the aliens, and his advisor Vorin (Ron Perlman) reluctantly prepare for war.
When the elders arrive to take Jim into captivity, Mala is forced to make a stark choice between her own kind or helping Jim to escape, in the hope he will return the favour by rescuing her old man from captivity aboard the human mothership.
The bond between the two species brings about another conflict as Jim clashes with his brother Stewart (Evans), a devoted military man who intends to eradicate every last Terrian.
Battle For Terra 3D is slickly executed but the film feels very flat and lifeless next to Pixar's recent efforts and the aforementioned Avatar.
Moreover, Tsirbas's film doesn't noticeably take advantage of the technology, making it difficult to justify the higher ticket prices associated with the format.
Cox plays up his pantomime villain, but other vocal performances are lacklustre and Evan Spiliotopoulos's script rarely strays from the path signposted 'Predictable'.
Release Date: Friday 12 February 2010
Certificate: PG
Runtime: 97mins
