Titan A.E. (PG) No Rating

Review Date: June 16th, 2000

"Battlestar Galactica" for the Sony PlayStation 2 set.

Story

Years after Earth is destroyed by a hostile alien race (when aren't they

hostile?), a strapping young buck named Cale (Matt Damon) is recruited

for a mission to locate a spaceship that holds the key to human

survival. With the alien baddies on their tail, Cale and company are in

a race against time to secure a new home for the Earthlings who have

been left homeless by the Drej.

Acting

This brilliant animated sci-fi adventure has the added benefit of a

stellar cast. Other than John Leguizamo, who renders a whimsical voice

for the nonhuman navigator Gune, the cast refrains from altering their

normal voices, instead injecting their regular speech with the type of

emotion, sincerity and charm you'd expect from a live-action feature. In

addition to Damon, Drew Barrymore is Akima, the pilot who catches Cale's

eye; Bill Pullman is the authoritative captain; Nathan Lane is the

suspicious first mate; and Janeane Garofalo is a weapons specialist with

(surprise!) a bad attitude.

Direction

In addition to producing "Anastasia," veteran animators Don Bluth and

Gary Goldman are known for creating some of the most popular laser disc

interactive video games, and it shows in "Titan A.E." The brilliant

graphics and sophisticated animation here will prompt more than one

double take as you wonder whether what you're seeing is real or

animated. The tapestry that surrounds the characters -- particularly in

the final moments of Earth -- is nothing short of the best animation

ever to hit the big screen. Just one question: What's up with Cale's

naked butt scene and Akima's shower sequence? We haven't seen this much

animated skin since Shelley Winters evacuated the Poseidon.

Bottom Line

If they can pry themselves away from the video games long enough, the

teenage boys'll love it.