Treasure Planet, One of Disney’s Best
The Most Unorthodox Treasure Island Adaptation Yet
Treasure Island was the focus of my last post, and I was subsequently asked to continue that theme into this post by taking a fresh look at this much loved, yet rather unusual Treasure Island film adaptation. In this post we will see how well the creation team at Disney did in recreating this classic into something entertaining with a strong futuristic element. We will also highlight this film’s uniqueness and the various characters within.
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet is an amazing Disney production that was assigned a brilliant cast of voice actors which includes such notables as:
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Jim Hawkins
- Brian Murray as John Silver
- Emma Thompson as Captain Amelia
- David Hyde Pierce as Doctor Doppler
- Martin Short as B.E.N.
- Michael Wincott as Scroop
- Laurie Metcalf as Sarah Hawkins
- Roscoe Lee Brown as Mr. Arrow
- Patrick McGoohan as Billy Bones
- Dane Davis as Morph
- Austin Majors as Young Jim.
This animated film makes you rethink everything that you thought you knew about Treasure Island. You’re no longer watching a story that takes place in the mid-1700s. No, instead, you’re transported into the distant future where everything is strangely wonderful, where cosmic space docks house spaceships from all over the galaxy and creatures from distant planets mingle with one another in harmony.
It takes place in outer space and is no longer simply an adventure film but a science fiction movie as well. By watching it, you are hurled through space, sailing on solar winds, passing vast star systems with their gas giants and super novas. You narrowly escape being sucked into the void of a black hole as you navigate through dangerous space debris and ride the tails of comets.
It’s a magical place of wonder, this fantasy world that they built for us, and it is a journey worth taking. Let’s travel now through the post and meet the true stars of…Treasure Planet.
Meet the Main Characters
Jim Hawkins – The star of the movie
We first see Jim as an adorable little boy who is fascinated by the tales of the notorious pirate captain, Nathanial Flint and his hidden treasure.
Then the movie skips forward some years and we see him as he is in this picture of him. He’s wild and brash, prone to recklessness and is frequently in trouble with the law.
This is so far away from the Jim Hawkins in the original that it’s laughable. But then, this is not an ordinary adaptation. This is out of this world.
Sarah Hawkins – Jim’s mother and owner of the Benbow Inn
Unlike in the original where Sarah runs the inn with Jim’s father, she is alone. It is seen later on that Jim’s father left one day, sailing off into the universe, never to be seen or heard from again. Therefore, we will not discuss him further.
The Benbow Inn, not the Admiral Benbow Inn, is a respectable place where locals and space travelers alike can find a place to rest and eat a lovely meal – all served by Sarah herself. She is a competent businesswoman as well as a concerned mother. Her one wish is for Jim to stop being reckless and do something productive with himself instead.
Doctor Delbert Doppler
Doctor Doppler clearly takes the place of Dr. Livesey, however he is not a medical doctor like his predecessor. Instead, he is an astronomer. He is clever and craves adventure, yet he’s also a bit timid and eccentric.
As you can see from his picture, he is rather doglike. In fact, none of the other characters are human besides Sarah and Jim, which I found to be rather odd. A few more human characters added to the mix would have given the movie a more balanced feel.
Captain Amelia – Captain of the R. L. S. Legacy
Well, Disney really took liberties with this character. Why they traded Captain Smollett for Captain Amelia, I really can’t say. I was a bit shocked when she first appeared. I was expecting a male captain, not a female cat person.
They did develop her character well though. She is commanding, intelligent, and spunky, with a bit of a flirtatious side to her in regards to Doctor Doppler. There is no question about there being an attraction between the two of them.
Mr. Arrow – Captain Amelia’s first mate
When I first saw Mr. Arrow, I thought for sure that he was Captain Smollett. I was of course wrong about that.
What can I say about Mr. Arrow? Did they do right by his character? No, this rendition of him did not match the original very well at all. They gave him an inner strength of character and a work ethic that was not present in the Mr. Arrow of Treasure Island. The old Mr. Arrow was a slacker and a drunk who fell overboard during the trip to the island. This new Mr. Arrow, a rock person by appearance, did also “fall” overboard, if one can “fall” upward, and was sucked into a black hole. He was missed.
Long John Silver – Cook and pirate
Long John Silver aka John Silver aka Silver was a sly, crafty, and clever man. That was shown in all of his characters. However, instead of being one legged like usual, he is a cyborg in this video performance. And I am hard pressed to figure out what he is exactly. Whatever he is, he’s not human.
Morph – Silver’s glob buddy and Jim’s new friend
Morph is a major part of the film’s comic relief. He is able to change into and mimic anything he sees or hears, and he does this frequently throughout the movie in hilarious ways. He is the substitute for Silver’s parrot, Flint, and is much more adorable.
It’s not clear where he came from, only that Silver found him and took him under his wing so to speak.
Morph loves Silver, but he sides with Jim when things go south and he has to choose one or the other. He seems to know right from wrong and wants to do what’s right. We could all stand to learn from him in so many ways.
Scroop – Pirate in Silver’s crew
Some sort of creepy spider-crab, Scroop is a completely new character to the story. He is mean, evil, and malicious, and he wants Jim dead. His character is the true villain in the film and made me glad when his end came.
Billy Bones – Old buccaneer
Billy Bones, otherwise known as Captain in the other adaptations, is an old pirate from Captain Flint’s crew. He arrives at the Benbow Inn with his sea chest and quickly dies. Before he passes away, he opens the chest and gives Jim a strange orb that’s covered in cryptic markings.
This orb turns out to be a treasure map that shows Jim and Doctor Doppler how to find Flint’s legendary treasure.
This portrayal of Billy Bones is not accurate. In the book and other adaptations, he prefers to be called Captain and denies the name Billy Bones. He also lives at the Admiral Benbow Inn for quite some time before he dies, and he never personally gave Jim any treasure map.
In this film, his time with us is short.
Captain Nathanial Flint – Notorious pirate captain
We really don’t see or hear much about old Flint other than some background information and when we see inside the giant planet where his treasure trove is hidden with his bones. This was creative and fitting for this rendition but hardly what other versions say.
Yes, he is dead in all variations, but he is never found with his trove – all except in this one.
We do know that he was ruthless and much feared by all, and this remained true even within this unusual space odyssey.
B. E. N. – Robot navigator from Flint’s crew
B. E. N. takes the place of Ben Gunn and is a robot. While Ben Gunn seemed insane to Jim because of his long stay alone on the island, B. E. N. was that way because Flint had removed B.E.N.s memory chip giving the robot acute memory loss and temporary insanity.
All that changed when Jim found the chip and reconnected it to the back of the robot’s head. As soon as that happened, he was back to normal.
Like Morph, B.E.N. was used as a source of comic relief and his character put me in mind of Fender, from the 2005 Disney movie Robots, voiced by the late Robin Williams.
* A quick note: There isn’t a character to represent Squire Trelawney. His character was left out entirely.
Star ship v. Schooner
The R. L. S. Legacy
Beautiful and sleek, this star ship has the future of space travel written all over it. It cries out to traverse the cosmos in search of the adventure that can only be found in outer space. Adventure like none other; of a treasure hunt, mutiny, and danger. It’s little wonder that Doctor Doppler hired her to take him and Jim on the quest to find the famed Treasure Planet.
The Hispaniola
The schooner, the Hispaniola, purchased and kitted out by Squire Trelawney in Bristol, England, and manned by a motley group of honest men and pirates. Such a vast difference in appearance from her futuristic counterpart, yet just as stunning in her own way.
CONCLUSION
So, here we are at the end. I hope you got a good feel for what the creators did to make Treasure Planet different from Treasure Island as we looked at what each character was like. I didn’t go too much into scenes because it is such a good movie that I didn’t want to give anything away. You totally should see it for yourself if you haven’t already. And, even if you have seen it, watch it again. You’ll be glad you did.