Before I summarize the plot of this movie I want to talk about the story in broader terms. Starchaser shamelessly borrows - both in theme and design - from other popular films of the same genre. The parallels to Star Wars, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and even Heavy Metal are glaringly obvious. This led to heavy criticism regarding the films originality (or lack thereof), but while this unfavorable analysis is certainly founded I also believe it to be somewhat ... exaggerated. True, the movie is derivative, but it's not the one to one rip off that some would have you believe (especially when compared to stories like Eragon, which is basically Star Wars with Dragons). What you have are a bunch of popular ideas thrown in a blender, thoroughly mixed and served up in an entertaining way; and make no mistake the movie is entertaining. The story is well paced, with very few "slow" spots. The action is fun and there are even a few humorous moments. Sadly it's not all good news. I must admit that the characters - while enjoyable - are ultimately clichéd. You have the wide-eyed, naive young hero (Orin), the grizzled smuggler who acts tough, but ultimately has a heart of gold (Dagg), and of course there's the pretty young princess who's just along for the ride (Aviana). All of these characters (and others) feel like superficial stereotypes, a feeling that is undeniably present in many aspects of the movie. The villain Zygon is also emulative, both in appearance and motivation. I don't want to give too much away but let’s just say the played out theme of robots destroying mankind is well represented here. Other failings include a very forced and unnatural romance between Orin and Aviana, as well as a confusing, under explained mythology known as the "Kakann" (the mysterious power that resides within Orin).
I don't want to retell the entire movie here so instead I'll move forward with a brief synopsis. Our story begins with the young hero Orin. Orin lives as a slave in the hellish realm of Mine-World where he's forced to mine red crystals day and night (not that he would know the difference since Mine-World is entirely underground). After discovering a mystical sword hilt Orin is given the task of escaping his imprisonment and traveling to the surface world. Once there he must find the hilt's blade and free his people. Orin encounters several colorful characters along the way to help him on his quest. First is the thieving, Han Solo wannabe, Dagg. Initially Dagg wants nothing to do with Orin, but eventually he warms up to the "water moccasin" (that's Dagg's affectionate nickname for Orin) and the two traverse various planets using Dagg's starship (complete with wise cracking computer). Along the way they pick up a sexy robot secretary named Silica and the obligatory princess Aviana. Unfortunately Aviana is nothing more than a one-dimensional love interest for Orin with next to no motivation or characterization. To complete his quest Orin must defeat Zygon. Zygon is your typical cape wearing bad guy bent on universal domination. He's also responsible for the subjugation of Orin's people.
With the basic story now behind us I'll forge ahead with the movies production quality. The overall production value of Starchaser is pretty solid. Though it's not as good as a classic Disney film the movie clearly had a reasonable budget. My only real hang-up in terms of visuals was the use of rotoscoping. For anyone who doesn't know, rotoscoping is an animation technique where the animator traces over recorded live action movement one frame at a time (this can be quite time consuming). Personally I prefer the more expressive look derived from non-rotoscoped animation (same goes for that ugly motion capture technique that Robert Zemeckis is so obsessed with). Fortunately the rotoscoping used in Starchaser is done in a tasteful way (as opposed to movies like Wizards and the LOTR animated films). True some of the interaction between characters is awkward, but generally speaking the movements are fluid and realistic enough for me to be un-offended. But while the character animation is merely decent, the starship animation used throughout the film is excellent. Turns out Starchaser was animated for 3-D. Of course I've never seen the film in 3-D, but it's easy enough to tell that the main use of the format was during the spaceship battles. From what I understand to accomplish this feat the animators used computer generated models that they then rotoscoped. To maximize the effect we are treated to lots of dramatic shots of starships coming directly at the camera, and plenty of mid-air flips. Considering the movies age I was exceedingly impressed by this choreography. In all my years of sci-fi and animation fandom I have never seen anything quite like the ships in Starchaser. I would love to have seen them in the theater in actual 3-D.
The background paintings from Starchaser look very good as well. Once again, they're not as strong as a movie like Lady and the Tramp, but they are more than able to get the job done. With a diverse series of locations you are treated to everything from underground slave mines to swamps to deserts to pristine forests and even a futuristic cityscape. On the negative side some of the design work on characters and starships is lacking, both in originality and aesthetics. The character design is such a mishmash of borrowed looks that it can become frustrating. Whether it’s the robots that look like something out of Heavy Metal, or the superhero cape sported by Zygon, I just felt like there was nothing new being offered from the movies design team. As for the starship design, the best word I can think to describe it is forgettable (but only in design, not in execution). When compared to things like Tie-Fighters, X-Wing fighters and especially the Millenium Falcon, the ships from Starchaser feel tame by comparison.
Like many aspects of Starchaser the audio from the film is noticeably recycled and dated. Things like laser blasts and starship sounds can be traced to various other films of the same genre. Of course I didn't expect the film to reinvent these sounds, but it would have been nice to at least see an attempt at originality. The voicing cast is manageable, but nothing special. Only Dagg's voice (performed by Carmen Argenziano) is remotely memorable. Musically Starchaser is certainly a product of its time. You can just feel the 80's oozing out of it when you listen to the booming orchestra (reminders me a lot of Ice Pirates). Where some would be critical of this I - on the other hand - found the nostalgia utterly charming.
Though I would never accuse Starchaser of being original, I none the less found the movie to be an enjoyable ride. Yes the film unabashedly "borrows" from other movies of the same genre, I just think that it does so in a charming way. Beside the vintage look and feel of 1985, what I really like about Starchaser is that it is a "complete" movie. There's a lot of feature film animation from the late 70's and early 80's that comes across as hodgepodge. For all of its shortcoming Starchaser never falters in its execution. Even the more ambitious elements - such as the rotoscoped/CG starships - look professional and polished. I'm not trying to elevate the film to classic, or even cult status. What I am trying do is tell you this; if you are a fan of 80's sci-fi/fantasy and you haven't seen Starchaser, you should check it out.
