Released in 2008, I was initially skeptical of turning Turok into an animated film. Not only is the franchise unproven, but the concept of stranded humans having to survive in a land of prehistoric creatures has become ... well its gotten tired and corny (or as the native americans call it, maizey). I was also concerned that the story would try and incorporate some of the video game and Valiant comic book ideas like exploding arrows and hi-tech bows, concepts that just don't appeal to me. So I steered clear of the film for about two years never willing to go out of my way to see it. Eventually the chance to buy Turok at a ridiculously low price came about and I finally decided to give it a shot. Fortunately for me the story of Turok stayed closer to its 1960s roots - and far away from the aforementioned video game stuff - while at the same time delving deeper than just the obvious theme of "man versus beast". It's actually more "man versus man", with a little "man versus himself" thrown in for good measure.
The story of Turok is a little difficult to explain so I'm going to try and summarize the basic conflicts of the film instead. At the start of the movie we are introduced to a teenage Turok who - along with his brother - is frolicking peacefully by a stream and trying to catch the eye of a young woman named Catori. This innocent scene is interrupted by three warriors from another tribe who - upon orders from their chief - attack the youngsters. Despite his youth, Turok's inborn "killer instinct" is awoken during the life or death struggle and he kills not only the opposing warriors, but their chief as well. Unfortunately the blood-lust from this battle also leads Turok to grievously wound his own brother, a crime for which he is banished. Sixteen years later Chichak - the son of the chief killed by Turok - has gathered together a large war party to attack Turok's former tribe and thus enact vengeance for his fathers death. Leading Turok's people is his brother - who went on to marry Catori and father a son Andar - but Chichak's superior numbers and equipment prove too much for them and they are destroyed. After that it becomes a chase by Turok and Andar to catch Chichak who has kidnapped Catori. Before long this pursuit leads to a standoff in a cave where all four participants stumble into a "lost world" full of ancient creatures who want nothing more than to eat them. And that's basically it, Turok and Chichak keep trying to kill each other, both find allies and lots of people die.
What I liked about the writing of Turok, Son of Stone was that the conflict from the first act of the film carries over throughout the rest of the story. I could have easily imaged the setup just leading to the "lost land" and an entirely new story of survival taking over. The fact that the animosity between Turok and Chichak is so intense that it continues to thrive - even when faced with unimaginable danger - was much more convincing than your average "let's set aside our differences for now" schtick seen so often in movies like this. I also enjoyed Turok's inner struggle with darkness. Being a natural born killer, Turok no longer feels worthy, or even able to live amongst other humans. Making matters worse is the fact that death and destruction seem to follow Turok wherever he goes.
Though both of these story elements do work nicely, there are some problems with them as well. For one thing the conflict between Chichak and Turok follows the same pattern in all three acts of the film. Again and again Chichak attacks those close to Turok in a manner that - by the end of the film - feels formulaic and repetitive. This was especially disappointing in the third act because the climax would have been much more effective had the writer chosen to add a little twist, something like Chichak's final assault stumbling into a trap set by his prey, or perhaps Turok stops Chichak before he can hurt anyone else for once. Instead the whole thing just plays out in a predictable bloodbath. As for Turok's "darkness" it may work well as an internal obstacle to overcome but it also makes him too outwardly stoic, so much so that the title "Son of Stone" should probably be changed to "Face of Stone". What I'm trying to say is that Turok needs a little warming up, just a couple of moments where we can see he's more than a killing machine - a smile here and there or a suppressed laugh - unfortunately he spends the whole film perpetually scowling at any and everything.
Overall I think the story for Turok, Son of Stone works relatively well. There are certainly flaws - and none of the themes are original or clever - but given the source material the movie exceeded my expectations. I also commend the decision to not shy away from blood, even if the film goes a little overboard with it. It's always frustrating to watch western produced animation try and tone down weapons and subject matter that are - by their own nature - violent so that they can get a PG (or even G) rating. Action-adventure cartoons from the 1980s were especially bad about this with shows featuring elite soldiers - who can't shoot anyone - and sword wielding cat-people - who can't cut anyone - being the norm. Sure, the brutality could've been less severe in Turok, but if you're going to get a mature rating you might as well go all-in.
The visuals of Turok are your standard DTV fare. Better than the average TV action-adventure cartoon, but not feature film quality. Still, the animation is smooth, character designs good and the backgrounds nicely detailed, so I wasn't disappointed with what I saw. While this production quality is certainly solid it unfortunately lacks ambition. Yes, the character designs look good, but they're also interchangeable with a dozen other action-adventure cartoons. This homogenized look is actually becoming a bit of a problem these days with far too many productions falling back on the streamlined style made popular by DC's superhero shows. Sure, it looks nice and it's safe, but if you want to really create something special you need to make your own mark.
As for the animation itself, my only complaint was with the use of slow motion. A large number of battle sequences - especially early on - used slow-mo to emphasize the action, unfortunately the effect doesn't really work all that well and whatever drama the film was trying to convey falls flat. True, slow motion is a difficult thing to do in animation, but that's why you need to apply it both carefully and sparingly, instead the film abuses it the same way live action films abuse bullet time effects. Outside of those two complaints I thought that Turok looked really good, though not as high end as some of the DC and Marvel titles, the film definitely meets the standards expected from modern day DTV releases. Not exactly resounding praise I know, but I'm taking a lot for granted when it comes to made for video animation these days, the fact that Turok's production quality can hold its own in such a competitive market is a good thing.
The voice acting and music from Turok, Son of Stone is respectable all around. Nothing really jumped out at me, positive or negative, so I'm not going to go into any real detail. Sufficed to say that, once again, Turok provides solid performances worthy of the both the medium and the genre they inhabit.
I know that it only sounds like I'm giving Turok passing marks here, but honestly that's more than I expected. I really thought the film's plot would be typically tame with subpar or even TV quality animation and I definitely didn't think it would have any teeth. Instead Turok gave me an engaging story, solid visuals and fully embraced its subject matter in a way that few do in western animation. Because the film held itself to a higher standard, I was forced to do the same (in a good way). Of course, if I'd I known that Curt Geda, Dan Riba and Tad Stone where involved with the film I would have watched it a long time ago. A very respectable movie all around, I would at least recommend that you rent Turok, Son of Stone (keeping in mind that it is a minimum PG-13 and very violent, so no children).
