Plot: What’s it about?
Tad has always dreamed of being an archaeologist, with visions of grand adventures in historical locales dancing around inside his mind. While he did end up digging in the dirt, he wound up as a construction worker, not an archaeologist. But he is soon given a chance to live his dream, when he is mistaken for a famous archaeologist and swept off on a grand adventure. Tad finds himself in Peru, working with the brilliant Professor Lavrof and his beautiful daughter, Sara. Tad even meets his hero, famed archaeologist Max Mordon. The goal is to find the legendary Lost City of Paititi, but there is a sense of urgency since other treasure hunters on the trail and they only seek to plunder the city’s hidden riches. As Tad is pulled into this whirlwind situation, he barely has time to appreciate that his dream has come true…sort of. Will he be left in the dust in the mad dash for the city, or will he prove that he truly deserves a place among archaeology’s finest?
A family friendly tribute to Indiana Jones and other adventure movies, Tad: The Lost Explorer is a fun, brisk film that offers more than solid entertainment. This is also one of the animated movies that manages to entertain both the adults and children, which is a great compliment. I will say that Tad: The Lost Explorer is not rated, but falls within what I would call PG standards, so perhaps the youngest viewers might be scared by the action at times. But the action isn’t violent and the tension of the chases is never to the point that kids would be overly stressed. If your children can handle PG movies, they’ll be fine with this one. The animation is a notch better than I had expected, but still don’t expect Pixar level visuals here. The visuals are fun and well crafted though, with a lot more detail and depth than many animation releases. So good fun and good animation, not much else we could want, right? I had a lot of fun with Tad: The Lost Explorer and it is well recommended to anyone who enjoys animated features or adventure style movies.
Video: How’s it look?
Tad: The Lost Explorer is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen. The animation is bright and colorful, which translates well in the high definition treatment. The rich hues fill the screen, which really captures the eye, while contrast is dead on also, so the animation really looks good here. As I said before, the visuals have a lot of little details and this transfer ensures that even the smallest touches shine through. In short, the movie looks awesome.
Audio: How’s it sound?
You can choose English or Spanish language tracks, both offered in DTS HD 5.1 soundtracks. The audio is well handled, with the kind of presence you’d expect from an adventure yarn like this. The surrounds don’t offer explosive presence, but they come to life when called on and never disappoint. So the action is enhanced by the audio and overall, the movie has a lot of atmosphere, which is always welcome. No issues on the dialogue front either, the movie sounds great on all fronts. This release also includes English subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This release includes no bonus materials.
