Planetary Traveler

Travel at the speed of thought! A definite collector's "must have". I'm the biggest Nickman fan on the planet, so don't take my word for it, but the fact that this was the first ever full-length production created entirely on desktop computers is enough for me. Planetary Traveler was history in the making and unprecedented at the time.

Planetary Traveler tells the story of an alien race - the last of an alien race - who could travel at the speed of thought. I really love the fact that the story is told almost entirely in music and visuals and if you let it, it will take you on a journey to another state of consciousness.

Each animation artist was given their own planet to create and the music is an original score by Paul Haslinger (Underworld), so it's definitely unlike anything you've ever seen. If you value original, ground breaking, mind-blowing, artistry, then this is one you've gotta see.

I guess it was cool back in 1997. It is now 2014 and the effects look like something 3rd graders today can put together with their fingers via an app.

The imaginary trip flies our 8 planets (no Pluto) via horrible and cheap PC drawings and effects.

The video pushes evolution, alien seeding and animism.

It never tells you the planet it visits, which gets a bit confusing after Mars because it does not show the Saturn rings and clumps Neptune, Uranus and ? together.

It adds oceans and dead trees to some planets past Mars. Recent landings on Mars show the imagination of the Planetary Traveler makers just that, imagination and not in keeping with reality.

You can watch it free on YouTube.

Let me preface by saying I love Sci-Fi. And I really thought the CGI scenes of this movie were breath taking. I only viewed this movie once, and it was late one night on PBS. And I missed the first few minutes, but I was spell bound, and captivated by the journeys through space and around alien worlds. This movie was pleasant and imaginative. It was NOT deep or intense.... but something I'd like to watch again. Other reviewers were too harsh on this film, and called it dated. I think it was ahead of it's time in thought and execution. It is not a movie of words, but of scenes of imagination. I may never (in real life) travel out into the vast reaches of Space, but after viewing this movie, I feel that at least my mind has been there :-)

Skimpy on dialog and story, "Planetary Traveler" is nonetheless an amazing trek across the cosmos. The alien worlds - rendered entirely on the PC - range from serene to chaotic, but each one is uniquely breathtaking. The soundtrack, equally amazing, sets the tone perfectly for each planet. I highly recommend picking up this 40 minute video and watching it on a really big TV.

This is a lovely movie both in the computer-generated graphics and accompanying music, but suffers from a disjointed feeling. An accompanying "making of..." feature describes how the various planets were created by computer animators around the world who never met -- they just corresponded by email.

The result is just a series of gorgeous planetscapes with saucers and "probes" gliding over them, tied together (if at all) by a wispy story of aliens searching for a legendary gateway planet. One almost has the feeling that the story was forced upon a collection of already existing scenes.

The story itself is ponderous, new age philosophy and the gentleman that produced Planetary Traveller seems to have thought it an epoch making project. But if you can get past that and just enjoy the sights and sounds, It believe it's a worthwhile film.