ThomasNATION Movie Reviews - Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure
November 13, 2021
Let me tell ya, bros. This is something I've been wanting to review for a while now.
There's many opinions on what the best Thomas special is. Sure, it's almost unanimous that the worst is something like Misty Island Rescue, but for the best? That's where things get interesting. Some could say that Journey Beyond Sodor is one of the best. Others may have a soft spot for The Great Discovery. Some would even decide to be maniacs and declare Day of the Diesels the best. But it can be agreed that the best year for the specials was undeniably 2015. There, we had two fantastic specials, of course being The Adventure Begins, and today's item of discussion, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure. But enough about all that, what do I think of the movie? Is this special worthy of being called a treasure, or are some secrets better off hidden? Let's begin.
After causing a major accident at Knapford, Thomas is sent away in disgrace to work on a new branch line. But soon, all kinds of chaos unravels when he meets Sailor John, who's on a hunt for some treasure. But little does he know that there's more to the treasure and his new friend than meets the eye.
Of all the seasons and specials created by the Brenner team, this is what I would declare their crowning achievement. One thing I absolutely love about the story is how cinematic it is. Both the tone and the narrative both give off this "made for the big screen" vibe that not even Thomas and the Magic Railroad, a Thomas movie literally made for the big screen, could match. This is mainly attributed with how epic and even intense it feels throughout. I'll go into detail a little later, but a lot of the scenes have a ton of scale and weight that makes it all the more grand. Plus with the action scenes thrown in throughout the film, the stakes are surprisingly high for a Thomas production. Most of the time, with the exception of the climax of Blue Mountain Mystery, the action scenes' only real threat is "what if the character gets derailed?" or "what if they get trapped?". Here, the stakes are cranked up, with several scenes in which it feels like these characters could be seriously harmed, or even killed.
Another aspect I have to praise is how coherent the storyline is. The big problem with stuff like Tale of the Brave and especially King of the Railway is that, while they're good, the stories are a bit muddled. I say especially King of the Railway because the special contains a ton of subplots that don't connect with each other. Here, the subplots flow naturally throughout the main narrative, including Thomas' fear of being replaced, Marion and the "verra wee engines", and even Henry's fear of encountering a lost pirate. Not to mention, the film can be pretty funny at times, especially with the aspect of the two Olivers. The only criticism I have with the story is that there are certain scenes involving the returning characters, particularly Donald and Douglas, that come off as both fan-service and filler. But overall, it's pretty hard to believe that with how intense and mature the storyline is, it was written for a Thomas the Tank Engine special.
Another element of the film that was amped up here was the animation. This has to be some of the best animation put into Thomas. This is especially the case with the setpieces. Both the town of Arlesburgh Harbor and even the construction yard have this grand scale, which is also elevated by the cinematography. This isn't something I typically praise in a Thomas production, but the shots, angles and even lighting are absolutely gorgeous. Another thing to note is that the musical number with the small engines is really visually creative, having an almost pop-up book-esque style, helping it stand out and allowing these engines to stick in the minds of the viewer. But the best aspect of the visuals are the action scenes. Thanks to the high stakes of the story, the several crashes and chases, especially the big chase at the end, keep a fast pace, keeping it intense and unpredictable where it looks like, again, certain characters could meet their doom.
But y'know what element doesn't get enough attention? The use of symbolism. Take this recurring shot for example. When Thomas says he'll always remain Sir Topham Hatt's number one engine, there we see it. The number one. Clear as day.
Then fast forward to later where he feels that he's not the number one anymore. Notice how the number one is blocked off, almost nowhere to be seen. It's not the most subtle detail in the world, but it's still a clever touch.
A big problem with Brenner's specials beforehand, except The Adventure Begins, is that the new characters barely ever play a vital role in the story aside from the token newbies like Stephen or Gator. Maybe Marion plays an important role in Tale of the Brave, but everyone else like Connor, Caitlin, Timothy, all those guys, can pretty much be written out of the film with not much changing. That's not what happened here.
First, you have Ryan. At first, he seems to be the new kid on the block that Thomas feels is gonna take over his branch line, a bit similar to Stanley. But in actuality, he feels so well-implemented into the world that it feels like he could've existed in Thomas from the get-go, from his personality to even his design.
And then there's the small engines, Rex, Mike and Bert, straight from the railway series, and let me tell ya, when I heard they were gonna be included in the film, I was blown away. I couldn't believe that the team were gonna bring in Railway Series-exclusive characters at this point in the series. Plus, now that the show's animated, there's no reason to worry with them being brought in. And that hype more than paid off. I especially love how their subplot with Marion is based off a line of dialogue where James and Henry thought the engines must be some kind of magic, as well as it bringing in a lot of comedic potential which is brilliantly realized. And dude, do I even need to mention "Never Overlook a Little Engine"? It's a brilliant song that I've previously gone over, so I won't repeat myself.
Then you have Skiff. While he has a pretty silly concept, he has a really interesting arc about overcoming the abuse he's endured over the years and standing up to Sailor John, culminating him giving the final blow to his plan in the end. But even at that, I'd personally call him my favorite of the bunch thanks to his charming personality.
And then, you have Sailor John, or as I like to call him, PT Boomer reborn. I call him this because while he's not the best villain in the franchise compared to Diesel 10, he's clearly the darkest with the lengths he'll go to get away with the treasure, even if it means killing Thomas, all brought together with a fantastic performance by the late Sir John Hurt...which actually reminds me. The film has a surprising all-star cast, including the aforementioned Hurt, and also Olivia Colman, Jamie Campbell Bower and even Eddie Redmayne, straight off of his Oscar win. That right there is insane. And as such, all these A-list actors and even the veterans of the show give great performances.
The one character I can't seem to wrap my head around here is just Henry. While he does introduce the concept of Captain Calles and the treasure, my problem with his subplot is that there's no payoff. There should've been a moment where Henry faces his fears and gives a blow during the final showdown, but no. All we see him do is just run in fear from Skiff, making his presence in the remainder of the movie kinda pointless.
One other thing I'd like to mention here is the film's score. To help them out with this endeavor, Robert and Peter Hartshorne brought in the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra to compose the movie's musical themes, and that effort really paid off, as the score is absolutely phenomenal. This also helps push the feel of a cinematic outing with how grand the music swells whenever it calls for an action scene, or softens whenever it needs to have a tender moment.
But overall, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure is undeniably the Brenner team's magnum opus. With a fully cinematic and epic storyline, spectacular animation and cinematography, brilliant characters, great voice-acting, a tremendous score and fantastic action, this is easily the best of the Thomas specials. Hell, stretch it out about 20 or 30 minutes more, it could probably work as a theatrical Thomas & Friends movie. It's a brilliant achievement by the team, and as such, I highly recommend it. I'll close this off by giving it a perfect 5 out of 5.
Final Score: 5/5
About the Author: JF the LOLZOR
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