History YMMV / AtlantisTheLostEmpire

** Cookie is confused when he finds a can labeled "cilantro" in his supplies at the start of the mission. Cilantro -- Spanish for coriander -- was called "coriander leaves" until the 1920s (it was introduced to British colonies in North America in 1670).

* VindicatedByHistory: The film was neither a huge financial nor critical hit, and perhaps received one of the most lukewarm receptions of any Disney film at the time. Many questioned Disney on its choice to pursue an action-oriented animated film, one that was designed for an older audience in mind, and resorted to the extensive use of CGI when traditional animation had begun to lose favor at Disney. However, these days it is becoming a significant cult classic with more and more viewers taking a closer look at the film's merits. Those who enjoy it tend to appreciate its comic book-style animation and its many adventurous elements, while many in its supporting cast have grown to be fan favorites, especially Audrey, Kida, and Vinny in particular.

** In the English dub, Vinny speaks with an Italian accent. In the Italian dub, since obviously everyone speaks Italian, Vinny instead gets a southern accent.
** In the Italian dub, Rourke's "P.T. Barnum was right" line was replaced with a simpler "The world of full of fools" since the reference would have been lost on Italian audiences.

* CultClassic: As with ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'', this film is becoming one. It's one of the rare few movies that fans actually ''want'' to see join Disney's increasingly long list of [[LiveActionAdaptation live-action remakes]], just so it gets can a second shot at the box office.

* LGBTFanbase: The film has a lot of queer female fans due to [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer the sheer attractiveness of Helga, Audrey, and Kida]].

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* LGBTFanbase: The film has a lot of queer female fans due to the attractiveness of Helga, Audrey, and Kida.

* {{Adorkable}}: Milo, who personifies this to such a degree that he provides the page image for that trope. Intelligent, sweet, clumsy, scrawny, still brave... Top it off with the voice of Creator/MichaelJFox, and you have got fangirl carnage on your hands. Kida makes mention of this... in her own, unique way.

** During the Leviathan's attack on the ''Ulysses'', it briefly grabs the ship in its mandible claws and holds it up to its "eyes", close enough for Milo to watch them dilate. Considering that it doesn't attack or snap the ''Ulysses'' in half during this scene, it almost appears to be intently '''[[ItCanThink studying]]''' the ship. Is it [[PragmaticEvil analyzing the enemy for weaknesses]], perhaps trying to determine whether it's a threat? Taunting the people on board with how easily it can destroy them? Lining up a killshot for its WaveMotionGun? Or is it so ancient that it genuinely has no idea ''what the hell it has in its claws'', especially since the only other mechanical constructions it's ever seen are other Atlantean vessels like itself?

** As the Leviathan is circling the ''Ulysses'', it gives out two loud calls that the crew can't understand. Is this a RoarBeforeBeating, or was the Leviathan trying to communicate with the vessel?
** Was Rourke EvilAllAlong or did he do a FaceHeelTurn? He knew about the crystal beforehand by reading or looking at the images in the book, but he didn't understand the ancient language so he couldn't know what the crystal was exactly, nor did he expect Atlantis to still be inhabited. Excavating valuable artifacts from long dead civilizations isn't evil, even if you're OnlyInItForTheMoney, but deciding to take it from still living people who depend on it is. Considering he only starts acting outright villainous ''after'' the crystal is revealed and he is given the chance to learn more about it, it calls into question if he was EvilAllAlong, or learning the truth made him realize the value of it and acted on that.

* AudienceAlienatingPremise: While there are a number of reasons ''Atlantis'' underperformed at the box office, the one most commonly attributed to its failure is that it was simply "too different" from what viewers expected from Disney. And in all fairness, it ''was'' unlike anything Disney had produced since ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron'', which also attempted a more "mature" approach and subsequently bombed. The years following have been kinder to the film, however, and now it enjoys CultClassic status among fans.

* CompleteMonster: [[spoiler:[[OnlyInItForTheMoney Commander Lyle Tiberius Rourke]] is a tomb-robbing mercenary (or, as he insists, "[[InsistentTerminology adventure capitalist]]") solely in the Atlantis operation for profit. The leader of the expedition sent to find Atlantis, Rourke maintains a gruff, militaristic indifference to the lives of those lost to the Leviathan and upon seeing the Heart of Atlantis, plans to confiscate it and sell it for triple the money he'd receive. Knowing full well this will kill every Atlantean, when he's confronted on this Rourke threatens to shoot Princess Kida and shortly thereafter murders her father, never dropping his [[FauxAffablyEvil friendly façade]]. Rourke was concerned for [[ItsAllAboutMe little else but himself]] and the potential profit he could reap from Atlantis, to the point where he tosses [[TheDragon Helga]] off a blimp to her death in an attempt to aid his escape, and was greedy enough in the end to make his entire party turn against him.]]

* CultClassic: As with ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'', this film is becoming one. It's one of the few movies that fans actually ''want'' to see join Disney's increasingly long list of [[LiveActionAdaptation live-action remakes]], just so it get can a second shot at the box office.

** [[spoiler:Lieutenant Helga Sinclair.]] Made apparent in her [[EstablishingCharacterMoment very first scene]] when the gobsmacked hero finds her waiting for him in his apartment like some sultry FemmeFatale in a hardboiled detective story. It helps that she's voiced by Creator/ClaudiaChristian of all people!
** Even [[spoiler: Rourke]] has a few fans. Yes, really. The grave-robbing sociopath willing to wipe out an entire civilization for money. Admittedly, he does have the deep voice and physique of a {{Hunk}} despite his age, which does give him appeal among [[SilverFox fans of attractive older men]].
* FairForItsDay: The film is not without modern criticisms about Kida's character being oversexualized and stereotypically native, as well as the plot carrying WhiteSavior shades with Milo's role saving Atlantis. However, and despite it being made during the TurnOfTheMillennium, it is also one of the most diverse Disney films to date, featuring a cast of many races and nationalities with their own charisma, which is no doubt one of its draws and reasons of its cult status. It's also worth noting that Kida is still the most powerful person in the story, and the third act's rescue plot is also so that she can save ''them''. While a passive vessel for the Heart of Atlantis, depicting a woman of colour saving the day in a Disney film in 2001 was most certainly not often seen. And of course Kida is the first [[spoiler: princess character in a Disney movie to become a queen at the end]] (even if she isn't an official Franchise/DisneyPrincess).

** Cookie shows off a map on his belly showing "all 38 states." There were 38 states from 1876 to 1889 (meaning he got the tattoo sometime between age 33 and 47.) He seems to think there are ''still'' only 38 states, but then, he's not all there.
** While abandoning the main characters in Atlantis, Rourke mutters, "P. T. Barnum was right." Barnum's most famous (and probably apocryphal) saying, ''There's a sucker born every minute.'' and even people who don't know much about him understand that he was a complete grifter.
** Cookie is confused when he finds a can labelled "cilantro" in his supplies at the start of the mission. Cilantro -- Spanish for coriander -- was called "coriander leaves" until the 1920s (it was introduced to British colonies in North America in 1670).

** Mexico as well, likely because of the artistic similarites to ''[[Film/Hellboy2004 Hellboy]]'' (which is very popular in Mexico due to being directed by Mexican Creator/GuillermoDelToro).
* ItsShortSoItSucks: A few fans have noted that the film could have used a lot more running time to better establish the setting and give the characters more screen time. Official word is that ExecutiveMeddling is at fault for this one, as the journey to Atlantis was set to take up a larger portion of the story in the original drafts.

* MoralEventHorizon: [[spoiler:Rourke crosses it and keeps on going when he punches the elderly King of Atlantis so hard it causes internal bleeding, eventually leading to his death. Dr. Sweet drops out without hesitation when he sees this happen and while the other main crew members don't, Audrey and Vinny at least are shown to be disconcerted and repulsed.]]

* SugarWiki/SheReallyCanAct: Given that Creator/CreeSummer is best known for voicing 90% of SassyBlackWoman characters in cartoons, it's quite surprising to hear her give such a wildly against type performance as Kida. Cree even lists the princess as her favourite role.
* SoOkayItsAverage: General consensus among external critics seems to be that it has a lot of good points, but a lot of bad ones too with each kind of balancing the other out. For cult fans, the latter don't really care.
* SpiritualAdaptation: The movie is probably the closest thing we'll ever get to an American remake of 1990 anime series ''Anime/NadiaTheSecretOfBlueWater''. In fact, the [[https://mounawar.tumblr.com/post/127954900791/my-sister-recently-pointed-something-out-to-me similarities]] between both works are so strong that, according to the ''Nadia'' production team, there were calls for ''suing for plagiarism'' at one point. They only declined to do so because the TroubledProduction of the anime had left its rights on the hands of another production company, as well as because they didn't believe they would win against the mighty Disney in court.

* TheissTitillationTheory: Kida's Atlantean clothing bares much skin. Okay, so that's an Atlantean thing. Helga, on the other hand, wears some things with straps. Often, there is only one firmly on a shoulder at at time...
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The search for Atlantis had the potential to be an entire adventure movie of its own. Here however, it was all jammed into about a half hour of the film, which resulted in so many people feeling that it was rushed, and that the ''Ulysses'' submarine was wasted.

* VindicatedByHistory: The film was neither a huge financial or critical hit, and perhaps received one of the most lukewarm receptions of any Disney film at the time. Many questioned Disney on its choice to pursue an action-oriented animated film, one that was designed for an older audience in mind and resorted to the extensive use of CGI when traditional animation had begun to lose favor at Disney. However, these days it is becoming a significant cult classic with more and more viewers taking a closer look at the film's merits. Those who enjoy it tend to appreciate its comic book style animation and its many adventurous elements, while many in its supporting cast have grown to be fan favorites among some, especially Audrey, Kida and Vinny in particular.

** In the Brazilian dub, Cookie is from Minas Gerais, a Brazilian state that is historically associated with countrysides and whose traditional cuisine is generally rich in fatty dishes. It fit the character well, at least until Cookie reveals his tattoo, and the dub ''still'' calls it a map of Minas Gerais.

** In the Italian dub, Rourke's "P.T. Barnum was right" line was replaced with a simpler "The world of full of fools", since the reference would have been lost on Italian audiences.

* FanPreferredCouple: Although Milo and Kida are the movie's OfficialCouple, most of the movie's fanbase prefers to ship Milo with Helga.

** Vinny is arguably the most popular character. [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff ESPECIALLY in the French fanbase,]] thanks to a ''brilliant'' dub that arguably makes his {{Deadpan Snark|er}} even funnier than in the original. He's also pretty beloved among [[MexicansLoveSpeedyGonzales Italian fans]] too, as in that dub he's given a southern accent to make him stick out from the other Italian-speaking characters and to be accurate to his canon bio about being born in Palermo, Sicily.

** King Kashekim for being voiced by Creator/LeonardNimoy.
** Audrey is perhaps a close second for many, for her feisty attitude, her knack with machinery (despite her very young age), and her being one of the first team members to warm up to Milo.

** Even [[spoiler: Rourke]] has a few fans. Yes, really. The genocidal sociopath. Admittedly, he does have the physique of a {{Hunk}} despite his age.

* VanillaProtagonist: Milo's not exactly a FlatCharacter, but he's also not very interesting either especially compared to the herd of quirky supporting characters. He's just a nice if determined nerd with a talent for linguistics who gets to go on an adventure.

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Rourke. While quite a few fans regard him as a frighteningly believable antagonist who demonstrates the immorality of the worst side of capitalist values and is charismatic enough to make the third act twist work, others call him an underdeveloped villain with a bland motivation clearly shoehorned in to give the movie a conflict.

* CompleteMonster: [[spoiler:[[OnlyInItForTheMoney Commander Lyle Tiberius Rourke]] is a tomb-robbing mercenary (or, as he insists, "[[InsistentTerminology adventure capitalist]]") solely in the Atlantis operation for profit. The leader of the expedition sent to find Atlantis, Rourke maintains a gruff, militaristic indifference to the lives of those lost to the Leviathan and upon seeing the Heart of Atlantis, plans to confiscate it and sell it for double the money he'd receive. Knowing full well this will kill every Atlantean, when he's confronted on this Rourke threatens to shoot Princess Kida and shortly thereafter murders her father, never dropping his [[FauxAffablyEvil friendly façade]]. Rourke was concerned for [[ItsAllAboutMe little else but himself]] and the potential profit he could reap from Atlantis, to the point where he tosses [[TheDragon Helga]] off a blimp to her death for a minor benefit to his escape, and was greedy enough in the end to make his entire party turn against him.]]

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Rourke. While quite a few fans regard him as a frighteningly believable antagonist who demonstrates the immorality of capitalist values and is charismatic enough to make the third act twist work, others call him an underdeveloped villain with a bland motivation clearly shoehorned in to give the movie a conflict.

--> '''Kida''': You are a scholar are you not? Judging by your diminished physique and large forehead, you are suited for nothing else.

* FairForItsDay: The film is not without modern criticisms about Kida's characters being oversexualized and stereotypically native, as well as the plot carrying WhiteSavior shades with Milo's role saving Atlantis. However, and despite it being made during the TurnOfTheMillennium, it is also one of the most diverse Disney films to date, featuring a cast of many races and nationalities with their own charisma, which is no doubt one of its draws and reasons of its cult status.

** It had a big following in Canada. Probably due to how similar it was to Stargate.
** Mexico as well. Probably because of the artistic similarites to HellBoy.

* DorkAge: Given its lukewarm critical reception and box office take, it was seen as an early warning sign that Disney was falling into one, and many critics pointed to it as in hindsight being the surest sign that the Disney Renaissance had effectively ended by this point. Many fans entirely disagree, and thus place it at the end of the renaissance instead, along with ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitch'' and ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'' for their bold and daring experimentation.

* AnimationAgeGhetto: A major factor in the movie's failure. It was intended to be the beginning of a new movement for Disney that involved making animated films for older audiences. However, those same audiences, especially the teenage boys to whom ''Atlantis'' was marketed, were predisposed to ignore Disney animation-- not surprising considering that Disney has spent the entire previous decade making movies that were aimed first and foremost at very young children. TheNewTens, however, brought the fall of the ghetto and CultClassic status to the film, so it's proven itself as just ahead of its time.

* OneSceneWonder: Why yes, the [[EldritchAbomination Leviathan]] ''technically'' appears for only one brief segment of this movie. Let's put it this way - have you ''forgotten'' about the [[AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever colossal]] [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot magic Atlantean robot lobster]] that [[WaveMotionGun shoots lasers]] and inflicts an absolutely ''[[CurbStompBattle staggering]]'' death toll on the MainCharacters, in a ''Disney'' movie?

** Was Rourke EvilAllAlong or did he do a FaceHeelTurn? He knew about the crystal beforehand by reading or looking at the images in the book, but he didn't understand the ancient language so he couldn't know what the crystal was exactly, nor did he expect Atlantis to still be inhabited. Excavating valuable artifacts from long dead civilizations isn't evil, even if you're OnlyInItForTheMoney, but deciding to take it from still living people who depend on it is.

* DorkAge: Given its lukewarm critical reception and box office take, it was blamed as an early warning sign that Disney was falling into one, and many critics pointed to it as in hindsight being the surest sign that the Disney Renaissance had effectively ended by this point. Many fans entirely disagree, and thus place it at the end of the renaissance instead, along with ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitch'' and ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'' for their bold and daring experimentation.

** While abandoning the main characters in Atlantis, Rourke mutters, "P. T. Barnum was right." Barnum's most famous (and probably apocryphal) saying, ''There's a sucker born every minute.'' and even people who don't know much him understand that he was a complete grifter.

** Was Rourke EvilAllAlong or did he do a FaceHeelTurn? He knew about the crystal beforehand by reading or looking at the images in the book, but he didn't understand the ancient language so he couldn't know what the crystal was exactly, nor did he expect Atlantis to still be inhabitated. Excavating valuable artifacts from long dead civilizations isn't evil, even if you're OnlyInItForTheMoney, but deciding to take it from still living people who depend on it is.

* FranchiseOriginalSin: This film features one of the earliest uses of a trope by Disney that the company would end up criticized for overusing in UsefulNotes/TheNewTens: [[spoiler:a seemingly friendly character (Rourke) being EvilAllAlong]]. Here, it works perfectly as a surprise to viewers because [[spoiler:Rourke is so likable and badass before TheReveal, not to mention the PlayingAgainstType effect from well-respected Golden Age character actor Creator/JamesGarner]].

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: It had a big following in Canada. Probably due to how similar it was to Stargate.

* FranchiseOriginalSin: This film features one of the earliest uses of a trope by Disney that the company would end up criticized for overusing in UsefulNotes/TheNewTens: [[spoiler:a seemingly friendly character (Rourke) being EvilAllAlong]]. Here, it works perfectly because [[spoiler:Rourke is so likable and badass before TheReveal, not to mention the PlayingAgainstType effect from well-respected Golden Age character actor Creator/JamesGarner]].