Audrey says “fuck your gender roles”

This movie is super underrated.

Audrey is so underrated. How can you not love her?

I have a love-hate relationship with this movie.
On one hand it’s got awesome PoC characters who defy racial and gender stereotypes. It also discusses colonialism and how people tend to destroy indigenous cultures to obtain land and resources (which is why the crew ultimately decided a to pretend they never found Atlantis because they don’t want anyone else to try and destroy the culture).
But on the other hand, the whole plot is that Atlantis needs a white, cishet man to save it from extinction and for some reason he understand their culture and language better than they do.

hEY FUCK YOU OKAY
MILO WAS THE ANTITHESIS OF WHITE SAVIOR
HE WAS A NERDY USELESS LITTLE SHIT WHO WAS COWARDLY UNTIL OTHERS FORCED HIM TO ACT
HIS ONLY STRENGTHS WERE HIS MIND AND HIS ETHICS
HE WAS THE PERFECT DUDE FOR THE JOB AND THE REASON HE KNEW BETTER WAS BECAUSE HE RIGOROUSLY STUDIED TEXTS THAT HAD BEEN LOST OR DESTROYED IN ATLANTIS BECAUSE KIDA’S FATHER INTENTIONALLY LET HIS KINGDOM LAPSE INTO DECAY AND OBSCURITY

DO NOT PULL THAT WHITE SAVIOUR BULLSHIT BECAUSE MILO WAS A DAMN GOOD DUDE

I’ve been trying to tell people this for years. Also, what differentiates Milo’s experience from the white savior complex is his expectation and his attitude. When looking for Atlantis, the last thing Milo expects to find are people. He says the most they thought that they would find are carvings and pottery. And he would have been happy with just that.

And even when he finds the Atlanteans, he treats the culture and people with the utmost respect (peek the scene where the crew has their audience with the king). He never tries to interfere in the people’s way of life nor change them. He’s merely an observer fascinated with the culture/people and just wants to know more about them.

In most movies, the white savior comes into the situation with an attitude of superiority and only through his interactions with the native people (and a lot of times a beautiful native woman) is he humbled and then eventually brought in as an honorary member of the people. Milo never asks for thanks or wants to make a name for himself. He does what he does because he loves it and it’s a way to keep his grandfather’s legacy alive.

Yeah. Milo was a damn good dude.

And another thing about Milo that’s made evidenced by this scene in particular? He’s got respect for women.
He doesn’t ask why it’s a GIRL mechanic on the expedition, only why it’s a TEENAGER. Doesn’t question Kida’s leadership and knowledge when he meets her. (I can’t think of more examples off the top of my head but I’m sure they’re there).

Milo is a wonderful Disney protagonist, and this movie deserves the underground love it receives.

Also its interesting to note that though they are together at the end, Kida is the one in the royal regalia like her mother. Her father tells Milo his burden would have passed to his daughter but now it goes to Milo. A lot of people think the burden he meant was of the throne, but what he really meant was the burden of the knowledge of the crystal and of their past and his own failure to protect his people. When he gives Milo his crystal he is not making Milo the king. He is telling him to rescue Kida so she can rule, and to use the knowledge of the crystal to protect his people. This was a cautious king…. he wasn’t going to give his throne to some stranger, but he saw goodness in Milo’s heart and knew he’d do the right thing and help them. Milo stays so he can be their linguist and research them their lost language because he dedicated his life to it. Kida and he grew close, yes but in all honesty Kida and the power of the crystal were who saved Atlantis and that is why at the end she is in the proper ruler attire and Milo and she probably remain a couple but I was always certain that Kida was the ruler, not Milo. Honestly he also doesn’t strike me as the type to want to rule. Teach yes, rule, not so much. This movie breaks a lot of archetypes and it a not perfect but it’s really good.