The lost underwater city of Atlantis has intrigued many people through the centuries. So it was natural that the creative types at Disney would seize upon it as the backdrop for their latest animated picture, “Atlantis: The Lost Empire.”

My junior critic Samantha had no idea what Atlantis was before the film. Neither did many of the kids at the matinee we attended. But that really doesn’t matter to these young moviegoers, as they’re used to exotic settings from Disney.

The film opens with the dramatic sinking of Atlantis, but the impact is lessened by using subtitles, which many adults have never learned to palate, let alone young, early readers.

The hero of “Atlantis” is young linguist and cartographer Milo Thatch (voiced by Michael J. Fox), who is determined to fulfill his beloved grandfather’s dream of finding Atlantis. He gets recruited into an expedition to find Atlantis by millionaire Preston Whitmore, a friend of Thatch’s grandfather.

“Atlantis” resembles last summer’s “Titan A.E.” in that a young hero joins a multinational team on a quest most thought impossible. And, also like that movie, its ending is too pat and predictable.

There’s a lot of pyrotechnics in the film, which can be a little too much for younger children. My junior critic snuggled up close and turned her eyes away from the screen a handful of times.

Adults will quickly foresee twists in the ham-handed plot. You won’t drown in a flood of details in “Atlantis;” you’ll barely get wet. The fun lies in identifying the members of the voice cast, which includes James Garner, Leonard Nimoy, Phil Morris, John Mahoney, Florence Stanley and the late Jim Varney.

Samantha enjoyed this latest Disney offering, especially the way members of the expedition “saved the people” of Atlantis (didn’t see that coming, did you?). She liked the exotic natives of Atlantis as well. In the backyard pool last weekend, she showed how the Atlanteans swam like dolphins.

Still, it’s an original concept, unlike many of the made-from-Saturday morning TV films for children, and the pacing moves along rather quickly. The Disney marketing machine (you want fries with your Atlantis toy?) will make sure your kids scream to attend, so sit back and enjoy the ride.

Dale McGarrigle is the NEWS veteran entertainment writer. His 5-year-old daughter Samantha, a Disney completist, wants to know when the video is coming out (as soon as it hits the second-run theaters, honey).