Bellum Omnium Contra Omnes

So I’m rewatching “Atlantis: The Lost Empire”, and there’s a scene at the beginning wherein the main character, Milo, is being asked by wealthy explorer and philanthropist: Preston Whitmore, to join the expedition to, well, Atlantis. In the background there’s a tank holding two Coelacanths.

I’m now about to delve into geekery. You’ve been warned… then again I’ve already begun my speedy plunge into the depths. You see, the Coelacanth is considered to be a “living fossil”: a specimen almost unchanged in the last 400-million years (Johanson, et al, “Oldest Coelacanth, from the Early Devonian of Australia” (2006)). They were also thought to be extinct. That is, until they were rediscovered off the coast of South Africa in 1938.

You may wonder what my point is, and to be honest I feel the same way from time to time. The crux of this little Ichthyology lesson is that the film takes place in 1914. Some may say that this is an obvious mistake on the part of the filmmakers, but I think it’s actually a clever nod. Seeing as this gentleman is an explorer and collector, and seeing as he doesn’t seem to pressed by a need to share his discoveries with the World (cue angry cries of “It belongs in a[n aquarium]!” Yes, I changed the line. Deal with it) my theory is that he rediscovered the Coelacanth and just kind of went: “I’ve got a fish tank with your names on it!”