Loaded with charm, heart and spirit, The Polar Express is the perfect movie to get you in the mood for Christmas, and get kids ready for the big night when Santa Claus comes and pays them a visit.
The movie, which is based on the popular children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg and was directed by Robert Zemeckis, tells the story of a young boy who doubts the existence of Santa Claus and his Christmas Eve ride to the North Pole on a magical train. The boy, along with several other children, rides the Polar Express train to visit Santa – who will pick one child to receive the first Christmas present.
Along the train ride, the boy has several adventures with new friends and meets strange passengers – such as a hobo that rides on top of the train and just might be a ghost. He also learns how to once again believe in Santa and the magic of Christmas through his friends and the train’s conductor.
With a story about the importance of believing in Christmas, this is a movie that will become a classic in time and a favorite during the holiday season. The movie has enough adventure and music to entertain children and adults.
It is dark at times, and there are even a few spots that might give younger children a scare - such as when the train is spinning on a lake of ice or being chased by wolves. The overall charm of the movie makes up for those moments, and the celebration at the North Pole will help kids forget about the scarier moments in the film.
The film’s music also helps keep you in the holiday spirit with a fun song about hot chocolate, and a music score that helps keep you caught up in the spell of the movie and the beauty of its animation.
The pacing of the film slows at different times in the movie, and there are several scenes that you have to wonder if they were thrown in just to make the movie longer. The train ride takes about an hour to reach the North Pole, and then the boy and two other children find themselves on another adventure trying to reach the center in time to see Santa. This doesn’t ruin the movie for kids, but may leave some parents looking at their watch now and then.
The film’s animation is outstanding at times, and lacking at other moments. The Polar Express train is amazing to watch, and the sound will literally blow you away. The animation is crisp and breath taking. It really helps capture the magic of the story, and goes along nicely with the look that was established by the book’s art illustrations.
Polar Express captures the spirit of Christmas
At the same time, the animation does have several faults. The character’s faces appear to be “doll like” at times, and often the mouths and eyes don’t seem to be quite right. This gives the characters an odd look, and can become really distracting to the overall enjoyment of the film. The distraction isn’t enough to ruin the movie, but it does take away from some of the film’s greater moments.
Tom Hanks, who also executive produced the movie, plays five different characters – including the boy (titled Hero Boy in the credits), the conductor, the hobo, Santa, and Hero Boy’s father. He does a great job in giving each character distinct personalities and voices (Hanks did not voice Hero Boy, that was Daryl Sabara).
The choice of having Hanks perform five characters is also a bit of a distraction that takes you out of the movie. About halfway through the movie, you might find yourself trying to figure out if that person is Hanks or why they chose to have the actor do all those parts. In the special features, they discuss the decision for Hanks doing so many roles.
The trip is described as being a “dream adventure” by Hero Boy and all the characters are based on people he knows (similar to the journey of Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz). Hanks does change his voice, or attempts to change it, for each character, but that also could be a distraction to some people.
Hanks wears many hats in the movie
The two-disc DVD comes loaded with special features that fans of the movie will enjoy. The extras include a never before seen Smokey and Steamer (characters played by the late Michael Jeter) song; The Many Faces of Tom Hanks; A Genuine Ticket to Ride Featurette; True Inspirations: An Author’s Adventure; and several others including a look at Josh Groban performing the song Believe from the movie.
The Smokey and Steamer song features unfinished animation as the scene was cut before the creators completed work on it. The scene was cut due to the length of the movie, but was included on the DVD as a tribute to Jeter and his performance in the film.
The Many Faces of Tom Hanks and the Ticket to Ride featurette take a look at how the film was made, and the amount of work that Hanks put in to bring each of the characters to the screen.
The features also show how Zemeckis used different stand-ins while Hanks was performing a different character. Hanks talks about the difficulty involved in motion capture animation – which included not being able to wear a costume to help bring out the character.
With a detailed profile of Chris Van Allsburg, True Inspirations: An Author’s Adventure will interest fans of the book and the movie. The feature takes a look at his life from his childhood days in Grand Rapids, Michigan to his inspiration for writing the book.
The Polar Express has breathtaking animation
With a story that truly captures the heart of Christmas and the excitement that believing in Santa brings to children, The Polar Express is a movie that will thrill kids and entertain parents. The movie’s animation at times is breathtaking, and the music adds to the film’s magic.
Although it has some faults, I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to watch a movie that will help get them in the Christmas spirit. The film has laughs, lots of excitement, fun songs, and great performances from the actors.
The Polar Express is now available at Amazon and AmazonUK . Visit the DVD’s database for more information.
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