The Polar Express

[bix171]

Robert Zemeckis’ self-indulgent, narcissistic masterpiece is entirely computer-animated and the enormous expense is all right up there on the screen, every penny of it. It’s consistently in your face and (at least when seen on an IMAX screen in 3-D) frequently overwhelming—it’s presented in a relentlessly showoffy manner. But it’s also completely heartfelt and as moving as Zemeckis’ best work, the sublime “Cast Away” (itself one of the finest American films of the decade). The specialized CGI bravura is clearly the thing here, with well-thought, exciting and cleanly realized set pieces that take the nascent technical form to the limit. (A short section involving a floating train ticket is one of the most brilliantly realized examples of animation—any animation—ever created.) Based on the cherished children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg in which a young boy who has ceased to believe in the magic of Santa Claus is whisked away on the titular train to the North Pole to restore his faith, it will delight and dazzle children of all ages and religious persuasions. But Zemeckis has become one of cinema’s most sincere seekers and he concludes the film with a bittersweet questioning of the faith he has asked his audience to accept, noting that time—his primary passion in “Cast Away”—and adulthood require the magic of innocent conviction to fade and be recalled simply as one of the components necessary to shape a life. Tom Hanks plays five roles that have been animated and they’re some of the best he’s played in quite a while, particularly the loving, no-nonsense Conductor that allows him to layer a humorously transparent veil of gruffness over the honest compassion he has styled his career upon. The magnificent Deco grandeur and elegance of the Polar Express itself and the North Pole workshops, by Rick Carter and Doug Chiang, fits effortlessly into Zemeckis’ design of remembrance of things past. “The Polar Express” should have no trouble being accepted as a holiday classic but time will reveal it to be what it truly is: the efforts of a master craftsman not only at the forefront of scientific methods to create art but with a yearning to explore the timeless qualities of being human.

[cinemabon]

You've written a fine review and share in the company the likes of Roger Ebert, who bestowed four stars on "The Polar Express," calling it an instant Christmas classic. However, that is where the general praise stops.

This film is raising a bit of controversy on how certain characters in the film are being portrayed. Unlike the universal acceptance of "The Incredibles," "Polar Express" is dividing critics and filmgoers right down the middle. Some are dazzled by the look of the film, described by most generally as a breakthrough in animation. The controversy is arising from the content, saying things like "Santa is a vicious dictator," (Eclipse); a film "peopled by dead-eyed mannequins" (Boston Globe); "a dissappointing failure" (New York Times).

Robert Zemekis is a well known and respected director and one of my personal faves. I am taking my son to see the film this weekend and will post more of my own personal feelings regarding the movie later.

[tabuno]

A tribute to technology, sort of like what the 1968 New York World's Fair was like. There is a lot of dazzle and Disneyland like effects in this special effects/state of the art animation feature film. Most of the movie feels like a retro-animation harking back to the 1960s and the positive memories of childhood, the mom and pie images of our youth. The animation is again gorgeous (though threatening at the same time as to whether it will eventually replace live actors ten years from now). The dizzying spectacle, just like Disneyland rides, the audience is given an opportunity to go on a 3-D version of a two-dimension animation scene along with a one or two musical pieces right out of a Mary Poppins movie. Unlike "The Incredibles," "The Polar Express" is more style than content, more flash than serious movie making - it is more an experience than entertainment. Tom Hank's voice is overextended and his familiar drawl creeps up in too many of his characters to feel comfortable and becomes distracting. As a conductor and hero boy are two of the best animated characters around - but as father and hobo, it's too obvious that he's the same character. An incredible Christmas treat, eye-popping candy experience, but just one more of a number of super animated feature films that are setting a new standard in animation for years to come. For one a singular moment, this is the must see family movie of Christmas, of years gone by, of magic and hope using the most up to date computer technology available.

The deadened, zombie scene of the waiters in the train is a definite haunting experience of dead-eyed animation like that of 1984. It is both fascinating and ominous at the same time.

Seven out of Ten Stars.