‘You are who you choose to be…’
The Iron Giant is not a Pixar film (it is in fact a Warner Brothers Animation production), but it does mark the directorial debut of future Pixar senior creative team leader Brad Bird, and it is also one of the early examples of an animated film that strives for more than just being a film designed to sell toys and pack out movie theatres. This is a thing of substance…
When a giant robot (Vin Diesel) arrives on Earth, he forms an unlikely friendship with Hogarth Hughes (Eli Marienthal) – an inquisitive young boy – and his mother Annie (Jennifer Aniston).Eventually, the American military, led by blowhard general Kent Mansley (Christopher McDonald), gets wind of the giant and set out to destroy him.
An eclectic and talented voice cast then, but the story (based on a children’s book by Ted Hughes, no less) and the beautiful animation are the real stars here. Visually, The Iron Giant is a heady hybrid of classic Disney and early Pixar and the result is a gorgeous, picturesque film that does justice to Hughes’ beautiful story. The most obvious point of comparison is Raymond Briggs’ masterpiece The Snowman, and while The Iron Giant isn’t quite at the same level as that film, it is still an enjoyable and affecting movie that stands as an important touchstone in the history of animated movies. At only 86 minutes, there is no excuse for anyone not to see this movie.
Set against the backdrop of the cold war and taking in themes of destiny, social expectation and liberation from the status quo, The Iron Giant truly has something for everyone. An unqualified success.