My favorite modern animated film. Genius. I cry at that part every time.

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Product Description

A young boy rescues a huge robot which has rocketed to earth from space - and tries to protect the genial giant from a nosey government agent and the military. A captivating animated feature that's part metal, part magic and all heart.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1275 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2004-11-16
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: AC-3, Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, French
• Dubbed in: French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 86 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
This gentle reworking of Ted Hughes's 1968 novella was the unseen gem of 1999. Hogarth, a young boy who lives in the Maine woods during the cold war, befriends a giant robot. As with E.T., the iron giant is a misunderstood outsider who becomes a child's best friend, and Hogarth does his best to hide the massive figure from his mom (voiced by Jennifer Aniston) and the local scrap-yard beatnik (Harry Connick Jr.). Soon the suspicions of neighbors and a government agent (Christopher McDonald) spell trouble.

With no songs, no sidekicks, and no cheap ending, The Iron Giant is a refreshing change-- like an off-Broadway production compared to the glitz of Disney's annual animated extravaganzas. Director Brad Bird may have Family Dog and The Simpsons to his credit, but this film doesn't have that brand of scatological humor. As with the best family entertainments, there are gags that adults will howl at while the kids are watching something else (see Bird's interpretation of cold war propaganda). And the star is one cool piece of animated magic. Voiced by Vin Diesel (Saving Private Ryan's hulking Private Caparzo) and filled with more gadgets than a Swiss army knife, the giant is a grand thing to behold. And like another famous cinema tin man, our hero--and the movie--has heart. Superb entertainment for ages 5 and up. --Doug Thomas

DVD features
Not the most logical choice for a "special edition," this outstanding yet unpopular animated film has some super features fans will want to see. Filmmaker Brad Bird and his bevy of very likable, very talented crew have a lot to show, and do so entertainingly via the commentary track (full of talk about the inspirations) and several new featurettes (check how creative Creative Consultant Terry Newton gets). An alternate opening, a dream sequence, and six other deleted scenes are shown with moving animatics (crude animation). Need more? Watch the film with a "Behind the Armor" viewing mode and an on-screen icon launches you into 13 sequences that cover the characters, the animation problems, and even the new opening logo. Make sure to poke around the menus to find the fun Easter eggs. The new transfer illustrates the difference between an excellent one (the initial DVD release) and an outstanding one (this release). The depth of color and detail is remarkable--as is pretty much everything about this film and DVD. --Doug Thomas

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Customer Reviews

Never mind the ad campaign, see the movie.
Due to horrendous advertising that buried most of the movie's charms, most people think this movie is a b-grade kiddie flick. But ignore the brainless trailers and the awful extreme-sport ad campaign that accompanied the video release, and you'll be rewarded with an astonishing film.

The Iron Giant is complex and sophisticated enough to be a live-action movie, indeed more complex and sophisticated than the movies that trounced it at the box office (I'm talking to you, Inspector Gadget). It is a remarkable achievement of all the elements of a movie working at their very best.

The visuals are astounding. The script is funny without resorting to cheap laughs. The characters are well-rounded. The voice talents are ideal, from the Giant's rumble to Hogarth's wide-eyed wonder (for a welcome change, a pre-adolescent boy does the voice instead of someone trying to sound like one).

Most interestingly, the movie makes such a dynamic, empathic character of the titular hunk of metal that we genuinely care about his fate. At the film's climactic scene, I was ashamed at the tears running down my face, until I saw that my three friends (all of us twenty-something, manly guys) were misty-eyed as well.

Anyone over the age of 8 will love this film. If you don't like animation, try this on for size. If you love all types of animation, see it NOW. Even though the film's marketing department apparently doesn't want you to see it, you'll be glad you did.

An absolutely first rate animated film.
It is a shame that Warner Brothers chose to give an uninspired prerelease publicity campaign to the gentle, joyous and original animated movie, The Iron Giant. Precious few saw it in theaters.
Thank God for film preservation in the form of DVD!

Like the book, the picture takes place in 1957, during the height of The Cold War. The Soviet Union's satellite, Sputnik, flies across American skies. Our country is filled with paranoia. What else may they have launched?

One stormy night off the coast of Maine, a huge object falls from the sky. A frightened sailor sees it and swears that it is a giant made of metal. The townsfolk chalk the tale off to the sailor's love of drink. A giant made of metal, indeed!

A night or so later, young Hogarth Hughes, whose Mom is working overtime at the local diner, gets mad when his TV starts acting up. He goes to the roof to check the antenna and finds it missing. He then notices huge footprints leading away from the house and into the woods. He grabs his deceased Dad's old army rifle and a flashlight and goes off in pursuit. He soon discovers that there is indeed a metal giant. In fact, he saves it when it bumps into some high voltage utility wires. The adventure has begun.

Rarely has a movie for children - or adults! - addressed the need to search for a peaceful solution to our problems as gently or as wisely as The Iron Giant. It never preaches and is always accessible. It does not address us from on high. It remains at our level. It also shows how clever we can be at overcoming the most unexpected obstacles. It reminds us that things alien to us are not always hostile to us. In fact, it is we who often initiate the hostilities. Perhaps best of all, The Iron Giant examines these and other issues in the guise of a wonderful story that should hold almost anyone's attention.

The animation is first-rate. Most of the voices are good, especially Harry Connick, Jr.'s as Dean Cooper, a hip young artist. As Hogath's voice, Eli Marienthal speaks like a real boy, not a cartoon boy. Speaking for Hogarth's mother, Annie, Jennifer Anniston gives her a loving quality. Vin Diesel does well with the most difficult voice, that of The Iron Giant.

Rated PG for a couple of spooky scenes and a few mild profanities. Recommended without reservation for children seven and up.

One of the best animated films ever made
In the recent age of Disney films, the classic art of animated story telling has given way to 3d vine surfing and rock music. THE IRON GIANT is here to tell the world that the old art is alive and well. This is such a well made and touching film, with humor and heart, and superb voice overs. It resonantes like E.T., tackling childhood innocence, danger, death, and rebirth with the same funny and touching aplomb. It both pokes fun at and sympathises with the fears and prejudices of adults with equal care, demonstrating a lesson without demonizing anyone. As someone who writes and produces feature films, I am quite jaded, and usually leave a theatre fealing empty and critical. But THE IRON GIANT made me run out and tell everyone who would listen to go see it. They didn't, and it is their loss. So BUY THIS, watch it on your own, and with your kids as many times as they want. It's either this or Pokemon. Let them see what a real family film is all about.