The Iron Giant Review
by David Sunga (zookeeper AT criticzoo DOT com)August 12th, 1999
THE IRON GIANT (1999)
Rating: 3 stars (out of 4.0)
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Key to rating system:
2.0 stars - Debatable
2.5 stars - Some people may like it
3.0 stars - I liked it
3.5 stars - I am biased in favor of the movie
4.0 stars - I felt the movie's impact personally or it stood out
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A Movie Review by David Sunga
Directed by: Brad Bird
Written by Brad Bird and Tim McCanlies, based on a Ted Hughes book
Starring: The voices of Eli Marienthal, Jennifer Aniston, Vin Diesel, Harry Connick, Jr., and Christopher McDonald
Synopsis:
In this animated feature a giant, destructive alien robot (voice of Vin Diesel) lands on Earth and suffers amnesia. The killing machine is befriended by a young boy named Hogarth (Eli Marienthal) who along with his beatnik acquaintance Dean (Harry Connick, Jr.) teaches the iron behemoth about friendship and human free will. Unfortunately for Hogarth and his new metal friend it is the height of the Cold War period in US history, so the US Army and a gung ho government agent are bent on tracking down and destroying the giant.
Opinion:
Great casting. FRIENDS waitress Jennifer Aniston is back in the familiar costume, only this time she's a waitress who's also a 1950s single mother. Crooner Harry Connick, Jr. is digging the beat again, but not as a musician. In THE IRON GIANT Connick, Jr. plays a Beat generation artist. Both Aniston and Connick slide into their roles and improvise effortlessly. The artwork's pretty interesting, too. It's late 50s style, and if you went back in time and showed the cartoon at a 1960s elementary school assembly it wouldn't look a bit out of place.
THE IRON GIANT plays low key on the emotions, yet it's a solid story because of timeless ingredients that anyone can appreciate: friendship, moral choices, action and the big showdown. Bring the family.
Reviewed by David Sunga
August 8, 1999
Copyright © 1999 by David Sunga
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