While going though my personal DVD catalog looking for a subject for this week's Family Friday, I happen upon a treasured film I hadn't watched for awhile. Before he gave us Pixar's The Incredibles or Ratatouille, Brad Bird gave us the traditionally-animated treasure, The Iron Giant. While this may be the subject of a list later on, I would argue that The Iron Giant is the greatest non-Disney animated movie of all time. It may not be as original as Myazaki's work (Spirited Away) or as funny as Dreamwork's Shrek, but The Iron Giant has more heart and a stronger story than most animated films produced outside of the Mouse House.
The plot is obviously inspired by E.T.; but in this film, set in the 1950's, young Hogarth is in need of a friend. When he discovers a massive giant robot at the junkyard, he finds not the friend he was looking for, but the friend he needs. Unfortunately, government agents soon swarm his town intent on destroying the robot. I won't give away the ending, but if you can view it without tearing up, I question your humanity.
This movie is damn near perfect. The animation is gorgeous, and it was made at at time when people were already giving up on traditional animation in favor of computer animation. The score is beautiful and fits with the film flawlessly. The vocal talent, featuring Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick, Jr., and Vin Diesel, is just right for the movie. The Iron Giant has the heart of the best Disney films melded with a clever take on 1950's science fiction films.
Bird is obviously inspired by the classic Disney films, and while I like The Incredibles and Ratatouille, I don't think Bird has been able to recapture magic he made in his first animated film. It's just one of those films that comes along very rarely and ends up being far greater than the sum of its parts. I'm not sure if it was poor marketing or something else, but the movie was a box office bomb. Year's later it is has become a classic, and if you've never seen it, you should remedy the situation ASAP.
This movie is damn near perfect. The animation is gorgeous, and it was made at at time when people were already giving up on traditional animation in favor of computer animation. The score is beautiful and fits with the film flawlessly. The vocal talent, featuring Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick, Jr., and Vin Diesel, is just right for the movie. The Iron Giant has the heart of the best Disney films melded with a clever take on 1950's science fiction films.
Bird is obviously inspired by the classic Disney films, and while I like The Incredibles and Ratatouille, I don't think Bird has been able to recapture magic he made in his first animated film. It's just one of those films that comes along very rarely and ends up being far greater than the sum of its parts. I'm not sure if it was poor marketing or something else, but the movie was a box office bomb. Year's later it is has become a classic, and if you've never seen it, you should remedy the situation ASAP.
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