Famed critic, roget ebert, even went so far as to say the film is the best 3d viewing experience ive ever had. Apr 18, 2020 so i made the locomotive in ttte style one without a face like in the movie, one with a female face, and one with a male face. At the premiere of the movie, van allsburg stated that pere marquette 1225, formerly owned by. Every year we have a checklist of movies to watch and the polar express is always on it. The polar express 2004 official trailer tom hanks, robert. Putting together this movie night is super fun and doesnt take much time at all. Dec 14, 2018 the polar express was the first movie made entirely with performance capture technology, and the director robert zemeckis, who is known for using innovative technology in his movies, asked. Potentially, the polar express could have been a flagship animated feature release for the studio on the 3d format. Not creepy in an unpleasant way, but in that sneaky, teasing way that lets you know eerie things could happen. So i made the locomotive in ttte style one without a face like in the movie, one with a female face, and one with a male face. Zemeckis and hanks really seem to think theyre giving us a christmas movie for the ages and a technology that will change cinema forever. Cnn the polar express is ty swartouts favorite book and he watches the movie a lot, so his parents knew he would be thrilled to.
His second movie after the polar express, though, was a performancecapture animated feature adaptation of charles dickens a christmas carol. Why the polar express is an abomination of a christmas movie. In addition to the lead boy, tom hanks played the characters dad, the conductor, the hobo, and santa claus in the polar express, bringing his total character count up to five. When hanks and zemeckis took polar express to universal pictures, where there was a deal with castle rock entertainment, the films producers, the studio was unenthusiastic about making a. The incredibles and the polar express are two recent animated features that achieve remarkable creative results using different styles of human character animation. With another christmas season approaching full steam ahead, weve got some fun facts about the movie to share. The polar express is a magic christmas train that defies logic and physics throughout the movie. Dec 19, 2016 the polar express is actually not the most horrid movie ive ever seen. When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the north pole, he embarks on a journey of selfdiscovery that shows him that the wonder of life. See more ideas about polar express movie, polar express party and christmas movies. The polar express 2004 rotten tomatoes movie trailers. Many of the body and voice performances are by tom hanks, who is the executive producer and worked with zemeckis on forrest gump 1994 another film that combined levels of reality and special effects.
Zemeckis had never really made a christmas movie prior to the polar express. Do you think its a good idea if they could make a sequel to that movie. This caldecott medal winner is a mere 32 pages, many of which are filled with more illustrations than text. The polar express is based on an awardwinning book released in 2004. Because the movie was made using motion capture, hanks had to act out each part on. I had to make some changes to the design of the main body of the polar express locomotive to make it thomas style. The polar express was released in both standard theatrical 35mm format and in a 3d version for imax, which was generated from the same 3d digital models used for the standard version. It was praised for its detailed illustrations and calm, relaxing storyline. The main body and tender design of the polar express was. Cowritten, coproduced and directed by robert zemeckis, the film features human characters animated using. The polar express, the allcgi christmas extravaganza with tom hanks, based on chris van allsburgs popular illustrated childrens book, which opens today nov.
This weeks round of new movie release information includes the announcement of a big screen adaptation of the chronicles of narnia. All aboard the cg polar express animation world network. By 1989, a million copies had been sold more each year than the last and the book had made the bestseller list four years in a row. With tom hanks, chris coppola, michael jeter, leslie zemeckis. Nov 10, 2004 polar express is an enjoyable hollywood production, set on christmas eve, a wonderful and straight forward approach to the originals source material, based on a storybook written by chris van allsburg who also created. Parents need to know that, like the book that inspired it, the the polar express has wonderful messages about the importance of believing, the value of friendship, respect for leadership and courage, and the beauty of being kind to others. The polar express ttte style by traininspector11g2 on. Part of cast away does involve the holiday, and the director did helm a christmas episode of tales from the crypt. The polar express is a mustwatch christmas film and features a lot of amazing moments that really put a smile on our faces. That may be the case because polar express is made using motion capture technique, which is not used in shrek, toy story etc. But choosing a classic childrens tale like the polar express is even trickier.
This was my very first time watching the movie ever and i was completely mesmerized by the films charming. Alan silvestri at an event for the polar express 2004 chantel valdivieso at an. The polar express movie simple english wikipedia, the. However there are scenes which might be a bit scary for young kids including the rollercoaster element, the puppet carriage and the hobo on top of the train. The book on which the movie is based, is a quiet meditation on christmas. It stars tom hanks, daryl sabara, eddie deezen, jimmy bennett, steven tyler, nona gaye, and michael jeter.
The polar express 2004 official trailer tom hanks, robert zemeckis movie hd. But its also an adventure, with lots of rollercoaster thrills and some scary characters that might be. The polar express has the quality of a lot of lasting childrens entertainment. The polar express wants to be an uplifting holiday film, but it tries too hard to make its point. Polar express not only opens in conventional theatres tonight, it also opens in 70 imax theatres with a special 3d version, the first film from a major studio to open in both formats simultaneously. In addition, the polar express was designed with 3d imax theaters in mind it is the first featurelength movie to feature the imax threedimensional process. The polar express cant beat numerous other animated films like the incredibles and the spongebob squarepants movie, but for whatever heart this film has and takes, it manages to be a heartwarming welcome and heartbreaking goodbye. The polar express was the first movie made entirely with performance capture technology, and the director robert zemeckis, who is known for using innovative technology in his movies, asked.
An assassin on the verge of retirement must put the good life on hold when his greedy boss sends a squad of young, ruthless killers to take him out. The polar express is a magical tale with spectacular animation. In fact, i actually quite like the idea behind the story. The polar express is, quite simply, the best christmas film of all time. Dec 20, 2018 when making the polar express, robert zemeckis decided to use the technology to its full extent by animating every character this way. Theres a deeper, shivery tone, instead of the mindless jolliness of the usual christmas movie. The film stars daryl sabara, nona gaye, jimmy bennett, michael jeter. The polar express is merely a marvelous toy that has somehow become convinced it has a soul.
Moreover, the technology just hasnt caught up to the lofty ambitions of the hundreds of. This one creates a world of its own, like the wizard of oz or willy wonka and the. Every year, families embark on a journey into the magical animated classic that is robert zemeckis the polar express. But as bonkers christmas movies go, the polar express remains the topper. The polar express is a childrens book written and illustrated by chris van allsburg and published by houghton mifflin in 1985. The incredibles is an example of firstclass keyframe cartoon character computer animation that integrates 2d traditional styles with the 3d computer style that we have come to expect from.
The polar express 10 behind the scenes facts youtube. The polar express is a heartwarming story about the power of belief that it was only a matter of time before the story made the move to film. A year later, he made his directing debut with the musical comedy that thing you do. The polar express showtimes at an amc movie theater near you.
Nov 04, 2004 director robert zemeckis employs a new computer technique to bring the awardwinning childrens book the polar express to the screen. The polar express is a fantastic adventure film for families. The polar express christmas movie is creepy and nearly. The characters in the polar express dont look real, but they dont look unreal, either. However, since most viewers will see it in a conventional theater, zemeckis made sure that the use of traditional projectors didnt result in a dropoff in quality. Disney, polar express director in animation deal reuters. The polar express is a 2004 american computeranimated film based on the book.
Motion capture techniques are generally used to present real emotions or live movements. Written, produced, and directed by robert zemeckis, the film features human characters animated using the live action performance capture technique. The lion, the witch and the wardrobe, and new dates for surviving christmas and the polar express among many, many others. Zemeckis has made two films, polar express and monster house. The polar express is a 2004 american computeranimated adventure film based on the 1985 childrens book of the same name by chris van allsburg, who also served as one of the executive producers on the film. It was the first animated feature not made specifically for imax to be presented in this format, and also the first to open in imax 3d at the same time as the. Or may be the case that its animation is not made that playful as toy story or shrek to make it more realistic. Nov 28, 2018 but as bonkers christmas movies go, the polar express remains the topper. If you think its a good idea, you tell me how you think the sequel should go, and could the sequel be good or could it be bad. Movie producer robert zemeckis attends a news conference at dlp. The polar express is a 2004 film about a boy who learns the the true meaning of christmas when he takes a train ride to the north pole.
Cowritten, coproduced and directed by robert zemeckis, the film features human characters animated using liveaction motion capture animation. The holiday film is based on an awardwinning childrens book. Nov 09, 2004 taking any book and making it into a movie can be a challenge. Regrettably, the movie lacks any references to jesus christ, the real reason for the christmas season. Nov 10, 2004 the polar express, the allcgi christmas extravaganza with tom hanks, based on chris van allsburgs popular illustrated childrens book, which opens today nov. Best achievement in music written for motion pictures. Seeing is believing, says a hobo who rides the rails with the boy. The polar express is a 2004 american computeranimated adventure film based on the 1985. The film stars daryl sabara, nona gaye, jimmy bennett, michael jeter, eddie deezen and tom hanks. Along the way, they face different challenges and obstacles, such as misplacing their tickets and having to head. The polar express is actually not the most horrid movie ive ever seen.
When making the polar express, robert zemeckis decided to use the. On christmas eve, a young boy embarks on a magical adventure to the north pole on the polar express, while learning about friendship, bravery, and the spirit of christmas. In a fair world, with an unbiased panel of judges who actually saw the movie, the polar express would have rated a pg with no trouble at all. Directed by robert zemeckis and based on childrens author chris van allsburgs modern holiday classic of the same name, the polar express revolves around billy hayden mcfarland, who longs to. The polar express can refer to one of the following. The plot revolves around a group of children all aboard a train thats destined for the north pole.
The polar express is a 2004 american computer animated musical fantasy movie directed by robert zemeckis. Further, this whole experience could be a dream of the hero boy, so it is likely the train would change the number of cars, as well as bend with the tracks as it corkscrews up a mountain, etc. But its also an adventure, with lots of rollercoaster thrills and some scary characters that might be too intense and frightening for. The animation and effects are superb, and the characters provide lots of fun along the way. See more ideas about polar express party, polar express theme and. Here was i, making sure to write down the part at the beginning of the movie when the train approaches and the house starts to shake, because that scene might be alarming to small children. I have to admit this but i consider the polar express movie to be the best 3d animated christmas movie ever made in the 2000s. Tom hanks and director robert zemeckis forrest gump. Last friday, when polar express had been open for all of about 45 hours. Though the movie is visually stunning overall, the animation for the human characters isnt lifelike. Polar express makes use of new filming method director robert zemeckis employs a new computer technique to bring the awardwinning childrens book the polar express to the screen, with tom hanks.
This one creates a world of its own, like the wizard of oz or willy wonka. The incredibles and the polar express are two recent animated common rig structure for all characters made it easier for animators and tds. Despite its optimistic yuletide moral about the power of believing and its childs eye view of the world, the film really isnt a kids movie. Starring tom hanks, the movie combines an old favorite story with new scenes and original music that remind us all what it means to truly believe in santa and the magic of christmas. The book is now widely considered to be a classic christmas story for young children.
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