Regarding the "gun" issue . . .

Rating: 10/10 (6 April 2003)

Just watched this movie again on DVD with my 4- and 6-year-old boys. Truly this is a great movie for raising all sorts of moral, ethical, and religious issues with youngsters.
Which leads me to the reason for this post: To respond to the many viewers who are obviously concerned about the "negative" portrayal of guns as being "heavyhanded" or "politically correct."
Several of these viewers quite accurately point out that the depiction of guns is uniformly appropriate. Guns *do* kill, after all, and no one should be shocked to see a hunting rifle used to kill a deer (the hunters themselves are not in the least negatively characterized) or military weapons used in combat (and again, the uniformed military - in contrast to Kent Mansley - are depicted quite positively and professionally). Even Hogarth's numerous toy guns are given realistic treatment.
Regardless of your position on hunting, gun ownership, foreign policy, or whatever, please don't miss the opportunity to use this movie to discuss these issues with your children in context. The Iron Giant, after all, is himself a (the?) super-gun -- that's the whole point of the movie. It's not the gun itself that's good or bad, but the use to which it's put. Guns don't represent evil in the movie, they represent power. And each one of us has in us the power to do great good or great harm, within our families, our workplaces, our communities, and so on. Teach your child to recognize his or her own powers and understand that he or she has the freewill to choose how they are used. Teach your child to be Superman.
And of course, like other posters, you will find political and religious themes in the movie, or any number of other things.
I'll say it again -- what a great movie for kids to see. Please don't automatically conclude its message is simply "anti-gun" just because guns are depicted being used as intended.