A Journey of Christmas Spirit

Rating: 10/10 (8 April 2006)

Let's face it, we all can remember the time when we were little kids, and we were full of anticipation of Santa Claus and all the gifts we would get on Christmas. This gorgeous film, reminds us of those times, and reminds us of the true spirit of Christmas.
It's Christmas Eve, and a boy has his doubts on whether or not Santa Claus is real, due to some magazine clippings of regular people dressed as Santa, and a encyclopedia that states the North Pole is "Devoid of Life". So, naturally he gets a big surprise that night when a giant train shows up outside his home,its engine roaring, and out comes the conductor telling him it's going to the north pole, hence its called The Polar Express.
The journey will be like no other, full of surprises and thrills, and complete enchantment, and we feel as if we are right there, going along for the ride. The friends that the boy makes are true friends, and the moment he meets Santa Claus, Christmas will never be the same. For those who believe, once believed, or never believed in Santa, and have at any time, imagined what the north pole was like and meeting him, will not be disappointed as the film beautifully captures the look and magic of the north pole and Santa himself. Tom Hanks did a wonderful job voicing the conductor and the hobo, along with the performance capture of the boy/hobo/conductor/and Santa.
The other actors deserve as much credit, and I applaud Robert Zemekis for this brilliant achievement, from the man who gave us "Back to the Future" and "Forrest Gump", I didn't expect anything less.
Now some have objected to the things that occur in the film and how it is inappropriate for some children because it might be a little too much. While I agree the film has some dark moments, they are certainly not the type that will give your children nightmares, unlike another film like "Jumanji". Others have criticized the look of the characters as not being so impressive, thought I found the animation to be better than I expected, and finally some have criticized about the action sequences to be a bit exaggerative, that the whole movie was nothing but a lousy adaptation of the book, spruced up to be the equivalent of a "big blockbuster action extravaganza".
This film is none of the above, and it was a downright insult that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Oscars), did not give this film a much deserved nomination and win for Best Animated Film for the year 2004. I know everyone was more excited about seeing "The Incredibles" and though I'm not knocking that film, I think its great, and I'm glad it got the Oscar, but I would have preferred for this film to get that honor. It's a shame that it was a commercial failure, because it deserved to sell as many tickets as "The Incredibles". Along with being released in theaters nationwide, a special IMAX 3-D version of the film was released, and it is by far, my favorite version, though I am just as happy when watching it on DVD. The IMAX version sold the most tickets, it did so well that IMAX brought it back in Christmas of 2005, the same time the DVD version came out. I really hope they bring it back in theaters Christmas of this year, because it is a genuine treasure, and the moment your hear the bells from Santa's sleigh, the bells will continue to ring in your heart, and in all the other hearts of those that truly believe, so Come Aboard!!!!!