Magic is cool.
You just can't argue with these irrefutable facts in the world of Thomas and the Magic Railroad , a preschool adventure based on the successful television series about the little tank engine that could. It's just that all of this is mired in a clunky set of hole-filled plots, confusing enough to make me want to interrogate the little guy sitting in front of me. The story doesn't really revolve around one particular character or plotline, but the simple gist is that young Thomas and the other shiny steam engines are being pushed around by a mean, yucky diesel with a scary set of pinchers. At the same time, Mr. Conductor, played with a childlike earnestness by Baldwin, has run out of magic gold dust, and thus may be stuck on the wonderful island of Sodor, never to return to the train station at Shining Time. After a while, the film, with its awkward order of scenes, doesn't live up to the promise of the sweet idyllic feel of the introduction, and is a bit boring.