My favorite animation that we watched in class was “The Iron Giant.” This Warner Bros. movie that was made in 1999 was also one of my favorite back when I was 9. Watching it again 12 years later, my opinions of the movie stayed the same. The story is clever, the characters are believable, and the overall message is touching. One thing that I understood more being older was the impact that the Cold War had on the movie. The movie does a great job briefly explaining to children about Sputnik and the fear of robots and foreign invaders. After taking numerous history courses and a course at semester that focused on the Cold War I really can see how much more the movie relates to the fear that Americans had of technological advancements and spies.
Director Brad Bird is a personal favorite of mine and is now a director at Pixar Animation Studios. His most recent film was Ratatouille but my favorite was The Incredibles. Animation has come a long way since the nineties but Bird manages to keep family movie values strong and create excellent pictures.
“The Iron Giant” was based on a 1960’s novel, “The Iron Man.” The movie was nominated for several awards but walked away empty handed. The critques loved he movie and called it “one of the best of its’ time.” Positive reviews such as this is what made the American Film Institute nominate it for one of the “Top 10 Animated Films List.”
Everything in this movie works together perfectly. From the talented cast for voices, to the well developed characters, to the overall theme, music, and storyline. It is a movie that not only shows family values but provides history in a fun way that is easier for kids to understand. The animation is creative as well, the characters and backgrounds look realistic yet have a toy-ish charm to them.
Overall, “The Iron Giant” will remain a classic animated film for children to view throughout history. With almost all animated films now being computer animated it is great to see where it originated, with hand drawn animations, and enjoy true art.
source: wikipedia.com
