Based on the popular, yet sometimes controversial children's book by James Dahl, we follow "James" (Paul Terry) from his menial life with his mean aunts, the oddly named "Spiker" (Joanna Lumley) and her sister "Sponge" (Miriam Margoyles, who lends her voice to "Glowworm" in the animated segment).
The young boy dreams of one day going to New York City to see the biggest building in the world, the Empire State Building. However, his aunts want to keep him in their home as nothing more than a maid.
One day, "James" meets an old man (Pete Postlethwaite) who offers him a bag of what he calls "aligator tongues". These strange glowing, green animated things changes a peach in his aunts' garden, and causes it to grow to unbelievable proportions. Another one enters "James'" mouth, and changes him (into the animated version of the character) as well.
"James" climbs into the now giant peach and meets a group of insects which live inside it. One of these insects, "Miss Spider" (voiced by Susan Sarandon), "James" saved from extermination when his aunts found her and her web inside the house.
The young boy and his new friends free the peach from the garden, sending it rolling through the town and, eventually, into the ocean. They determine, in an unrealistic way, that the peach is on a direct route to New York City, but the trip is far from easy.
If you ask me, adults will lose interest while watching this film. There really is nothing for adults in this movie. The jokes are childish, and just about everything is forgettable in this movie. While watching this film, I noticed that I was starting more attention to my computer than the film as it progressed.
The one thing that adults might enjoy is the unusual look of the film. From the wardrobes of some of the major characters, to the animation, everything is pretty unique.
It is painfully obvious that the entire movie was filmed on soundstages. I don't even remember seeing any shots of the actual New York City to establish that they have reached their destination. However, the fabricated scenery lends greatly to the unique look of the film. However, I would have liked to have seen the movie end up in the actual "Big Apple" for at least a few scenes.
Another thing that is completely forgettable in this film is the movie's soundtrack. The songs, many of which are performed by characters in what appears to be random times, are so forgettable in fact, that I couldn't tell you one lyric in any of the songs.
The performances in this movie is pretty weak as well. Just about every actor in the live-action segments seems to try to go over-the-top, but fail. Not one of the performances really stand out.
What adults might like in this movie is the animation, which is done by the time-consuming stop-animation style. The movements of the animated characters is absolutely flawless and smooth. Also the style of the characters is reminiscent of "Tim Burton's The Nightmare before Christmas", which was made by the same people behind this film. In fact, there is a bit of a tribute to "Nightmare" in an underwater scene where a character wrongly references skeletons as "skellington", a reference to the lead character in "Nightmare." In fact, the ghostly remains of a pirate in this scene is actually "Jack Skellington" from "Nightmare".
The voice cast does a pretty good job at bringing the animated characters to life. Each character has a fun personality. Even though their performances are not strong, the voice cast does a better job in performing than the ones in the live-action segments.
For someone who has become an uncle since this movie was released to theaters, I can not see me spending the money for the DVD for my nieces. Also, based on what I saw in this movie, I can't see me purchasing the source material, the original novel, for them either.
A wonderful story has become a film produced by Tim Burton. No one but Burton could have done this story. Wonder Randy Newman songs complete the package.
Tim Burton at his best! Love the artistic feel to this movie! I wonder if the recipe for crocodile tongues would work? probably have to go to New Orleans to get the ingredients..... Don't know what I'm talking about? Watch the movie!
i love this moive
and its really the only disney moive i like and i hate disney moives
James, a lonely orphan, is sent to live with his wicked and greedy Aunts Spiker and Sponge. Unwanted and forced to perform their menial chores, the boy dreams about going to New York City--a place, his father once told him, where dreams come true. Then James meets a mysterious old man who gives him a bag of magical glowing green things (crocodile tongues) and tells him that marvelous things will happen. Racing home, James accidentally spills the contents of the bag at the base of a barren old peach tree. To his astonishment, a peach instantly appears on the branch and grows and grows until it reaches 20 feet in diameter. Hungry and curious, James sneaks out that evening and takes a bite of the peach. When a glowing tunnel appears, the frightened boy ventures inside and meets Centipede, Earthworm, Ladybug, Glowworm, Grasshopper and Miss Spider. Rolling out to sea, the giant peach launches its passengers on a series of wildly imaginative adventures with New York City as their final destination.
GAH USED TO BE MY FAV MVIE EVER. hahaha i played this to death until it magically dispapeared (mum probly threw it out like my where's wally video :(! ) i still like it hehe
Very good movie, with fantastic animation, but what I really want to say here -to some people- is that Tim Burton didn't direct it. Dissapointed? Then read this: the director of The Giant Peach, Henry Selick, also directed The Nightmare Before Christmas, which means that one isn't a Tim Burton movie either. You had to know. Maybe that'll give you some more perspective.
ok, different from the other Disney's movie, but not that good for an adult, but I would reffer it for children instead of all the others with princess....
James and the Giant Peach was also part of a mini-vogue of Roald Dahl adaptations that seemed to be happening around that time. It is based upon Roald Dahl?s first ever children?s book, published in 1961. But unlike Danny De Vito?s miscalculated Matilda (1996), Henry Selick gets the essence of a Roald Dahl children?s story just right and understands that Dahl is always about catching a perfect balance between gleeful nastiness and transcendent sweetness. Before he can be carried off to the nigh-mythical New York, young James is orphaned when his idyllic parents are both killed by a rhino in Africa. James is then taken in by his two cruel aunts, played by Lumley and Margolyes, who work him ruthlessly and barely feed him. His only friend is the spider who lives in his window. Enter Postlethwaite as the mysterious stranger who offers James a bag of magic glowing creatures who can make his dreams come true. James loses most of the magic creatures, but one infiltrates a peach on a tree outside his house. The peach grows to enormous size, prompting the aunts to create a circus-side-show-like scam to milk their neighbors of money. Eventually, James discovers that the peach is inhabited by giant insects, one of whom is the spider James had earlier saved from his aunt's broomstick. He escapes with the insects inside the peach, destined for adventure and looking for hope in the New World. The film does start out live action, then switches to the stop motion animation that made "The Nightmare Before Christmas" famous. In the animation scenes, Grasshopper (Simon Callow), Centipede (Richard Dreyfuss), Ladybug (Jane Leeves), Glowworm (Miriam Margolyes, again), Spider (Susan Sarandon), and Earthworm (David Thewlis) all become characters who contribute to the voyage.
James and the Giant Peach was a very slow moving film, I found it to be quite boring. It still had a few decent parts and a happy ending, but it was nothing spectacular.
I recommend watching this movie with children or at least trying to see it from a child's perspective. I found it to ignite a spark of the imagination I had as a boy. The claymation is classic Burton.
The movie opens with a live actionsequence in which little James lives an idyllic life by the seaside with hisloving mom and dad. All is perfect. And then...bam! Both parents are gobbled upby a giant rhinoceros! So much for them...
James is immediately packed off to a miserable life withhis horrid relatives, Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker, who work him like a slave,mock him and feed him fish heads...when he's lucky. The lonely little boy drawshis dreams on a paper bag and makes it into a hot-air balloon, sending itfloating by candlepower...
A mysterious old man finds the paper bag andreturns it filled with countless little green crocodile tongues. James spillsthe bag, and some of the tongues hop away, but one enchants an old peach tree onthe aunt's property and a giant peach starts growing.
His aunts sell tickets to the attraction, but then the starving Jameseats a bite of the peach, along with a crocodile tongue, and that unleashes thepeach's magic, as the movie cuts from live action to animation...
We now follow a cartoon James, who clings to the peach for dear life asit rolls down the hill, picking up a picket fence that winds around itscircumference. He discovers that the peach is inhabited by colorful insects,including a centipede, a ladybug, a spider, a grasshopper, a glowworm and anearthworm. All are friendly--but not the fearsome mechanical steam shark thatcomes along and tries to gobble them all up. They're saved by seagulls, who liftthe peach into the sky on silken threads from the glowworm, and the movie'sodyssey begins...
It was definitely more of a "Kids Movie"; unlike "The Corpse Bride", or even "The Nightmare Before Christmas"! But, it was good! I liked it!.... Or should I say, "I still like it"? Lol! I really enjoyed the Animation of it! I love Claymation!
of all the road dahl books this was one of my least favourite and whilst the film is nice in a tim burton sort of way it doesnt manage to make the story any more exciting
Cool movie. I've always been a fan of stop-motion animated films. But personally, the whole children's story book appeal sort of got kinda lame a few times as I was watching it. I guess I'm just getting too old for movies like this, hehe.
FANTASTIC FILM FOR ANYONE....MY KIDS LOVE IT...AND WE DO OWN IT NOW...WHICH TOOKED AWHILE TO GET INTO MY VIDEO STORE. MY KIDS HAVE GOT THE BOOK TO THIS MOVIE ASWELL.
MCT:July 29, 2008
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