Polar Express

Last Thursday evening, Steph and I took the boys to see an advance screening of "The Polar Express," an animated film starring Tom Hanks. A lady in our apartment, whom Steph befriended in the laundry room, gave us four tickets to the "event," which included a whole bunch of stuff (e.g., Hanks gave a brief shpiel before the show, snacks, a book for Sam and ODB, etc.).

Anyway, it was a really great movie. It captures effectively childhood fanstasy (or at least my perception of a child's fantasy). And it does it in a way that is captivating for both children and adults. Based on my furtive glances, Sam was enthralled and had his mouth open for much of the film. Oliver, on the other hand, seemed startled at times, and afraid at other times. The music is rather loud and the animation is very vivid and realistic. However, when asked by mom if he wanted to leave, he insisted on watching the entire movie.

The movie is unlike other animated children's movies, such as Shrek or the Pixar flicks, Finding Nemo, Toy Story, etc. What makes it different is the technology used to create the movie. According to this article in the NYT "there is a revolution hiding inside this seemingly innocuous family film." It is cool, indeed. Its seems best suited for kids Sam's age and above (age 4+).