Badmovies.org Forum

As a fan of 50's b-movies, I cannot understand why this movie seems to missed its mark.  A better analogy would be that the audience is missing this movie!  Heck, until recently, I was also missing out.

The animation is excellent, with a story of equal quality.  Plus, there is a subtle homage specifically to "War of the Worlds" in there.

This film instantly made my "must see" list and is among the top 5 films I want to show my children (when they arrive) along with movies like "The NeverEnding Story" and "Labyrinth."  Please, at least take a look at "The Iron Giant."  I went into the movie with no preconceived notions and was spellbound, especially by his words near the end...

Andrew

It's alright, Andrew.  You are not a nun.  You can be what you choose to be. . .

I  can't believe you haven't seen until now.  For my part, I remember the previews (all two times they showed them) and thought the animation looked really good.  I didn't go watch it in the theaters because it's a kid's movie and I don't know any.  I did see it when it finally came out on video though.

What can I say?  It's funny, touching, powerful and intelligent.  The animation is top-notch, the voice-acting is uniformly excellent (Christopher McDonald, Jennifer Aniston, John Mahoney, Vin Diesel. . .).  And here's the best part:

Absolutely no musical numbers.

That's right.  The bane of American animation is nowhere to be found.  The soundtrack is quite good, but at no time do the characters bust out singing.

At any rate, this movie was put out on the market like an ugly debutante.  I think this movie is going to find its market on the video and cable market, though.  Like THE PRINCESS BRIDE, this movie will eventually have a huge fan base five or ten years after its release.

All good-thinking people will like this movie.

Warner was looking for an excuse not to do any more animated films, so they released The Iron Giant with little fanfare and, death-knell of juvenile cinema, no fast-food marketing tie-ins (compare to Inspector Gadget that same summer), and then when it predictably did poorly, they pointed to it and said, "See?  Animation doesn't do well for us!"

Stupid stupid stupid.  Love the movie.  Bought it for my kids.

Nathan

I agree. Cool visuals, great voice work(Real actors!), and a story thats musical number free! And the fiftys time frame worked well, too. Hummmm...for what its worth.....that second tank the giant zapped to oblivion...only two of the five man crew of that M-41 gots out.....so, i think our hero did kill during his bizerker rage. Oh,well. Still a good flick.

I thought The Iron Giant was ponderous, preachy, and predictable. The animation itself was excellent, but the characters were drawn in Don Bluth-style, and the story was just hopelessly cliched. My biggest problem was with the characters: I hated the kid , and Harry Connick Jr.'s beatnik grated on my nerves as well. The villains were just the stock government bureaucrats/military types which I've pretty much grown tired of , and the Giant wasn't a particularly interesting character either. Needless to say, my sister disagrees with me(if I didn't like Shrek and Spy Kids as much as she did, she probably wouldn't speak to me again).

Sorry Mr. Andrew K, but I'm gonna have to dissagree with you. The Iron Giant is a truly underated flick. It brings back the coolness that we used to see in movies like this. Shoot! How can you not like a movie about a giant robot? And how in the HELL!- can you like Spy Kids?! Dear Lord!

Like so many movies made in the past few years, the Iron Giant just wasn't fun enough.  The anti-gun message was a bit much and took away a great deal of the fun for me.  The G-Man was way too stupid as well (he launched a nuke at HIMSELF for cryin' out loud).  The Giant himself was all right and I liked that we, the audience, were never told why he came and who sent him.

Now, what I'd like to see next is Iron Giant vs. Mazinger Z. n.n

Well, _I_ liked Spy Kids immensely, so it's at least possible.

Nathan

My whole family loves it.  I tried like heck to get them to see it in the theater, but NO they WOULD NOT GO.  Now I get to smear in their faces.   "SEE I TOLD YOU IT WAS GOOOOD!"

Love the movie.

Chadzilla wrote:
>
> My whole family loves it.  I tried like heck to get
> them to see it in the theater, but NO they WOULD NOT GO.  Now
> I get to smear in their faces.   "SEE I TOLD YOU IT WAS
> GOOOOD!"
>
> Love the movie.

I have a love/hate reaction with this.

Of course I love pointing out that it would have been so great, but it's always tied with the bitterness of "I could have seen this in the theater".

Anyway, doesn't the ending make you want to stand up and cheer?  I know I did.

Oh, yeah!

I hate to disagreed with Andrews, but the problem I have with this film is that the filmmakers lack the courage of their convictions. If you start out a movie saying that the threat to individuals within a society comes not from outsiders of that society, but society itself, which is the "winger" viewpoint of society, then end the movie the same way. Do not end the movie by saying, basically: "Ooopps! I made a mistake. The threat to individusals within a society comes not from society itself, but from one individual within that society." With that you have lost all respect I had for you as a filmmaker. For a "winger" film with the courage of its convictions, check out 1951's "The Day the Earth Stood Still" w/ Michael Rennie and Patricia Neal. Enjoy!