The Polar Express
December 2005 Reviewed by: Rad Bennett Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

The Polar Express is based on the children’s book written and illustrated by Chris van Alsburg. To bring his illustrations to the screen, the filmmakers have opted to use a process called "performance capture" in which the actors go through the action, which is recorded and "captured" in a computer program. The resultant stick figures are expanded into something like what we see in Robots, and then these are electronically costumed and given lifelike flesh and hair. The characters look like neither real people nor animation; they are somewhere in between.

The result is a little spooky for the first minute or so, but the film is so successful at transporting viewers into another world that after that adjustment period, they are liable to simply enjoy the story.

The story is simple. A boy, who is just at the age when he is beginning to stop believing in Santa Claus, falls asleep and dreams (or not -- you decide) that a train has stopped outside his home to take him and many other children to the North Pole. Along the way they have many adventures, including slipping and sliding around on a frozen lake when the tracks disappear, but they reach Santa’s home, which in this movie is like an industrial city of gigantic proportions. There the boy comes to believe again.

Tom Hanks plays five roles in this movie, including the all-important conductor, the boy, and Santa Claus. It is an amazing feat; I was constantly in awe of this man’s good nature and great talent. Michael Jeter, who passed away before the movie’s release and receives its dedication, plays the fireman and engineer on the train. He is most appealing, but especially so in a song-and-dance number that was cut from the movie but is available on the second disc of extras.

The picture is clear enough to see every tiny detail and has perfect color balance and contrast. The surround-sound design is without fault. It is used sparingly but effectively. The extras seem a little skimpy to take up a whole second disc, but are generally good, including the aforementioned deleted song and several mini-featurettes that show how the performance capture system works. There is also an inane game and a music video of Josh Groban singing the movie’s best song, "Believe," at the Greek Theater.

This is a holiday movie that just misses being saccharine and should be a delight for the whole family, a classic to view yearly. At its end the engineer says to the boy: "One thing about trains, it doesn’t matter where they’re going. What matters is deciding to get on."

Don’t miss your ride on The Polar Express. All aboard!

• Go Back