Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1837 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-10-13
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 100 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
A perfect marriage of novel but incisive writing, acting and direction, Big is the story of a 12-year-old boy who wishes he were older, and wakes up one morning as a30-year-old man (Tom Hanks). The script by Gary Ross(Dave) and Anne Spielberg finds some unexpected ways of attacking obvious issues of sex, work, and childhood friendships, and in all of these things the accent is on classy humour and great sensitivity. Hanks is remarkable in the lead, at times hilarious (reacting to caviar just as a 12-year-old would) and at others deeply tender. Penny Marshall became a first-rate filmmaker with this 1988 work. --Tom Keogh

Amazon.co.uk Review
A perfect marriage of quirky but incisive writing, acting and direction, Big is the story of a 12-year-old boy who wishes he were older, and wakes up one morning as a 30-year-old man (Tom Hanks). The script by Gary Ross (Dave) and Anne Spielberg finds some unexpected ways of attacking obvious issues of sex, work and childhood friendships, and in all of these things the accent is on classy humour and great sensitivity. Hanks is remarkable in the lead, at times hilarious (reacting to caviar just as a 12-year-old would) and at others deeply tender. Penny Marshall became a first-rate filmmaker with this 1988 work.--Tom Keogh, Amazon.com--This text refers to the VHS tape edition.

Special Features
1.85 Wide Screen
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
DVD 5
English
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 2.0 English
Dolby Digital 2.0
Interactive Menu
Scene Access
Original Theatrical Trailer
Czech\Danish\Finnish\Hebrew\Hungarian\Icelandic\Norwegian\Polish\Portuguese\Swedish

Customer Reviews

An Intelligent Film of how a boy transforms overnight into a grown up
There was a time when Tom Hanks had a boyish look about him...thus as an adult and this role fitted him perfect. Big is a delightful light hearted simplistic yet sentimental comedy drama about a young boy awakening the next morning as a grown up after a magical transformation was in the making the day before....A boy in an adults body helped him in getting a job with a toy manufacturing store only to be an expert in the genre because he was still a child in mind....Elizabeth Perkins plays the confused girl-friend when Hanks does well at his job becoming the flavour of the month then very popular as the new face on the block....Hanks plays the role with great realism as his child like mannerisms within adult surroundings are fantastic so much so you almost feel sad for the boy with his dilemma...Perkins plays a touching kind soul knowing there is something not right but wanting to protect all the same....This is a classic delightful film that is so simplistic it works a treat with great acting performances from the lead roles.......top rated

Hanks' best ever role?
In his first Oscar nominated role, Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump) gives an outstanding performance as teenager Josh who makes a wish on a fair ground machine to be big. The next morning, Josh wakes up to find his wish has come true.

Director Penny Marshall's second film is a wonderful tale about the differences between teenage life and the grown up world with Hanks a catalyst in perhaps his best ever role.

The film contains many typical elements of both the young and the old world. From playing computer games at home to organizing promotion meetings, Big truly captures how life can transform quickly; just overnight for some of us (which was a brilliant idea to capture the true meaning of growing up).

It's a very good natured comedy and some very clever jokes are encoded to justify the genre beautifully.

There are some good feel moments, watch the piano scene in the toy store, comedy and enjoyment at its very best.

Jared Rushton (Honey, I shrunk the kids) has a marvellous role as Josh's best friend. Their song is really heart warming and humorous and the adventures they have together are great fun and epitomize childhood.

But its Hanks who steals centre sage with his dedicated performance as Josh. On build up to the film, he followed David Moscow around, who played young Josh, to see how he acted in real life and portrayed his actions in the film, a wonderful achievement and a great role.

Though the film follows a few clichés towards the end it is one of the best family comedies ever made.

ZOLTAR SAYS YOUR WISH IS GRANTED

I often wonder why it's so damn hard to just be a big kid no matter how old you are. Big is a movie about hanging on to that carefree child even when you grow up. It's about not getting caught up in stringent rules and routines, remembering those things that made being young so great, the outlook on life, especially when facing the mundane world of adulthood. Big strikes the balance between the two.

This is one of those movies that nearly everyone has seen. And, I suppose it's the precursor to that movie, 13 Going on 30, despite some differences in how the metamorphosis occurs and the result and everything.

Big is the story of 13 year-old Josh Baskin who is tired of missing out on all the privileges of being an adult. He's tired of simply being a kid. One night, he makes a drastic wish at a carnival arcade machine, and in the next day, he wakes up 30 years-old (or so). So the kid gets his wish, and while trying to return to normal, is a 13 year-old kid faced with a 30-year old's responsibilities. And it's a lot of fun. He works at a toy manufacturer. He gets the most excellent loft. I remember wanting a place like that when I was a teenager. Eventually, the 13-year-old must balance with the responsibilities of being a 30 year-old when Josh falls seriously in love with Susan (Perkins).

Big is one of the greatest movies ever simply because of the idea of a kid trying to be an adult and an adult still trying to hang on to being a kid, and all that things that Josh Baskins gets to experience while doing that.

As one of Penny Marshall's most notable production, this is enjoyable for nearly any age group. Everyone in it is fantastic--Hanks, Perkins, Loggia, Heard, Rheul, Moscow, and Rushton. It's a tough thing trying to hang to being young when you get older, but Big's a good reminder to keep trying.