Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5232 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-04-17
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Arabic, Bulgarian
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 86 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
This gentle reworking of Ted Hughes's 1968 novella was the unseen gem of 1999. Hogarth, a young boy who lives in the Maine woods during the cold war, befriends a giant robot. As with ET, the iron giant is a misunderstood outsider who becomes a child's best friend and Hogarth does his best to hide the massive figure from his mom (voiced by Jennifer Aniston) and the local scrap-yard beatnik (Harry Connick Jr.). Soon the suspicions of neighbours and a government agent (Christopher McDonald) spell trouble.

With no songs, no sidekicks and no cheap ending, The Iron Giant is a refreshing change--like an off-Broadway production compared to the glitz of Disney's annual animated extravaganzas. Director Brad Bird may have Family Dog and The Simpsons to his credit but this film doesn't have that brand of scatological humour. As with the best family entertainment, there are gags that adults will howl at while the kids are watching something else (see Bird's interpretation of cold war propaganda). And the star is one cool piece of animated magic. Voiced by Vin Diesel (Saving Private Ryan's hulking Private Caparzo) and filled with more gadgets than a Swiss army knife, the giant is a grand thing to behold. And like another famous cinema tin man, our hero--and the movie--has heart. Superb entertainment for ages 5 and up. --Doug Thomas

Special Features
2.35 Anamorphic Wide Screen
DVD 9
English
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Dolby Digital 5.1
Instant Scene Access
Making of Documentary
Music Video Cha-Hua-Hua by Eddie Platt
Theatrical Trailer
Web Links
Web Events
Web Chat Access
Arabic\Bulgarian\English\Romanian

Synopsis
Based on poet Ted Hughes' 1968 children's book, (former SIMPSONS producer) Brad Bird's adaptation proves to be a work of art the family can enjoy together- simple and visually captivating enough for kids and sharp and touching enough for adults. Hogarth is a young boy in 1950s Maine. When he finds a kind and very large robot (of unknown origin), a strong bond of friendship is formed between the two. It isn't long, however, until a government agent is on their trail, wanting to destory the robot. A beautifully rendered fable.

Customer Reviews

A Classic!
I've just finished my first viewing of this DVD and I'm staggered. This is a brilliant piece of work that satisfies at many levels. It looks gorgeous; the animation quality is spot on and some of the lighting effects are eerily good. The humour running through the script and visuals is subtle and rarely (if ever) too in your face. The characterisation is marvellous too, especially the metal giant itself and the emotional engagement (even for a jaded 37 year old like myself) is ridiculously effective. If the final scenes don't make you feel better about life then you ain't got no soul brother!
This is up there with 'Toy Story' as the finest animated movie ever made and probably one of the finest movies of any kind. I will be spreading the word because this has been criminally under exposed. See it NOW!

Another great and underestimated film !!
Some animated features will bring out the best in all of us, be we grumpy old sour prouts or innocent young toddlers. They show you things that fuel your dreams and teach you things it can take years to learn from daily experience, and you won't even notice it because of the great entertainment value behind them...
Of course, i wouldn't waste your time by writing that piece of info if Brad Bird's ( the director of the simpsons a.o.) ' The Iron Giant' wasn't one of these features:
Every kid wants a pet at one time or another in their life, and unfortunately for Hogart Hughes' mother, some seem to prefer the more unorhtodox kind to the traditionals. Hogart for example has already ( unintentionally) wrecked his house with a raccoon and his mother's diner with a squirrel, you can imagine that if these small creatures can cause such havoc, what could happen if he got his hands on something bigger, such as let's say, a fifty foot, metal-eating, iron robot... This, coincedently, is exactly what happens. The boy tries his best to hide it, but unfortunately people tend to notice huge bites of steel been taken out of their cars. As if that wouldn't be freaky in normal times, this was in the middle of the cold war, where paranoia was at it's highest. Soon a federal officer, full of himself and dying to get some credit to his name, is sent in from Washington and well... destroying an enemy giant machine that is 'sent to tae over America' is one way of obtaining that credit.

As for the robot, he lost his memory as he crashed down to earth, and has to start again from scratch. With help from Hogarth he slowly learns that being human is not being made of flesh and blood, but something deeper, and throughout the entire film he strives to come one step closer. That is where the treasure of this film lies: in showing that anyone or thing, even one of the most brutish creatures imaginable can be as wonderful a person as any if he chooses to be.
It is a thrilling adventure, with humour for all audiences, supported by a touching, warm story and perfectly developped characters. The scenery is beautiful and the music matches accompanies the mood and sights of the film perfectly... a true joy to watch... 5 stars !!!

A real treat for young and old alike
1999's The Iron Giant is one of those truly outstanding films that never got the attention it deserved at the time of its theatrical release. While it may not have the glitzy look and feel of a Disney film, this Warner Brothers animated movie is of the highest caliber. The Iron Giant has a heart and a natural home-spun appeal that make it a great film for children as well as adults. Disney animated films always have a distinctly Disney aura to them, but The Iron Giant disavows artificiality to the extent that it almost seems too natural to be a movie. The animation is solid and impressive without any over-the-top or flashy sequences, the voice acting (featuring the voices of Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick, Jr., Christopher McDonald, Eli Marienthal, and Vin Diesel) is quite good, and the story is both entertaining and heart-warming, imparting some important lessons about life without ever becoming the least bit preachy.

It is 1957, and the Soviets have just launched Sputnik, giving rise to a sense of concern to the American people and its government. Thus, when something foreign tears through the atmosphere and hits the water some few miles off the coast of Maine, the government wants to know what this mysterious object is. Before government agent Kent Mansley arrives to investigate, though, young Hogarth Hughes has made first contact with what turns out to be a huge metal robot. The giant is child-like in terms of adapting to life on earth and does not seem to remember where it originally came from, but the lad soon makes friends with him and teaches him many of the things a parent would teach his own child. The giant gets a poignant and sad bird's-eye view of death, reinforcing its seemingly innate hatred of guns, and has little trouble developing a moral philosophy of goodness, choosing to mimic Superman rather than the evil robot Atomo. As sometimes happens in this world, though, the giant's goodness is met with fright, paranoia, and panic on the part of society, and Hogarth is only able to hide his gigantic new friend from the world for so long. The initially somewhat goofy but ultimately detestable agent Mansley sees to it that the army does everything in its power to destroy the gentle giant. He fears the giant simply because it is alien and different, never making the first attempt to understand or communicate with it. As might be expected, the giant eventually has to prove himself in a way that will convince even those who fear him of his kind and generous soul. In essence, the giant becomes the most human character in the film.

I have to say that there are a couple of pretty sad scenes in the film, but the hard lessons of life are presented in such a way as to be more empowering than frightening to the most sensitive of viewers. By and large, the movie is humorous on a number of levels, exuding obvious appeal to young and old alike. To sum up, The Iron Giant is nothing less than superb family entertainment in the widest sense of the term.