Nicholas Thurkettle

Originally posted 12/4/04

The Polar Express
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writers: Robert Zemeckis and William Broyles, Jr., based on the book written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg
Producers: Steve Starkey, Robert Zemeckis, Gary Goetzman, William Teitler
Featuring the physical and vocal talents of: Tom Hanks, Michael Jeter, Nona Gaye, Peter Scolari, Eddie Deezen, Daryl Sabara, Isabella Peregrina, Jimmy Bennett

Maybe it’s that the warm and inviting illustrative paintings of Chris Van Allsburg never should have moved, or talked. Or maybe it’s that the simple story, a wisp of a fable, was not the stuff to support a 100-minute movie. This problem also plagued Ron Howard’s bloated and horrifying adaptation of Dr. Suess’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Or maybe it’s that the “performance capture” technology used to put human movement and spirit inside animated figures is still so new that its power to entrance is not yet readily within grasp.

Whatever the reason, and it may be parts of all the above, this feature adaptation of holiday classic The Polar Express, while imaginative and frequently arresting, is too inconsistent to be honored in my memory with the same fondness I hold for the book. It is usually my philosophy that adaptations of books must be treated as movies first, and criticized on their own terms, but the filmmakers have labored so mightily to bring what we love about the book to life, it is difficult to ignore where it falls short.
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