Fun and Magic Aboard the "Polar Express"

The Polar Express is above all else magical. It’s an X-MAS cliché wrapped in a new Christmas bow with all the bells and whistles that filmmaking has to offer, especially with that same old message of “believing is seeing” mishmash.

The Polar Express tells the story, based cover to cover and page to page off of the Chris Van Allsburg classic story, about a boy (voiced by Daryl Sabara, who starred in Spy Kids, with the motion capture performance supplied by Tom Hanks) who doubts Christmas. Like most cliché Christmas stories, a magical scenario takes place soon after. Here, a mysterious and magical train that goes by the name Polar Express (and is presented more like a main character rather than a setting) comes to the front door of the boys’ house. A nice man, the Conductor (Hanks), exits the Express, confronts the young boy, and invites him to board the train .

In reality, if a strange train with a strange-looking man invites a little kid onboard, well, in most cases, the wise choice would be to decline the offer. But since this is a well-intentioned Christmas story, all aspects of realism and disbelief (and perhaps paranoia) are thrown out the window. And like that, the boy gets on the train after thinking about it once or twice. And voila, for roughly an hour and ten minutes, magic, thrills, chills, and bits and pieces of character development occur. With that said, a very cool song and dance, some nice on-screen moments of heroism, and cutting edge rollercoaster-like thrills adds to the delightfulness, and makes The Polar Express comparable to Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory in some ways,

The train, as the Conductor says in his first scene, is heading to the North Pole. And as predicted, that is what happens. For a good percent of the time, the characters are on the Polar Express. As the boy and the few friends he made on the train can’t help it, they explore by accident the various spots at the North Pole once the Express arrives there. Thrills and magic also occur in other scenes.

There really aren’t many provoking thoughts to pick with this film. It’s like trying to critically rip apart Miracle of 34th Street. So in terms of substance, The Polar Express is a two-dimensional story we’ve all seen before. But what makes this film breathtaking, exciting, thrilling, and awing, is the misc-en-scene of the film. Much like the recent The Lord of the Rings trilogy, we are seeing a familiar story in a fresh new way. With the advancement of technology, the surrealism and detail is really, really captivating. There were scenes when I just flat out said “wow”! 

Robert Zemeckis, who we’ve all seen before on breaking the barriers while telling a story on film, presents a film that ideal, perhaps one we haven’t seen in a long-long time. A tasteful Christmas movie that isn’t too over-the-top or cheesy, and most importantly doesn’t make fun of itself, such as Elf and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Some people may question whether or not technology advancement is a good thing for movies, but The Polar Express adds the substance of story, acting and surrealism from the memorable films of the 1940s and 50s - the magic of those beloved ’60s and ‘70s made-for-TV Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass specials - and the advancement of filmmaking.

Kids will eat this film up for how magical it is. Parents shouldn’t be disappointed because it is truly entertaining, meaning it’s not another dry kiddy flick. Moviegoers will be rewarded for the visual aspect of the film. And, lastly, movie buffs and critics will eat it up for how much detail is put into it, and the list can go on and on. 

If you are willing to put all realism aside for ninety minutes and explore a surreal magical world that is familiar to us all but is also presented in a fresh new way, then come aboard The Polar Express. It’s anything but a bah-humbug experience, and will even make those who despise the thought of seeing Christmas ads the day after Halloween join the Christmas-mood!