The Polar Express DVD Review:

Gone are the days of simple animation, where things did not look perfect, but that was sort of the point. Animation was used when it was a story which was too difficult to be filmed or involved creative elements. Now it seems as though animation is used to show off. The Polar Express tries very hard to make every scene look as realistic as possible, and the few scenes which involve scenery and animals, or nature in general, look absolutely breathtaking. The people, on the other hand, look eerie. They are almost real looking, but they move different and have no life in their eyes. This is the largest problem with the film, even though there really are a number of reasons it never really works.

Based on the book by Chris Van Allsburg, The Polar Express is a simple story which is more known for the brilliant illustrations than the story. The story is rather simple, and is about a boy’s journey to the North Pole on a train. That was the book, and although there are elements which remain the same in the film, there is a great deal added. Because the book is so short, there are scenes and such added to the film, it turns into eye candy and a rollercoaster of action. Many scenes feel like a computer game with nonstop action.

The film uses performance capture technology which allowed Tom Hanks to play five of the characters in the film, although not all of them work that well, and it is somewhat creepy at times. The reasons for hanks playing all of the characters is never really clear, except for the fact that it created a little bit of publicity for the film, but it can be distracting, especially in the case of Santa Clause, who has never had a stranger voice. It is more a display of graphics than it is a great story or film.
The two-disc edition of the film has much more than just the film. The first disc does indeed have the film, and it has very magical menus with the focus on the golden ticket which is needed to ride the polar express. The second disc is filled with featurettes, mostly focusing on the process of the making of the film. There is a deleted musical number, which was never completely animated, as well as a few other perks.

You Look Familiar: The many “Polar Faces”:
This short featurette is all about the characters which Tom Hanks plays. Even creepier than the characters in the film is seeing Hanks with his face covered in the small balls which allow for the computer to pick up the actor’s movement. It is only about four minutes, but the other features deal with it more.

A Genuine Ticket to Ride:
This making of featurette has a number of interesting facts, but it is also narrated by one of the most irritating characters in the film. The featurette is split up into a number of sections, dealing with the special effects in the animation, the clothing and hair, and the music in the film as well.

True Inspiration: An Author’s Adventure:
This five minute feature is basically just an interview with the author of the book, Polar Express, Chris Van Allsburg. Allsburg talks about how he became an author and illustrator by way of sculpting, and with a little help from his wife. He also talks about the inspiration he gets to make books. What he doesn’t really talk about much is the book that the film is made about.

Behind the Scenes of Believe:
This is a series of interviews and some footage about the recording of the song Believe, which is sung by Josh Groban. There is also a feature which has a live performance by Groban at the Greek Theatre, performing the song. The song was nominated for an Academy Award.

The Polar Express Challenge:
This is a simple little video game that can be played with the DVD remote control. It is obviously directed at children, although many of the special features seem to be appealing to adults as well.

Meet the Snow Angels:
This is actually quite a touching featurette which is interviews with many of the filmmakers as they talk about their favorite Christmas memories. Unfortunately this is one of the shortest features.



Ryan Izay