James and the Giant Peach [1996] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Amazon.co.uk Review

Roald Dahl's modern classic for children becomes a delightful combination of live action and stop-motion animation by the team that made The Nightmare Before Christmas: director Henry Selick and producers Tim Burton (Batman) and Denise Di Novi. The story concerns young James (played for real and through voice-overs by Paul Terry), who is orphaned and left in the charge of two cruel aunts (Miriam Margolyes, Joanna Lumley). Rescued by a mysterious fellow (Pete Postlethwaite), James ends up inside a giant peach, drifting over the Atlantic Ocean in the company of a gentleman grasshopper (voiced by Simon Callow), a fast-talking centipede (Richard Dreyfuss), an anxious earthworm (David Thewlis), a matronly ladybug (Jane Leeves), and a sexy spider (Susan Sarandon). The collection of actors and their creepy-crawly alter egos are a delight, especially when some of the song-and-dance numbers (tunes are written by Randy Newman) get everyone going. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Captivating and fun..........2005-07-25

...are just two words I would use to describe this. I saw it yesterday for the first time, and was amazed how much fun it was. Great characterisation and animation, and the little boy is just scrummy!

My favourite (apart from James) was the Centipede, as I LOVE Richard Dreyfuss in anything. He was such a wise guy....

"That'll teach you to mess with me, you overgrown sardine - I'm from Brooklyn!"

How much I enjoyed this film just goes to show that I'm a big kid - 37 going on 7!

A Great Film To Get Into The Imagination Of Children!.......2004-05-25

No one can really say that any of Roald Dahl's books or adaptations of books are 'normal', on the contrary, they are as far from normal as you can get without straying too far into the realms of sci-fi. Don't get me wrong though, this is definately a good thing as he manages to capture the minds and the imaginations of all the children who read and watch them.

When Jame's parents are killed by a huge rhinosorus, he is sent to live with two evil women, (presumably his aunts) who treat him like a slave and make him work like a dog all day and give him very little to eat. One day James is visited by a mysterious man who gives him one hundred green crocodile tounges and tells him to use them to make his dreams come true. Minutes later he has falled and all of the crocodile tounges have jumped away into the ground. Then, when a huge peach starts to grow from a supposedly dead tree, James realises that it was the crocodile tounges that are responsible and ventures into the huge fruit. There he meets six insects that have grown to be as big as him, and together they fly around the world on the peach, in search of New York City.

In this film there is a clever use of part real people, part animation which works really well, and is for most of the film seems it actually feels like a cartoon.

Overall this is a great adaptation of a very successful Roald Dahl novel and is sure to entertain children of all ages, and adults alike. If you have very hyperactive kids, then this is a great film to buy as it will keep them quiet for the whole time its on. A good choice if you or your children want some fun.

*****WONDERFUL- a banquet for the Imagination*****.......2000-09-25

Superb animation , combined with the vocal skills of Joanna Lumley and Miriam Margoyles. My 5 year old with the "attention span of a gnat" was enthralled and absolutely quiet for the entire movie. A wonderful adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic. From the begining where James is under the thumb of his cruel aunts, through the magical journey with his fellow insect friends and his arrival in New York we were all captivated. A film that crosses both age and gender barriers. What more can I say.

Customer Reviews:

Bizarre film.......2007-09-08

'Stunt Wars' is narrated by Ohtomo, a Japanese man who looks (and sounds) like an American, and whose glorious scheme it was to challenge the Americans to a stunt car competition. Taking us through the various stunts in a familiar sounding accent, Ohtomo also finds time for a little romance with an American girl, Linda, who at first repulses him because she resembles his sister. Work that one out.

Basically, this film reeks of the seventies. The slo-mo function is used shamelessly (with some eerie ring-pan effects) and the dialogue shares the intimacy of long-distance phone conversations. There is also a soundtrack of lounge/soul that probably carries the film along in places. Added to this are a farrago of bizarre features, such as the barren stadia within which most of stunts take place, or Ohtomo and Linda's trip to the races, which just basically features vintage cars winding round the track and nothing at all of the couple watching. This goes on for a good ten minutes, before the competition begins in earnest again, and it's time for Japan vs. USA in buggy racing.

So, like the last reviewer said, very much a 'so bad it's good' film. But worth watching for a laugh.

Stunt War-tastic.......2003-12-08

I had a cast on my leg when I got this. My mom went to the supermarket and picked up a copy from a bargain bucket. She brought it home as a joke gift to cheer me up. So I got the boys round and we sat down with the DVD.

Absolutely fantasic. It comprises of a collection of pointless, stupid stunts performed in lazily handling 70's Yank Tanks, tied together with the most loose story. You will fast-forward to the stunts, but for 70's retro value, poor use of the digital media (no extras, no stereo sound and bad quality visuals), and complete cheese, this cant be beat.

If you appreciate the 'so bad it's good' idea, it'll not let you down.

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