By Jacob Cameron

The Iron Giant is turning 25 years old this year and is a great example of delayed gratification. The film would be a box office disappointment upon initial release. But has since developed a strong following and a great reputation for its quality. So much so that a remastered version of the film would be released in 2015 due to its popularity in television syndication. Not to mention that this is the film that served as the directorial debut for Brad Bird.

The Iron Giant tells the story of a giant metal robot that crash lands on the earth just off the coast of Maine.  One night, just after the landing, a young boy named Hogarth Hughes discovers the robot tangled up in the lines of a power station.  Hogarth saves the robot, and the two become friends.  But the robot causes happenings in the small Maine town that cannot be explained.  This arouses the curiosity of a U.S. Government Agent named Kent Mansley who believes that the robot might be on the earth with sinister motives.  It’s up to Hogarth, his mother, and a junk dealer/artist named Dean McCoppin to protect the titular Iron Giant.

The film, based on the book The Iron Man by Ted Hughes, was almost created by legendary animator Don Bluth. Along with almost being made into an album by The Who frontman Pete Townshend. Brad Bird had already been an animator since the early 1980’s; working on The Fox and the Hound and the Black Cauldron for Disney. When Bird was brought on to the project, he was given a reasonable amount of creative control over the story. Some of Bird’s decisions included setting the film in 1950s Maine and adding characters like Dean McCoppin and Kent Mansley.  The setting is changed from England as presented in the source material.

As mentioned previously, the film did not perform well at the box office; mostly due to a lack of marketing.  Warner Bros. studios did not give a solidified release date for the film until April of 1999; the film would come out in July of the same year.  A plan for a toy line to be introduced through Burger King fell through.  All signs indicate that this was supposed to be the breakout directorial vehicle for Brad Bird.  But the film would fall under the radar; only to be re-discovered and praised years later.  Without this film, it is possible that Brad Bird may not have found the success he would have in the following two decades.

This film is beautiful.  Not just in terms of its animation; which remains stunning a quarter-century later.  Bird approached this film with a singular question: “What if a gun had a soul?”  The mission was accomplished through a simple story, comedic situations that don’t overstay their welcome, and an ending that will bring you to tears.  Despite the simplicity of the main story, the movie is surprisingly complex.  With undertones of themes that are much darker permeated throughout.

The film’s story is very similar to that of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.  The giant is presented as gentle despite his size and arsenal of weaponry.  In the crash to earth at the start of the film, the giant gets a dent in its head which causes it to lose its memory.  It is heavily implied that the giant was sent from its home planet to serve as less of an E.T. extra-terrestrial and one of more of a War of the Worlds extra-terrestrial.  In a scene added to the 2015 remastered version, the giant has a dream where we get a glimpse of its homeworld and the lethal army the giant is seemingly a part of.  Whether it’s due to memory loss or the relationship with Hogarth, the giant shows evidence of having a soul.

Hogarth Hughes, voiced by Eli Marienthal, longs to have a pet and sees the giant as a pet of sorts.  Hogarth is far from a perfect child; trying a sneak a squirrel home against his mother’s wishes and spiking a milkshake with “coco-lax” in order to lose a curious Kent Mansley being good examples.  But his heart is always in the right place and tries to help the giant wherever he can.  Kent Mansley, voiced by Christopher McDonald, serves as the perfect human villain for this film.  McDonald thrives at playing characters who are so self-assured and egotistical but get regularly upstaged and humiliated.  He regularly bumbles through situations but has enough credibility to be sinister when he needs to be.

The film contains an ending that is heartbreaking and satisfying in equal measure.  Mansley, upon confirmation of the giant’s existence, calls the military, who then signals for a nuclear bomb to be launched from a battleship.  The giant, in order to save Hogarth and the town, sacrifices himself by flying into the bomb when it enters the atmosphere.  Throughout the film, there are many references to Superman.  The Iron Giant is introduced to Superman by Hogarth and the story of the film is very similar to that of the Man of Steel.  While the bomb destroys the giant’s body, the body repairs itself thanks to a signal from the giant’s brain.

In short, the reputation of The Iron Giant has only gotten stronger.  There is no better time to acquaint yourself with the film than now.