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Movies / On DVD / James and the Giant Peach
James and the Giant Peach

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James and the Giant Peach (1996)

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Reviews Counted:50

Fresh:48

Rotten:2

Average Rating:7/10

Consensus: The arresting and dynamic visuals, offbeat details and light-as-air storytelling make James and the Giant Peach solid family entertainment.

Runtime: 79 mins

Genre: Childrens

Synopsis: This Disney film combines live action with stunning stop-motion animation as it tells the story of a child's fantastic adventure. In the live-action prologue, a recently orphaned British boy... This Disney film combines live action with stunning stop-motion animation as it tells the story of a child's fantastic adventure. In the live-action prologue, a recently orphaned British boy named James comes to own a bag of glowing, magical crocodile tongues. When he drops some of them near a tree, a peach grows--and grows, until it reaches gigantic proportions. One night, James crawls inside the fruit (at which point the film becomes animated) and meets the six fascinating insects that reside within. The bugs become his new family, and together they set sail in the giant peach, floating toward New York City. During their voyage, James and his antennaed friends experience wild adventures--and danger. And when they arrive in New York, they decide to make it their new home...and live happily ever after. [More]

Starring: Paul Terry, Joanna Lumley, Miriam Margolyes, Pete Postlethwaite

Starring: Paul Terry, Joanna Lumley, Miriam Margolyes, Pete Postlethwaite, Simon Callow, Richard Dreyfuss, Jane Leeves, Susan Sarandon, David Thewlis

Director: Henry Selick

Director: Henry Selick
Screenwriter: Jonathan Roberts, Steve Bloom, Karey Kirkpatrick
Story: Roald Dahl
Producer: Tim Burton, Denise Di Novi
Composer: Randy Newman

[See More Credits]

Reviews for James and the Giant Peach

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1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

This irresistibly mad plot and the superb animation is only slightly let down by some of Randy Newman's more forgettable compositions.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
09/03/08
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The vocal cast are great fun, and the animation is smooth and vibrant. Except for a few treacly songs, this is great entertainment for all.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Adam Smith
Adam Smith
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

visually astonishing

comment Comment
04/06/05
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Despite a lightness of plot, it most beautifully captures the book's free-floating, fantastic sense of adventure and wonder.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Wally Hammond
Wally Hammond
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film's a technical tour de force, with flawless stop-motion animation and some imaginatively realized live-action sequences. What's surprising here is how much of Dahl's misogyny is allowed to surface.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
09/03/08
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
12/21/04
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah)

On the whole, the movie is a success. I still hope that children and their parents will read this wonderful book together, but it's nice that there's a movie they can see, too.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Barbara Shulgasser
Barbara Shulgasser
San Francisco Examiner

No review available.

comment Comment
03/31/05
Brian Juergens
Brian Juergens
Bloody Disgusting

The film is generally quite faithful, retaining the book's humor, familial spirit and even its darker edges.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

This very unconventional tale is well-told with an imaginative combination of live-action and stop-motion animation, all colored with Selick's uniquely dramatic, preternatural aesthetics.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
06/05/02
Christine James
Christine James
Boxoffice Magazine

Mrs. Ladybug sums it all up with one marvelous line, though: 'It's better than aphids.' Who am I to argue?

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

No review available.

comment Comment
09/21/05
Chuck O'Leary
Chuck O'Leary
Fantastica Daily

Handsomely animated adaptation of the Roald Dahl classic.

comment Comment
04/09/03
Dan Lybarger
Dan Lybarger
Nitrate Online

No review available.

comment Comment
02/08/04
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette

It's ripe to bursting with visual effects a heady combination of stop-motion and computer-generated imagery.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post

The narrative is shallow

comment Comment
06/10/05
Douglas Pratt
Douglas Pratt
Movie City News

No review available.

comment Comment
07/01/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
03/18/04
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

Marvelously inventive fairy tale based on Ronald Dahl's 1961 children's book.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/27/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

The latest in an impressive string of first-rate movies for kids.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/03/08
Hal Hinson
Hal Hinson
Washington Post
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
all

Latest News for James and the Giant Peach

May 09, 2009: Exclusive: The Art of Coraline with Henry Selick
Henry Selick, the animation mastermind behind such Certified Fresh classics as The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach adds another gong to his cabinet with... More...

May 18, 2006: Cuaron & del Toro to Do Dahl's "Witches"
Two of Mexico's most excellent filmmakers, Alfonso Cuaron and Guillermo del Toro, are planning to get together and mount a new cinematic adaptation of Roald Dahl's "The... More...

April 05, 2006: Selick Meeting with "Monsters"
Henry Selick, the wonderfully talented filmmaker behind The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach, has set his sights on a new project: The very popular... More...

February 07, 2006: "Shrek" Helmer Catches Barker's "Thief"
The Hollywood Reporter brings news of a new partnership that should please all the Clive Barker fans out there: Seems that "Shrek 2" co-director Kelly Asbury will head... More...

See All

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