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Movies / On DVD / Thomas and the Magic Railroad
Thomas and the Magic Railroad

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Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000)

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Reviews Counted:63

Fresh:12

Rotten:51

Average Rating:3.9/10

Consensus: Kids these days demand cutting edge special effects or at least a clever plot with cute charectors. This movie has neither, having lost in its Americanization what the British original did so right.

Runtime: 87 mins

Genre: Childrens

Synopsis: Eleven-year old Lily (Mara Wilson) sets off to see her grandpa (Peter Fonda), but she ends up on the wrong train. Lily meets Mr. Conductor (Alec Baldwin), who lives in the town of Shining Time. Mr.... Eleven-year old Lily (Mara Wilson) sets off to see her grandpa (Peter Fonda), but she ends up on the wrong train. Lily meets Mr. Conductor (Alec Baldwin), who lives in the town of Shining Time. Mr. Conductor uses magic gold dust to visit the Island of Sodor and Thomas the Tank Engine and the Magic Railroad. When Lily arrives, Thomas is having problems with Diesel 10, a renegade diesel engine, and Mr. Conductor is running out of the magic dust. But all will be well if Lady, a missing golden engine, can be found. In the meantime, Grandpa has an engine hidden away in the mountain. Could it be Lady? Will Mr. Conductor find more magic gold dust? And will Thomas again be the number one hero of the Magic Railroad? In the early 1980s, Britt Allcroft found Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends in the Reverend W. Awdry's THE RAILWAY SERIES and brought them to television. Now--aiming at an audience of children between 3 and 7 years old--Allcroft transfers Thomas and his friends to the big screen, and she uses all manner of special effects in capturing the storybook feel of the original stories. [More]

Starring: Edward Glen, Alec Baldwin, Peter Fonda, Mara Wilson

Starring: Edward Glen, Alec Baldwin, Peter Fonda, Mara Wilson, Michael Rodgers, Russell Means, Cody McMains, Didi Conn

Director: Britt Allcroft

Director: Britt Allcroft
Screenwriter: Britt Allcroft
Producer: Britt Allcroft, Phil Fehrie
Composer: Hummie Mann

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Thomas and the Magic Railroad

  • T-Meter Critics
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  • RT Community
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41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

It's difficult to say which is worse--Allcroft's script or her direction.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
01/01/00
Maria Garcia
Maria Garcia
Film Journal International

For the target audience -- probably between 3 and 5 -- it is bang on target.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mark Adams
Mark Adams
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Yet its story moves along with efficiency.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mary Kalin-Casey
Mary Kalin-Casey
Reel.com

Witless and inert.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Mike Clark
Mike Clark
USA Today

Gosh, this is a good-natured movie.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mike DeWolfe
Mike DeWolfe
Apollo Guide

Thomas fans should be pleased.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
01/01/00
Nancy Churnin
Nancy Churnin
Dallas Morning News

It is also mildly troubling that the female characters are so passive.

Full Review Source: Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies | comment Comment
01/01/00
Nell Minow
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

As long as the kids leave the theater twirling and dancing, you've got a magical family experience.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
01/01/00
Nina Garin
Nina Garin
San Diego Union-Tribune

How do these kids follow all this?!

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Norm Schrager
Norm Schrager
Filmcritic.com

What a pain in the old caboose.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rita Kempley
Rita Kempley
Washington Post

A complete and undeniable bore.

Full Review Source: SPLICEDWire | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rob Blackwelder
Rob Blackwelder
SPLICEDWire

Thomas may make you lose your own 'sparkle', so take some Valium if the children insist.

Full Review Source: IFilm | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rob Campbell
Rob Campbell
IFilm

An inept assembly of ill-matched plot points.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Can you say, 'Minimalist animation'?

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel

It's the strangest collision of lessons I've ever seen in a kid's film: Believe in magic but respect the work ethic.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
01/01/00
Sean Axmaker
Sean Axmaker
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Simply one of the poorest entertainments ever offered up to the world's children.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
01/01/00
Shawn Levy
Shawn Levy
Oregonian

The studio should have waited until they had a script with over an hour's worth of material in it.

Full Review Source: Internet Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steve Rhodes
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews

Thomas never gets out of the station.

Full Review Source: Ottawa Citizen | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steven Mazey
Steven Mazey
Ottawa Citizen

Eye-popping wardrobe makes for a tasty visual treat.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
01/01/00
Sue Pierman
Sue Pierman
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Wait for the video.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Susan Granger
Susan Granger
rec.arts.movies.reviews
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 >> >|
all

Latest News for Thomas and the Magic Railroad

January 01, 2000: It looks cute enough. Opens in new window
More...

January 01, 2000: Though its box-office prospects seem chancy, the film does have a ready-made audience. Opens in new window
More...

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