It was with more than a little reluctance that I found myself entering my local Odeon cinema clutching a ticket to see The Iron Giant. I had not been greatly impressed by most of the recent Disney offerings(A Bugs Life aside) and the thought of seeing a non-Disney movie with a voice-over cast list of B-movie standard actors didn’t do much to whet the appetitie. However, I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised to find that The Iron Giant was not another Disney-wannabe but rather a thought provoking morality tale packed with social commentary and humour and with enough of both to entertain both adults and children. The hokey comedy element is not the main feature of The Iron Giant as is the case with many other animated cartoons, but a complementary element of the movie as a whole and as such I feel that it works well on both adult and child levels.

Although it sounds a little like a rehash of E.T., The Iron Giant is far more than a simple copy of an old movie. There are some heavy political messages here. Set in 50’s America at the height of the ‘Red Scare’ there are some wonderful asides at such things as Duck and Cover movies and commentary on the Russian satellite Sputnik. We learn that the robot is actually an extremely powerful weapon of war, but will only attack in the face of aggression directed towards it, perhaps illustrating that the aggressor will always receive the worst end of the bargain. However, he learns early on the painful truth about violence leading to death. McCarthyism is the central theme I suppose and the distrust of all things foreign, which for us adults is a commentary on the contemporary American social climate but for children offers a message not to automatically hate and fear someone just because they are different. What could first have been seen as little more than another animated kids movie, then turns out to be something much more inventive and powerful, with more than just the sickening moralizing which comes in a constant dribbling stream from the Disney studios. This movie is far more intelligent than that and delivers its messages in both a strong yet subtle manner, not making them the main focus of the movie and yet not disguising them too much so that they may be lost on the majority of viewers.

When it was released in the cinema The Iron Giant wasn’t exactly a smash hit which is a shame because it is an excellent movie for both children and their parents. It manages to be clever and enjoyable, delivering its numerous morality tales without the expense of enertainment which is something Disney should take a look at perhaps. This is easily one of the best animated movies to hit the screens for many a year and comes highly recommended from this writer at least. Check it out, you will not be disappointed.