Part of 1999
When lonely Hogarth Hughes, a young boy from Maine being raised by his widowed mother, discovers and befriends an immense robot that originated from outer space, he must team up with a local beatnik artist to conceal and protect the Iron Giant (voiced by Vin Diesel) from the dogged government investigator bent on its destruction. The first film from celebrated director Brad Bird (THE INVISIBLES, RATATOUILLE), THE IRON GIANT uses the backdrop of Cold War America to discuss the values of friendship, loyalty and creativity in an era of political strife and paranoia. It’s quite simply one of the greatest animated films of the ‘90s.
See also: Supergiant: A Seminar on the Impact of THE IRON GIANT (Sat, Jun 8 | 10:30-11:30am)
“A near-perfect, classical expression of imagination, combining childlike wonder and adult sophistication.” —Armond White, New York Press “A first-class achievement in cartoon virtuosity that liberally borrows images from 1950s comic-book art and science-fiction movies to stunning effect.” —Alan Jones, Radio Times “Remarkably unassuming, genuinely playful, and superbly executed, THE IRON GIANT towers over the cartoon landscape.” —J. Hoberman, Village Voice
