James And The Giant Peach

Henry Sellick, USA 1996, 79 minutes

Roald Dahl and Hollywood were never meant to be together. Dahl's books are too dark and twisted, capturing the nastiness of the world as seen through the eyes of under twelves; mutating grannies, bald-headed witches and infanticidal giants are the enemy. The heroes are shy, lonely outsiders, excluded from society by circumstances beyond their control, forced to use their imaginations to win the day. Hollywood, by contrast, is the land of Disney. As such, early attempts to translate Dahl's million selling books into dollar making movies failed miserably: `Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' became Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and in the process a saccharine-sweet, Oliver-style musical and simplistic American morality tale.

It wasn't until Nic Roeg directed The Witches, that it looked at all possible to transfer Dahl's text to the big screen. Combine this with maverick Goth boy, Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and you have James and the Giant Peach, a mix of live action film and stop-motion animation. The film captures perfectly the spirit of the book as it follows the incredible journey of James Henry Trotter and his insect friends to New York in a giant peach.

It is no surprise then that Burton turns up as the film's producer. The style is heavily influenced by the surreal, magical feel of the aforementioned Nightmare and his gothic fairy tale Edward Scissorhands, while the performances will resonate with anyone who remembers the seeming injustices of childhood. Paul Terry's portrayal of James is sensitive and assured with just the right blend of innocence and cuteness to avoid irritation and Joanna Lumley gets the role she was surely destined to play as the hideous hag, Aunt Sponge, whom James is forced to live with after his parents are killed by an angry rhinoceros. A star studded voice cast (including Susan Sarandon, Richard Dreyfus and David Thewlis as a cowardly Mancunian worm) give life to the animated segment which makes up the bulk of the film.

The animation itself gives free rein to the imaginative force of Dahl's creation, creating a world which credits children with intelligence and doesn't try to fool them with a few aesthetically pleasing puppies and a dastardly villain.

As an extension of the imagination, James and the Giant Peach provides a symbolic examination of the mindset of young boy and serves as a welcome alternative to the Disney ticket or the Batman franchise.

Review by Alistair Harkness
Taken from EUFS Programme 1997-98