Iron Giant

January 24th 2017

The Iron Giant Movie Poster

Did you have a teacher when you were 7 or 8 that had a passion for something and tried to pass it on to the next generation ? I must have been about that age when one of my teachers serialised this book to us over an autumn term and the whole class listened intently waiting for the next part. Every episode of this reading ending in a Flash Gordon cliff hanger so we couldn't wait for the next part. The book was read to us with such passion and feeling that we couldn't helped but be hooked.

it was this afternoon that I revisted this great story set in the heart of the early cold war, 1957 to be exact and even though I'm a hell of a lot older than I was the first time I heard it the story was just as good.

In a nutshell an iron giant crashes to earth and lands of the coast of Maine. The giant is befriended by a little boy who protects it from the authorities who believe it to be the latest soviet weapon that has been sent to kill them all. He manages this task well, until two children are in danger and the giant hurry to rescue them and in doing so betrays himself to the authorities. They attack it with everything in the arsenal to no avail. When the most paranoid amongst them orders a nuclear attack on it and in doing so seals the fate of the east coast of the united states. The giant saves the day by sacrificing himself to save the towns people. When the little boy believes he's been destroyed a small sign appears that all is not lost and the giant can reconstruct himself from the destruction.

Its a product of the mid 50's and a good anti war story with a great plot, One that children of the age I was when I was first introduced to It will love and be in awe of. As an adult its still good but as much as we may yarn for those days of innocence the world has mored on for us and this film will only highlight that to you.