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 enlarge | Director: Henry Selick
Actors: Simon Callow, Richard Dreyfuss, Jane Leeves, Joanna Lumley, Miriam Margolyes
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $9.44
You Save: $10.55 (53%)
New (69) Used (27) Collectible (3) from $9.44
Rating:  72 reviews
Sales Rank: 1324
Format: Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd-video, Letterboxed, Live, Special Edition, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Picture Format: Letterbox
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 79 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.7 x 0.7
MPN: DISD20100D
ISBN: 0788822365
UPC: 717951009388
EAN: 9786305950271
ASIN: 630595027X
Theatrical Release Date: April 12, 1996
Release Date: October 3, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New, Factory Sealed, Ships 1st Class.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 11-15 of 72
YOU'RE NOT EVEN A REAL RHINO! March 16, 2007
A.N. Roman (Hillsboro, OR)
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
James and the Giant Peach...one of the most beloved stories out there. I remember when I first read it back in fifth grade, all the way back in 1995. Our class had been introduced to Roald Dahl's stories, and we couldn't get enough. Going through nearly everything he wrote for kids and young adults, James and the Giant Peach always stood out. Not too long after reading a few dozen Dahl books, word got out that James and the Giant Peach was getting a movie. Talk about ironic, eh? The fact that it was done in the same puppet format as The Nightmare Before Christmas caught my attention (yes, I saw NBC in theaters before the current mall goth trend), and I couldn't wait to see it. Seeing it back then, I loved it. Seeing it again 5 years ago, it still ruled. Just the other night? Yeah, it still manages to hold up. And like the other two main puppet stop motion movies from the past decade, NBC and Corpse Bride, James went under appreciated. I don't remember it doing too hot in box office receipts, and there wasn't much merchandise for it. Heck, all I have is my 15" Grasshopper. And James' release on dvd is anything but "special", as the box would lead you to believe claiming this as the special edition. That's a shame too, because I'm sure if it were released today, it'd do a bit better. James and the Giant Peach is one of the best family movies I've seen, and the fact that I can still enjoy it at almost 22 years old (especially given how harsh I can be on things like this) really says something. And hey, the differences between the book and movie aren't much, so no book-purists are going to be knocking this one much!
If you read the book, you can skip this paragraph, but if not, here's how the story goes: James lived as a normal young boy with a great mom and dad. Unfortunately, they were eaten by a mad rhino one day. This caused James to live with his horrid aunts, Spiker and Sponge. They abuse him, underfeed him (his dinner is usually fish heads, uncooked), make him do all the chores, and yell at him if he questions them. Granted, James is a pretty annoying kid, but at his age, he shouldn't be treated like that. One day, an old man encounters him outside the house, and offers James a bag of neon green crocodile tongues. They're actually just little bugs that glow and hop around, and are full of magic. He gives them to James, but the kid trips and they go flying everywhere, going into the ground. Soon enough, Spiker and Sponge notice a peach growing on a dead tree. It continues to grow until it's probably a good 20 feet around. They charge people all across England to see it, and make some good money. But one night, James goes out to check the peach, and ends up going inside. After unknowingly ingesting one of the crocodile tongues, James completely changes in appearance, and comes across a group of huge talking bugs within the peach. He befriends them, they get outta Spiker and Sponge's grasp, and head towards New York, a place where James' parents were going to take him before their untimely demise. James and crew embark on quite a journey while making way to America, including fighting a huge mechanical shark, skeleton pirates, and fighting things like hunger and distrust.
Ok, I gotta get the so-called "plot holes" out of the way first. Yes, there's a mechanical shark that is never once explained. It appears out of the ocean, and goes to attack the peach. That's its purpose- peril for the gang. But when you see that the fish it consumes end up being the fish heads that James gets for dinner, I guess it makes a little sense. There are a few others that are around later in the movie, but none of them should bother you too much. If anything, the movie's more of a visual treat, seeing how amazing the puppet work was back in that era. The movie took 3 years to make, which is longer than most would care to put into movie, especially a stop motion one where you have to work hard just for one second of film. The grasshopper, centipede, spider, earthworm and ladybug puppets all look fantastic, and are full of character. The glow worm puppet looks like a robot fused with an old lady, but is barely seen. Some have complained that the crew of bugs is too stereotypical in that the grasshopper represents an English gentleman, the spider a French cafe dweller, the centipede a New York cabbie, and the ladybug a motherly figure. Given that none of them go too far into the stereotypes (the grasshopper breaks this several times just before the pirate scene), it's not a big concern, and if you're complaining about bug stereotypes, you take movies too seriously. The whole thing was a blast to watch, and I look forward to watching it with my daughter when she grows up. Sure, there are some potentially scary images, mostly of the rhino storm cloud, and one whole "bad" word (they even say "god" here! GASP!), but this is a straight up family movie, and if you have to shield your child's eyes and ears for things like that, you have my prayers. Besides, if anything, you should be shielding their eyes from Sponge in the bikini top when her and Spiker are tanning.
The picture transfer got an ok treatment. I saw a bit of grain, but nothing too serious. The movie was presented in full screen as well, and I know for a fact that some stuff is missing. It's obvious when you get group shots of the bugs and half of one is missing from the shot. I forget if that's how it was in theaters, but I wouldn't imagine so. The audio gets better treatment, making good use of surround sound on several occasions. The action sequences amazingly use the 5.1 track. It could still use a bit of cleaning though.
I seem to be having bad luck with special features and family movies these days, as James and the Giant Peach only has one worth mentioning. In addition to the usual trailers, song/music video and promotional materials, there's only one featurette, and it is the standard "it was great working on this movie!" fare...for under 5 minutes. Yep, that's all. You see a few voice actors, the director, and some behind the scenes footage, and it's done. Some special edition huh? The movie came out 10 years ago, so there went any hope of a 10th anniversary edition with more features. I guess we're stuck with this as the only release unless an HD-DVD or Blu-Ray one gets more, but I don't see that happening.
I really do love this movie, even if the kid that plays James is just barely less annoying than the one who played Charlie in the remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. When he's in puppet-form, he's more tolerable, but not by much. This movie's all about puppets though, so animation fans will absolutely love this one. Most of the acting is solid, the songs are fairly good (not NBC standards, however), and it doesn't drag on in any places. I'd say that's all you need for a family movie. If Roald were alive at the time of its release, I'm sure he wouldn't have hated it like he did Willy Wonka. At least this thing has a lot of views from a child in it, and keeps things simple, the way it was intended. Besides, there are some great one-liners like the earthworm mentioning how his brother was cut in half, and how he now has two half-brothers. Here's hoping we get another stop motion movie sometime this decade. We need more people putting hard work into these things and less of the standard pampered animal ends up in the wild fare!
 My all time favorite January 17, 2007
Argentina Fuentes (Plainville, MA)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is one of my all time favorite movies. That is why I purchased it. Enjoyed watching it over and over again.
James entertains all ages January 10, 2007
Elle Bee (Orlando FL USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I love this movie, my kids love this movie, my grandkids love this movie. It is a movie for all ages. Very entertaining and provides a strong positive message.
Fill Yourself with Peach Delight! November 30, 2006
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
This wonderful fantasy book is filled with tremendous fun for people that love to read magical fairy tale ages 8-13. This story has sad no-reason punishments and exciting revenge. I really recommend kids ages like me to read this book. To me, I think the book is better than the movie, since the book gives more details of the main idea and the movie... well, I'm not saying it's bad but, it just tells the story summarized and it's on TV. The story starts with a little boy named James Henry Trotter, the luckiest boy in the world. When James was 4 years old, his parents got devoured by a hazardous rhinoceros. The rest of his life he lives with his two evil, greedy aunts. Suddenly, a strange man gave James a pack of slimy crocodile tongues! When James runs too fast and drops the pack, it crawls into the ground. Then, when a growing peach comes, the adventure begins!
 Fun But Creepy November 10, 2006
Jim O'Brien (Franklin, PA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This movie takes us deep into the imagination of Roald Dahl (the author of the original story) and it is quite a trip.
It's a story about James, a boy 8 or 9 years old, who, by a strange occurrence, finds himself orphaned and in the care of (prisoner of actually) his two evil aunts. James' life is one of toil and suffering, but he holds onto his dreams and manages the best he can.
One day James encounters an odd gentleman who gives him some magic glowing worms. These magic worms cause three things to happen: 1)A tree long thought to be barren produces a single peach that grows to an enormous size 2)Six bugs (a centipede, a grasshopper, a spider, a ladybug, an earthworm, and a glow worm (no relation to the magic worms)) grow to human size and are given the ability to speak, and 3)James is transformed into an animated version of himself.
James crawls into the middle of the giant peach, where he meets the six bugs, and they all become friends. This intrepid group then uses the giant peach as a vessel ... first as a boat, then as a plane ... to escape from James' wicked aunts and then to travel to New York City (across the ocean from England) to fulfill James' dream of seeing the Empire State Building.
Quite a story ... with no lack of imagination, that is for certain. But what "James and the Giant Peach" really has working for it is the decency of the character James. He remains upbeat and hopeful despite his difficult circumstances, and this holds the movie together and keeps it on course. The bugs are all right ... they're helpful and fun ... but they're always arguing with each other. The bad guys of the movie, the two evil aunts, are pretty bad. They look like ghouls and they act like sadists. It is a very dreary situation indeed until our little hero manages to escape from their clutches.
I guess this could be called a musical, as there is some singing (of songs written by Randy Newman) and the songs are pretty good. The animation is computerized and it is top-notch. The actors and actresses who provide the voices for the bugs do an excellent job, and, like I mentioned already, there is no shortage of imagination (that is used) throughout the picture. The final scene (in NYC) is carried out exceptionally well, and the ending is a happy one.
"James and the Giant Peach" is entertaining and it is fun, but it is also quite creepy (and likely scary for young children) in parts. This "dark humor" gives the movie and overall feeling that has ... creepiness and ... dirt in it ... and it holds the film back ... keeping it (I believe) from being the type of movie we would want to watch again and again.
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