I have read all the 69 reviews I found here. Could not help noticing that every 5th or 6th of them mentions Disney products as something very different from the Warners masterpiece. But Warners is taking it"s first steps in full-length animation and of course quite eager to make a name for itself at the market. Do you seriously expect them to duplicate the Disney formula of incessantly singing heroes/heroines traveling exotic landscapes in a company of mischeviously giggling sidekicks? Of course the first releases of the major studio have to be innovative. Warner is ready to earn less but make it"s presense felt in the market, to back up it"s ambitions with something worth mentioning. So the superbly creative team got the adequate funding and now we have this rare gem. I suppose that was the case in Disney"s early years but now it"s mostly routine and marketing overkill.
A lot of reviewers mention the Cold War relics making the film ring true but I see another All-American tradition behind the plot. Remember Shane? Yes,yes,yes! Retired gunfighter befriending a boy. It"s a Western in all it"s archetypal splendor! In which inter-galactical battles the big guy took his deadly part part? Who knows? He came out of nowhere. -" You are not a gun!" - But when the baddies close in he is spitting fire - and what the difference if it"s space blasters that make enemy run for cover - not the six-guns of the great tradition? The Iron Giant is laconical, galant with the ladies and children - he is a bit of a child himself. He is rushing unflinchingly towards his destiny to save the loved ones. Do you need more similarities?
As for the quality of animation it made me happy every time I saw The Giant move with such UNPREDICTABLE ease. When you see the great chunk of metal you expect him to creak and limp but what really happens takes your breath away.
Characterization is above all praise. The people are really alive! Neurotic beatnik yearning for the contact with fellow humans, owerworked single mother - and the boy! Every one of them is worthy of Oscar nomination. They look more real and endearing than the majority of Hollywood"s flesh and blood progeny.
The movie got the highest rating from my 8-year old son. -" It"s like Wallace & Gromit." - Meaning it"s real art and the DVD has to be bought in the next few days.