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Late one Christmas Eve, a boy lies in his bed
hoping to hear the sound of reindeer bells from Santa's sleigh, but
doesn't really believe that he will. To his surprise, he hears a
steam engine's roar and whistle outside his window. The conductor
(voice of
Tom
Hanks) invites him to board the Polar Express and take an
extraordinary journey to the North Pole with several other
pajama-clad children. Once there, he is chosen to receive a gift
from Santa Claus himself. The boy receives an extraordinary gift
that can only be experienced by those who still believe in Santa.
Tom
Hanks provides voices for several of the characters in Polar
Express, including Hero Boy, the Father, the Conductor, the Hobo,
Scrooge and Santa Claus. |
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Facts
The Polar Express is a 2004 Academy Award-nominated feature film based
on the
children's book of the same title by Chris Van Allsburg.
The film, written, produced, and directed by Robert Zemeckis, is
entirely live action using performance capture technology, which
incorporates the movements of live actors into animated characters. It
stars actor Tom Hanks in five distinct roles, including the role of
Santa Claus. The film was produced by Castle Rock Entertainment in
association with Shangri-La Entertainment, ImageMovers, and Playtone,
for Warner Bros. Warner Bros. first released the $170 million film in
both conventional and IMAX theaters on Wednesday, November 10, 2004.
The Train
The steam locomotive that pulls the Polar Express is modeled after an
actual locomotive that is on display at the Steam Railroading
Institute in Owosso, Michigan. The Pere Marquette 1225 Berkshire-type
(2-8-4), built in 1941 at the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, OH, was
part of the Pere Marquette Railway system before being decommissioned
in 1951. Slated for scrapping, it was acquired by Michigan State
University (MSU) in 1957 and exhibited on campus.
In 1971, MSU steam enthusiasts commenced the formidable task of
restoring the mighty locomotive to operating condition. Restoration
was substantially completed in 1985, and in 1988, number 1225 started
pulling excursion trains in the Owosso area and around Michigan. The
locomotive has been
listed on the United States National Register of Historical Places.
In the film, artistic liberty is taken with the appearance of the
locomotive and its tender, both being made to seem even more massive
than the 794,500 pound (361,136 kilogram) original. Many of the
train's sound
effects, such as the whistle blowing and steam exhausting, were
created from live sampling of number 1225 while in operation.
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