A movie that can only be considered ahead of its time, The Polar Express only falters with its animation. Its story is heartwarming, characters memorable, and the message for the film's target audience is perfect. This is a holiday classic, and it deserves recognition as such.
Based on the book by Chris Van Allsburg, Polar Express uses a new animation method to bring the story to life. Many shots are directly copied from the book, and they're perfect facsimiles. The story is small-scale, turned into a massive adventure aboard a magic train.
Following a young boy who is losing faith in the spirit of Christmas, Polar Express follows his journey that has a sole purpose: believe. The train taking him to the North Pole becomes a wild ride. It's filled with well-crafted characters aimed directly at making the target audience grasp every shred of the "believe" message.
Tom Hanks plays, well, nearly everybody in the film. Five different characters are taken under his wing, from the main train conductor to the film's key character simply known as Hero Boy in the credits. A $150 million investment, Polar Express digitally captured the actor's performance, including full lip synch.
The result is a film that looks stunning. What comes off as strange is that it's also a little creepy. There's something either right or wrong with the animation that causes this. Facial movements seem natural, but you can't help but be distracted if they're off for even a split second.
Even still, you can't help but become engrossed in the story. Any animation gaffes are quickly forgotten as the film speeds along at a brisk pacing. Sequences like the train skidding out onto a patch of collapsing ice is not only masterfully directed by Robert Zemeckis, it's as memorable as they come and enhanced by a moving score by Alan Silvestri. Becoming bored is not possible, and believing is the only option. 
As with nearly every computer generated film on the DVD market, Polar Express looks remarkable. Some may have trouble distinguishing the difference on HD-DVD at first. With time, the added detailing and a soft yet beautiful presentation go far in raising the bar for the format.
Color is marvelous, and the little nuances in the animation are far more noticeable here. The extra effort put forth pays off here when every hair on a character's head and fiber in their clothes leap off the screen. There are some scenes where the black levels drop off more than they should, though this is a minor complaint.
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