Customer Reviews
Has aged well - By: TG, 04 Aug 2008 
Watched this a few years back but couldn't get on with the animation style. It was bought as a present for my 4yo who loves it. On re-watching I didn't have the same animation prejudice simply because Tim Burton has made it more 'acceptable'. Shallow of me I know but there you go.
The Aunts are fantasticin the 'real-life' section although I couldn't get on with the boy. Pete Postlethwaite still gives me the creeps (although that's from the Sharpe TV series rather than this film).
In the animated section the bugs are all pretty good & the boy gets better.
The songs are OK but I didn't find them particularly catchy.
Captivating and fun... - By: , 25 Jul 2005 ...are just two words I would use to describe this. I saw it yesterday for the first time, & was amazed how much fun it was. Great characterisation & animation, & the little boy is just scrummy!
My favourite (apart from James) was the Centipede, as I LOVE Richard Dreyfussin anything. He was such a wise guy....
"That'll teach you to mess with me, you overgrown sardine - I'm from Brooklyn!"
How much I enjoyed this film just goes to show that I'm a big kid - 37 going on 7!
A Great Film To Get Into The Imagination Of Children! - By: no1filmaddict, 25 May 2004 No one can really say that any of Roald Dahl's books or adaptations of books are 'normal', on the contrary, they are as far from normal as you can get without straying too far into the realms of sci-fi. Don't get me wrong though, this is definately a good thing as he manages to capture the minds & the imaginations of all the children who read & watch them.
When Jame's parents are killed by a huge rhinosorus, he is sent to live with two evil women, (presumably his aunts) who treat him like a slave & make him work like a dog all day & give him very little to eat. One day James is visited by a mysterious man who gives him one hundred green crocodile tounges & tells him to use them to make his dreams come true. Minutes later he has falled & all of the crocodile tounges have jumped away into the ground. Then, when a huge peach starts to grow from a supposedly dead tree, James realises that it was the crocodile tounges that are responsible & ventures into the huge fruit. There he meets six insects that have grown to be as big as him, & together they fly around the world on the peach,in search of New York City.
In this film there is a clever use of part real people, part animation which works really well, & is for most of the film seems it actually feels like a cartoon.
Overall this is a great adaptation of a very successful Roald Dahl novel & is sure to entertain children of all ages, & adults alike. If you have very hyperactive kids, then this is a great film to buy as it will keep them quiet for the whole time its on. A good choice if you or your children want some fun.
*****WONDERFUL- a banquet for the Imagination***** - By: , 25 Sep 2000 
Superb animation , combined with the vocal skills of Joanna Lumley & Miriam Margoyles. My 5 year old with the "attention span of a gnat" was enthralled & absolutely quiet for the entire movie. A wonderful adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic. From the begining where James is under the thumb of his cruel aunts, through the magical journey with his fellow insect friends & his arrivalin New York we were all captivated. A film that crosses both age & gender barriers. What more can I say.
