The Polar Express

Chris Van Allusburg is a very accomplished book illustrator.  His book The Polar Express was and still is a very successful book in which he created wonderful illustrations in the medium of pastel.

The movie version created by many creative people including Chris Van Allsburg and Tom Hanks is a new Christmas classic.  It is more than a children's movie.  The quality of the illustration is matched with the same degree of sophistication as Allsburg's original book. 

The story is wonderful and is far deeper than a simple story.  It promotes honesty, caring for others, and creative thought and belief.  The thing about the train is to decide if you should get on.

For those men and women who are train buffs, this movie has been illustrated showing such clarity of the real Polar Express train. You get to see the cars up close and the engine and coal car in great detail.  The inside of the steam engine is illustrated in great detail.

This movie has become our new tradition in our family of two.  We watch it each year now just like "It's a Wonderful Life." Maybe someday we can share this moment with grandchildren and hopefully give them an appreciation for good writing and illustrating. If you have a creative soul and are willing to go beyond the stereotypes of what adults are suppose to watch, I think you will really like this movie. Rent it first if you don't want to put the money out front, but give it a chance.

As a side footnote, one of my former students is a train fanatic and he wrote to me to tell me that an old steam engine is going to be traveling through the main south tracks in Iowa in July.  I hope I get to go see it. 

Thanks for stopping by..........