Hero of the Rails!

"Hero of The Rails" is great fun and if you have a chance to catch it at a real theater, by all means do. It's quite an experience! (All the little kids bouncing around... popcorn flying... energy level sky-high...)


But for the home, what you should know is that this is a fun Thomas film where the crew is CGI animated. Which is to say that we get to see a lot more action from Thomas than just seeing his eyes roll. In this film, his lips move... in fact, his entire face is animated and the producers have cast aside their little models and now Thomas and the gang appears to very realistic indeed! Woohoo!

As in "Thomas and the Great Discovery" the focus of the story is a discover. But this time it's not a place Thomas finds, but a person: the venerable Hiro, Master of the Rails. Hiro, is an absolute delight, by the way. He's an engine from Japan that came to Sodor before any other engines. Unfortunately, because he was first, and because he came from so far away, when he broke down they put him on a sideline where he was soon forgotten. And this is where Thomas finds him.

What makes Hiro delightful is that he finds the good in everyone: imperious Gordon, vain James, it doesn't matter. This trait, of course, brings him friends. And soon, all of our favorite steamies are trying to locate parts for him in an effort to make him whole-and-useful-- because they are afraid that he'll be scraped if they fail.

Missing in this one is a certain devious diesel, so the crews' opposition is provided by egotistical Spencer, who annoys everyone with his boasting and shenanigans. He turns out to be a pretty effective foil, having his way right up to the end, when Thomas emerges victorious and Spencer is not only humbled, but comes to regret his previous behavior.

So as it turns out, "Hero of The Rails" is a story of friendship and trust, and redemption.

Talking Points :::
Moms like me will delight in the positive messages that are in this Thomas movie. Thomas is hardly cheeky at all, and in fact, is patient, a good-sport, and even manages to 'turn the other cheek' when Spencer insults him.

Though it's strange to see the human characters move, it is really great to see more than the Steamies' eyes move. And though the animation is not Lucasfilms quality, the production features some great shots, like having a train roll over you, and seeing from Thomas' prospective what it looks like to go barreling down the tracks.

The Music is awful, and that's all I'll say about that. The voices, however, for the Steamies are good, although there could be more distinction between them.

There are a few new characters. Victor at the Works. His fumbling assistant, Kevin, who isn't an engine, and Hiro, of course.

All in all, this is a must-have flick at this point, because Thomas, Percy, Toby and the rest of the Crew are more alive than ever.

Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

Hero of The Rails

• Directors: Greg Tiernan
• Format: AC-3, Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Studio: Lionsgate
• DVD Release Date: September 8, 2009
• Run Time: 60 minutes
• ASIN: B002E9HML0