Big (1988)

When a boy wishes to be big at a magic wish machine, he wakes up the next morning and finds himself in an adult body literally overnight.

Director:

Penny Marshall

Writers:

Gary Ross, Anne Spielberg

Stars:

Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Robert Loggia

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 12 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Hanks	...	Josh
Elizabeth Perkins	...	Susan
Robert Loggia	...	MacMillan
John Heard	...	Paul
Jared Rushton	...	Billy
David Moscow	...	Young Josh
Jon Lovitz	...	Scotty Brennen
Mercedes Ruehl	...	Mrs. Baskin
Josh Clark	...	Mr. Baskin
Kimberlee M. Davis	...	Cynthia Benson
Oliver Block	...	Freddie Benson
Erika Katz	...	Cynthia's Friend
Allan Wasserman	...	Gym Teacher
Mark Ballou	...	Derek
Gary Howard Klar	...	Ticket Taker (as Gary Klar)

Storyline

A young boy makes a wish at a fairground machine to be big. He wakes up the following morning to find that his wish has been granted and his body has grown older over night. But he is still the same 12 year old kid on the inside. Now he must learn how to cope with the unfamiliar world of grown ups including getting a job, and having his first romantic encounter with a woman. What will he find out about this strange world?

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Plot Keywords:

wish | job | friend | best friend | toy | 

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Taglines:

You're Only Young Once But For Josh It Might Just Last A Lifetime.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 June 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Quisiera ser grande

Filming Locations:

435 Greenmount Avenue, Cliffside Park, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$114,968,774 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gracie Films, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 130 min (extended edition)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo (Todd-AO/Glen Glenn Sound)

Color:

Color (DuArt) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The football jersey Susan is wearing to bed is a NY Jets Jersey with #99 on it. At that time Mark Gastineau wore #99 for the Jets.

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Goofs

When Susan chases after Josh after he runs out of the meeting, she just misses the elevator doors closing. She pushes the down button to call another elevator, but it was already lit - there's no reason for it to be lit when a descending elevator has just closed and left and nobody else is there to push the button.

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Quotes

Susan: It happened again. David, the girl is absolutely useless. You've gotta get me someone who knows what she is doing. Excuse me. I'm not getting any of my mail, nothing has been filed. Ever since she got engaged, my life has been a disaster.
Personnel Director: You know, she came so highly recommended.
Susan: She spent the last three months writing down her married name. "Mrs. Judy Hicks", "Mrs. Donald Hicks"; "Mrs. Judy Mitchellson Hicks", sometimes with a hyphen, sometimes without a hyphen. Sometimes, she spells the ...

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Connections

Referenced in Jersey Girl (2004)

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Soundtracks

"BE A HELPER BEE"
Written by Kimberly A. Bradstreet
Performed by Kimberly and Friends
Courtesy of Dance and Jingle Inc.

User Reviews

Special

For some reason this movie makes me well up with tears of joy every single second I'm watching it. I think it's the concept of adults discovering the children inside themselves. The simple innocence and well-meaning intent of josh baskins in this movie is like a magic elixir that changes everyone and everything he comes in contact with.

This movie is amazing because I saw it when it came out, when I was 13 years old, the same age as josh baskins in the movie, and I loved it then. It speaks to you as a child because it's completely realistic, everything is just the way a kid would see it. Most of the time when adults try to simulate what it's like to be a child, they fail miserably (see all the 80's anti-drug propaganda ads as an example). It takes an immense amount of creativity and sensitivity to be able to write something like this. But then when I see this movie as an adult, it speaks to me on a completely different level. This film is a lesson to adults as well as children. Don't miss out on the fun and spirit of life! Don't get to wrapped up in your petty concerns of status and materialism, just try to enjoy every moment the most that you can, because you'll never get another chance to relive each moment of your life.

Any of these fools that didn't like this movie are just that, they've probably missed out completely on the message because they can't remember what it was like to be a kid, to see the world as one big optimistic toy you're lucky to be able to play with. Think about that and see this movie again if you don't remember how amazing it is...

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