James and the Giant Peach (1996)

An orphan who lives with his two cruel aunts befriends anthropomorphic bugs who live inside a giant peach, and they embark on a journey to New York City.

Director:

Henry Selick

Writers:

Roald Dahl (based on the book by), Karey Kirkpatrick (screenplay)

Stars:

Paul Terry, Joanna Lumley, Pete Postlethwaite

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Simon Callow	...	Grasshopper (voice)
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Centipede (voice)
Jane Leeves	...	Ladybug (voice)
Joanna Lumley	...	Aunt Spiker
Miriam Margolyes	...	Aunt Sponge / Glowworm (voice)
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Old Man
Susan Sarandon	...	Spider (voice)
Paul Terry	...	James
David Thewlis	...	Earthworm (voice)
J. Stephen Coyle	...	Reporter #2
Steven Culp	...	James' Father
Cirocco Dunlap	...	Girl with Telescope
Michael Girardin	...	Reporter #1
Tony Haney	...	Reporter #3
Kathryn Howell	...	Woman in Bathrobe (as Kathrine Howell)

Storyline

James' happy life at the English seaside is rudely ended when his parents are killed by a rhinoceros and he goes to live with his two horrid aunts. Daringly saving the life of a spider he comes into possession of magic boiled crocodile tongues, after which an enormous peach starts to grow in the garden. Venturing inside, he meets not only the spider but a number of new friends including a ladybug and a centipede who help him with his plan to try to get to New York.

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Plot Keywords:

boy | real person becomes animated | child labor | child slavery | live action and animation | 

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Taglines:

Adventures this big don't grow on trees.

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Musical

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some frightening images

Did You Know?

Trivia

This isn't the first time Richard Dreyfuss played a character that had a nearly fatal face to face encounter with an enormous killer shark that ended up exploding the first being Jaws (1975).

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Goofs

When the grasshopper is yelling at the centipede and calling him a disgrace, he misses out 'family' between 'order' and 'genus' when listing the taxons of classification. Someone as intellectual as he is wouldn't make that mistake.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Old Man: This is James Henry Trotter. He lived with his mother and father in a cozy little house by the sea.

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Crazy Credits

After the credits, there is some footage of a carnival game based on the story being played.

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Connections

Referenced in AniMat's Crazy Cartoon Cast: Remembering Stephen Hillenburg (2018)

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Soundtracks

Heroes Return
Composed by Arnold Steck
Courtesy of Zomba Music Services

User Reviews

Just OK

I wanted to watch this movie for a while. There are not many around animated this way and I did love The Nightmare before Christmas and Coraline. So, I finally gave it a try. I was not particularly impressed. I found the story somehow bland and uninspiring. Also, any little moral message in it is basically lost in a number of events that I presume are supposed to be exciting but are rather dull. The songs are not really bad, although they don't save the film. Perhaps I'm just too old for this, although I still love other family films like the ones mentioned at the beginning. I find this film just OK, I wouldn't watch it again.

Details

Official Sites:

Disney's Official Site

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 April 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

James and the Giant Peach

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$38,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,539,098, 14 April 1996

Gross USA:

$28,946,127

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$28,946,127

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Allied Filmmakers, Skellington Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1