10 Harsh Realities Of Rewatching The Polar Express, 20 Years Later

The Polar Express is a Christmas movie classic, but there are nevertheless several elements of this fan-favorite holiday story that make very little sense or simply don’t work. Despite The Polar Express being released 20 years ago, it remains one of the best Santa Claus movies to this day. In fact, The Polar Express 2 is in development after two decades of few updates on the possibility of a sequel, reflecting the movie’s staying power and continued popularity.




The Polar Express is popular for good reason. The Polar Express cast heavily features Tom Hanks, a beloved and critically acclaimed actor, and the story takes an interesting and unique direction, which can be difficult to achieve with holiday movies. Even so, multiple aspects of The Polar Express are rather odd, and these 10 are among the most difficult to face.


The Animation In The Polar Express Has An Uncanny Valley Effect

Many Viewers Find The Animation Style To Be A Bit Unsettling

One of the most prominent complaints about The Polar Express continues to be the animation style. The Polar Express utilized motion capture quite early on in this technology’s development, which is perhaps why it is a bit unsettling to look at. Many who dislike this animation style have specifically pointed out the more lifeless or vacant nature of the characters’ eyes, particularly when it comes to the children.


Because of the uncanny valley effect, even scenes that would otherwise be sweet or emotional have been called out as disturbing to some viewers.

This, combined with the children’s often wide smiles, does create something of a creepy effect. The Polar Express animation style is also an excellent example of the uncanny valley, wherein something looks almost human but not quite. Because of the uncanny valley effect, even scenes that would otherwise be sweet or emotional have been called out as disturbing to some viewers, which is legitimately a shame. It will be interesting to see what updates to the animation style, if any, will be made in The Polar Express 2.

Related

The Polar Express 2: Will It Happen? Everything We Know

Following The Polar Express’s popularity surge, there has been a sudden interest in The Polar Express 2 release date, and here’s everything we know.


Certain Elements Of The Polar Express Are More Horror Movie Than Christmas Movie

The Polar Express Has Some Genuinely Creepy Moments

The Polar Express has numerous elements that feel much more aligned with a horror movie than a Christmas movie. One such element is the character simply referred to as ‘Hobo,’ who seems to be an almost ghost-like being. He pops up throughout the movie to frighten the children and reinforce negative perceptions of Christmas and Santa Claus, including that one must see to believe (the very issue Hero Boy struggles with). Hero Boy and Hero Girl also enter a car of the train in one scene that contains several scary toys, including an Ebenezer Scrooge puppet.


Of course, The Polar Express is far from the only holiday movie with a creepier tone. A Christmas Carol is yet another Christmas story that is genuinely terrifying, particularly depending on the version. What causes The Polar Express to feel different, however, is the fact that this story centers on children. The creepy elements are also worsened to a certain extent by the many unanswered questions, such as what happened to the ‘hobo’ and what his intentions really were.

The Know-It-All Character Doesn’t Get Better With Time

One Character In Particular Is A Common Complaint About The Polar Express

Most of the characters in The Polar Express are never given a real name, including the boy simply referred to as “Know-It-All.” This character is almost universally seen as the least likable in the entire movie, and that seems to have been the point. While many might not recognize the name Know-It-All, this character is the young blonde boy who frequently corrects the other children and has a deliberately whiny voice.


It’s odd that The Polar Express would include a character whose sole purpose seems to be to grate on the audience. Yes, there’s a lesson to be had when it comes to this character, particularly in light of even Santa chastising him, but the benefit of the lesson doesn’t seem worth the cost of a character who sincerely annoys the audience. This character also doesn’t seem to get much better with age or time; while it’s expected for younger audiences to dislike a character such as this one, even older viewers will find this child difficult to empathize with.

Numerous Plot Points Make Little Sense And Are Never Explained

The Polar Express Doesn’t Mind Leaving Plot Holes Unaddressed


As mentioned, the ‘Hobo’ character is one of the creepiest aspects of The Polar Express, and the fact that the movie never really explains his character makes him all the more unsettling. Hobo makes it to the end of the movie, as he’s seen perched atop the train, waving goodbye to Hero Boy right before The Polar Express concludes, but that does little to explain why he was present on the train or what the intended message was. Other unexplained parts of The Polar Express seem to simply be plot holes.

One of the most significant plot holes pertains to Billy, one of the few characters with a real name. Billy is revealed to be living in poverty, and both Hero Boy and Hero Girl are dismayed to find out that Billy has never received a Christmas gift before. However, the fact that Billy has never received a Christmas gift makes absolutely no sense, given that Santa Claus is confirmed to exist in the movie. If Santa is real, why has he neglected this boy for years?

If Santa is real, why has he neglected this boy for years?


Most Of The Characters Are One-Dimensional

The Names Of The Characters Alone Indicate This Problem

As has been mentioned, nearly none of the characters in The Polar Express has an actual name. The protagonist of the movie is just called ‘Hero Boy,’ a name that makes his role in the story quite obvious. Names like Hobo and Know-It-All reinforce the idea that most of these characters are entirely one-dimensional. Each of the characters seems to have one key trait, and little else about them is revealed.


This is particularly problematic when it comes to characters like Know-It-All because it makes them seem quite flat. Surely, there is more to Know-It-All than just his annoying personality, but the movie does little to explore what that might be. It’s also a bit strange that Billy, not Hero Boy, is the child who is given an actual name in the movie. The issue with these names also extends to the overarching problem with character development in The Polar Express. Despite the children receiving tickets with lessons hole punched on them, few major changes are shown on screen.

The Polar Express Train Isn’t A Great Lesson For Kids

There Are Several Alarming Aspects Of The Polar Express Train Ride

Although it might not be the most fun approach to The Polar Express, it’s undeniable that this entire storyline is a terrible lesson for children. Hero Boy wakes in the night to discover a mysterious train outside his home, and he quickly decides to follow a complete stranger onto the train without letting anyone know where he is. He then continues to make a series of reckless decisions that put his life at risk, but the idea that he is a hero doesn’t make it clear that his behaviors are in fact risky.


While there are clear distinctions between The Polar Express and real-life concerns (because magical trains don’t exist, of course), a story targeted at children that puts a positive spin on children going with strangers isn’t the best idea. The deal is even sweetened by the fact that the children experience charming songs about hot chocolate and ultimately get to meet Santa Claus because they go with this man. While the audience is clearly meant to suspend their disbelief, it doesn’t change the fact that children may take away entirely the wrong message from the movie.

Tom Hanks Dominating The Cast Is Impressive But A Little Odd

Tom Hanks Plays A Shocking Number Of Characters In The Polar Express


When The Polar Express was released in 2004, there was plenty of excitement around the fact that Tom Hanks was going to be the voice actor for most of the characters. This was certainly an unusual approach to an animated movie, and it helped that Tom Hanks was—and remains—so popular. As the years have gone on, however, this has only begun to seem stranger.

In The Polar Express, Tom Hanks plays the Conductor, the Hobo, Hero Boy, Hero Boy’s father, Scrooge, and Santa Claus. While it makes sense for Hanks to have played some of these smaller characters in addition to a more major role like the Conductor, as it’s not uncommon for animated movies and shows to use voice actors for multiple roles, the sheer number of Hanks’ characters is unusual. What makes this even odder is the decision to have Hanks also play the main character, Hero Boy, when a child could have played that character opposite Hanks’ Conductor.


Hero Boy Still Doesn’t Believe In Santa Despite The Magical Train

Somehow, The Train Isn’t Enough To Convince The Boy That Santa Exists

One of the most confusing aspects of The Polar Express is Hero Boy’s stubborn dedication to not believing in Santa Claus. It makes sense that as children grow older they lose their belief in magic, but surely being on a magical train on his way to the North Pole would cause Hero Boy to question his belief that Santa wasn’t real. The Polar Express takes this one step further by having Hero Boy still doubt Santa’s existence even when he arrives at the North Pole and sees a crowd of elves.

One of the most confusing aspects of
The Polar Express
is Hero Boy’s stubborn dedication to not believing in Santa Claus.


This plotline also wasn’t necessary. It still would have worked for the boy to begin the movie not believing in Santa Claus and then realize he was wrong throughout his journey on the train. This also bleeds into some much larger issues regarding the overall messaging of The Polar Express, which is fairly inconsistent, particularly at the end.

The Polar Express Faces The Same Parent Plot Hole Most Christmas Movies Do

The Parents In Christmas Movies Almost Never Make Sense

The Polar Express also falls victim to the same issue that countless Christmas movies do. It simply makes no sense that parents don’t believe in Santa Claus if he is leaving presents for children. If parents see a stack of presents under their tree that they neither bought for their children nor placed there, clearly they should believe in Santa Claus.


If parents see a stack of presents under their tree that they neither bought for their children nor placed there, clearly they should believe in Santa Claus.

Christmas movies have tried to explain this away to varying degrees of success, such as by suggesting that the parents just lacked communication and believed the other parent bought the gifts. In all fairness, The Polar Express can’t be faulted for this more than any other Christmas movie can be. In order to create a story about Santa Claus, a movie naturally must overlook the fact that parents not questioning where Santa’s gifts came from is completely nonsensical.

The Polar Express Accidentally Reinforces That You Need To See To Believe

The Conclusion Of The Polar Express Undermines Its Own Message


Perhaps the single most significant issue with The Polar Express is the fact that the movie ends up reinforcing the very message it claims to oppose. Hero Boy’s lesson is meant to be that he should believe in Santa Claus, and by extension, magic, without needing to see him with his own eyes. This is why the word ‘believe’ is stamped on his train ticket. However, in the end, the narrator reveals that the boy continued to believe in Santa into adulthood while everyone else around him lost their belief.

The problem is that Hero Boy only retained his belief in Santa because he had seen him in person and because he knew the bell was gifted to him by Santa. Others, who had not had the same experience, did not have that advantage, and therefore, they lost hope. This is an odd oversight for the movie to have, but it is nevertheless one of the most confusing aspects of The Polar Express.


Fuente

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR