James and the Giant Peach

"Adventures this big don't grow on trees."

1996 1h 19m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

🔥

91%

CERTIFIED FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

6.7

IMDB

★6.6TMDB · 1,493🍅91%Rotten Tomatoes●78Metacritic★6.7IMDB · 78,186

FamilyAnimationAdventureFantasy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.

“Adventures this big don't grow on trees.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Paul Terry
James Henry Trotter
Miriam Margolyes
Aunt Sponge / Glowworm (voice)
Joanna Lumley
Aunt Spiker
Pete Postlethwaite
The Magic Man
Simon Callow
Grasshopper (voice)
Richard Dreyfuss
Centipede (voice)
Jane Leeves
Ladybug (voice)
Susan Sarandon
Miss Spider (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Henry Selick
Writers: Karey Kirkpatrick, Jonathan Roberts, Steve Bloom
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 79-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 76% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Henry Selick, shot by Pete Kozachik. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Randy Newman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Stan Webb shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Paul Terry and Miriam Margolyes and Joanna Lumley carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Adventures this big don't grow on trees.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Henry Selick directs. Pete Kozachik behind the camera. Randy Newman scores. Stan Webb cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 79-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
2Earned back only 76% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
330 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Directed by Henry Selick, shot by Pete Kozachik. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Randy Newman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Stan Webb shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Paul Terry and Miriam Margolyes and Joanna Lumley carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Adventures this big don't grow on trees.".
9IMDB entry: tt0116683 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 20 themes, including "new york city", "based on novel or book", "insect", "england".

The technical file

Cinematography: Pete Kozachik
Original score: Randy Newman
Editing: Stan Webb
Production design: Harley Jessup
Costume design: Julie Slinger
Sound: Gary Rydstrom
Stunt coordinator: Rocky Capella
Runtime: 79 min · 1h 19m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $38,000,000
Box office: $28,946,127
Return: 76% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: James and the Giant Peach (1996)
Rotten Tomatoes: 91% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 78/100
IMDB rating: 6.7/10 · 78,186 votes
MPAA: PG

Awards

Nominated for 1 Oscar. 4 wins & 13 nominations total

Annecy Cristal for a Feature Film

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Henry Selick

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

r96sk2022-07-13
★ 7/10
A little light on story, though that stop-motion animation is noice. At just under 1hr 20mins, <em>'James and the Giant Peach</em> is simply a pleasant to watch flick with a sweet story and excellent animation. Miriam Margolyes and Joanna Lumley as the aunts is great casting, while the voice cast all perform well. I like it enough, even with the ineffective singing bits. Overall, this 1996 release is, in my opinion, nothing great but nothing bad either.

Production companies