WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

At eight years old, our young hero has reached a crisis point: he’s doubting whether Father Christmas really exists.

Giving up on Santa on Christmas Eve, he falls asleep, but he’s woken by a magical steam-train that pulls up in the snow-covered street, outside his window.

As he runs outside to investigate, a kindly conductor invites him along for a ride.

The train takes him, and a group of similar minded children, on an adventure to the North Pole, to discover the truth.

WHAT’S IT LIKE?

Tom Hanks takes on five of the roles in this ground-breaking animation, that basically involves filming actors with lots of little sensors strapped to them.

Strangely though, the result is a bunch of characters whose very lifelessness detracts from the necessary excitement.

Aimed firmly at the children’s market, with no cross-over content for adults, the simple story is unsatisfying and the message of Christmas cheer emetic.

Londoners can see it in 3D at the IMAX.