The Iron Giant (1999)
It came from outer space!
In the small town of Rockwell, Maine in October 1957, a giant metal machine befriends a nine-year-old boy and ultimately finds its humanity by unselfishly saving people from their own fears and prejudices.
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| Type | Movie |
|---|---|
| Released | 6 August 1999 |
| Genre | Animation, Drama, Family, Science Fiction, Adventure |
| Director | Brad Bird |
| Starring | Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick Jr. and Vin Diesel |
| Runtime | 86 min |
| Rated | PG |
| Scores | Rotten Tomatoes (average) 8.2/10 · Metacritic 85/100 · Rotten Tomatoes 96% · TMDB users 8.0/10 |
| Budget | $70 million |
| Box office | $23 million worldwide |
Where to watch The Iron Giant
We could not find The Iron Giant on any of the subscription services we track in the US right now. That changes often; open it in Binge Boss and we will show you where it lands.
Rent or buy
You can rent The Iron Giant on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, Fandango at Home and Spectrum On Demand. It is also for sale on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube and Fandango at Home.
Where to watch The Iron Giant in 5 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Andorra | Max |
| Italy | Skygo, Now TV |
| Japan | U-NEXT ¥2189 JPY |
| South Korea | Watcha |
| Spain | Max €10.99 |
Subscription, free and ad-supported services we track; prices where Binge Boss has a price list for the country. "About" marks a price the service bills in another currency, converted at the day's rate. All countries as data.
What kind of watch this is
Brad Bird’s 1999 film is 86 minutes of Cold War paranoia filtered through a child’s wonder. It is a science fiction story about a metal machine learning what it means to be human, set against a backdrop where the government suspects everyone. The tone balances genuine tension with a sweet, quiet heart. It is a story about choosing kindness when the world is asking for fear.
What the critics said
Critics didn’t just like it; they defended it. Rotten Tomatoes shows a 96% approval rating, a figure that suggests the film cleared the bar for "good" and kept climbing. Metacritic assigns it 85 out of 100, a solid mark that signals general favor without the usual fanfare. Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times called it "straight-arrow and subversive," a pairing that seems contradictory until you see the results. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times noted it was "not just a cute romp," which is a high compliment for a movie about a giant made of scrap metal. Not everyone bought the charm. Stephen Hunter of The Washington Post found the film "sleek and engaging" but complained of "incredible smugness." A rare note of irritation in a sea of praise.
What came next for the cast
Vin Diesel stepped from Saving Private Ryan into The Fast and the Furious. Jennifer Aniston moved from Friends to Bruce Almighty. James Gammon drifted from Natural Born Killers to Cold Mountain. Harry Connick Jr. swapped Independence Day for P.S. I Love You. The credits cannot say this film caused that shift. They simply mark where the roads diverged.
Where it left its mark
The film’s footprint stretches from parody to protection. Mad riffed on it for a Season 3 premiere, swapping the giant for Margaret Thatcher and a cadre of political gynoids. The 2015 game Ori and the Blind Forest cited it as a design inspiration, alongside The Lion King. Steven Spielberg placed the character in Ready Player One, where Aech reassembles the robot to fight Mechagodzilla. The Giant’s final dive into lava, complete with a thumbs up, nods to the T-800’s sacrifice in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Even a cumbia band wrote a song about it after a dream of the Giant dancing in Los Angeles. It sticks around in weird places.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched The Iron Giant.
Sources
- The Iron Giant on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q867283 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “The Iron Giant” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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