Santa Claus awaits at the end of a wild giant-screen ride to the North Pole beginning Nov. 25 when the Hollywood film “The Polar Express” returns for a limited holiday engagement to the IMAX® Theater of The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk.
The animated film, featuring Tom Hanks as the voice of five characters, hits the Aquarium’s six-story screen on Fri., Nov. 25 at 5 p.m., and then will play on Saturdays and Sundays at 5 p.m. through Dec. 18. More shows will be offered at 5 p.m. on Fri., Dec. 23 and daily Dec. 26-Jan. 2.
“The Polar Express” movie expands on the 1986 Caldecott Award-winning book by Chris Van Allsburg. The story follows a young boy who doubts the existence of Santa Claus. On Christmas Eve, a locomotive magically arrives to take him and other doubtful children to Santa's North Pole headquarters.
IMAX is the world’s largest film format. Outstanding image clarity and the enormous screen size, combined with The Maritime Aquarium’s 12,000-watt surround-sound audio system, results in an immersive thrill that is so unique it’s been trademarked.
The late critic Roger Ebert called the film “a movie for more than one season; it will become a perennial, shared by the generations. It has a haunting, magical quality because it has imagined its world freshly and played true to it, sidestepping all the tiresome Christmas cliches that children have inflicted on them this time of year. The conductor tells the boy he thinks he really should get on the train, and I have the same advice for you.”
“The Polar Express” is an hour and 40 minutes long. Tickets for all 5 p.m. shows are specially priced at: $11.50 for adults; $10.50 for youths (ages 13-17) & seniors (65+); and $9.50 for children 3-12. Maritime Aquarium members save $1.
Screenings of “The Polar Express” also are available for preschool and elementary-school students on weekdays at 9 and 10 a.m.
Get more details or reserve your tickets in advance at maritimeaquarium.org or by calling (203) 852-0700, ext. 2206.