Reviewed by Victor Rebikoff.
Director: Penny Marshall, 20Th Century Fox, PG 104 Minutes.
In what is one of Tom Hank’s earliest movies comes this charming fantasy film from filmmaker Penny Marshall (‘Renaissance Man’) about a teenager awakening the following morning to find himself mysteriously transformed into the body of an adult.
Josh (Davis Moscow – ‘Newsies’) is a 13 year old boy who hangs-out with his best friend Billy (Jared Rushton – ‘Overboard’) wishing he was older and taller to enable him to pursue a girl he has a crush on at a carnival.
Whilst there he finds a fortune-telling machine and makes a wish to be a grown-up waking up the next morning in an adult’s body as an older/taller Josh (Hanks) but with the mind-set and personality of a young boy.
As Billy goes about helping his friend behave like a 30 year old, Josh soon manages to get a job with a toy company impressing the owner MacMillan (Robert Loggia – ‘Hot Pursuit’) with his childhood insights on children’s’ toys.
Josh’s ideas leads him to securing an executive position as well as being attracted to Susan (‘The Flintstones’ Elizabeth Perkins) a female executive in whom he develops a romantic relationship which later impacts on his friendship with Billy.
It then becomes a matter of time during the course of their relationship that Susan gets suspicious about Josh’s boyish behaviour resulting in Josh having doubts on whether he wants to continue to inhabit the body of an adult.
Eventually Josh comes to realise he is not ready to be part of the adult world he finds himself in and wishes to return home to see his mother again and enjoy his childhood days with best friend Billy.
Released in the late eighties Marshall has fashioned a fun-filled romantic comedy comprising a fanciful storyline that is both charming as it is entertaining with a number of amusing and heart-warming scenes.
These include Josh and MacMillan performing on a giant piano keyboard in the toy store’s main showroom, Josh entertaining Susan in his apartment by bouncing with her on his trampoline-and the concluding scene when Susan witnesses Josh’s return home.
Apart from the enjoyable storyline and the pleasing performances of both Hanks and Perkins there is that old saying “Be careful what you wish for –it might come true”
Big is televised on Channel 7Flix at 8.50PM on Saturday 12 September.
Vic’s Verdict: 3 ½ Stars
