The Iron Giant is a 1999 American animated science fiction film directed by Brad Bird based of the 1968 novel The Iron Man by Ted Hughes. The film stars, Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick Jr, Vin Deasel, James Gammon, Cloris Leachman, John Mahoney, Eli Marienthal, Christopher McDonald, and M. Emmet Walsh. Set during the cold war in the 50s the film centres around a young boy named Hogarth who discovers and befriends a giant alien robot. Then with the help of a beatnik artist named Dean, Hogarth to prevent the US military and Kent Mansley a paranoid federal agent from finding and destroying the giant. The Iron Giant is ultimately a metaphor for American cold war paranoia and a criticism of the era acting as an anti-war movie.

From the very first shot of the film where we see the Sputnik satellite it’s obvious that the cold war is all over this movie. UFOs were all the rage in the 50s so it makes sense that this type of story would be set in this time. When the character of Dean reads a newspaper of a Russian satellite seen in the night sky that looks like Spudnik the films shows that cold war paranoia is everywhere in this movie, which is further shown by the locals talking about UFO’s as again the film is very much steeped in 50s UFO hype and cold war paranoia. Early in the story the idea of the giant living off eating metal is a great way to build tension and show what the giant does. In Hogarths room there is a comic book called Red Menace witch again links into the idea of Cold War paranoia. The film presents a classic alien UFO crash scene with fallen down trees and scorch marks. The iron giant when appears eating metal and gets fried by electricity losing his memory. Hogarth then flicks a switch saving the giants life as he passes out and loses his memory before waking up.

The 50s cold war paranoia is all over the film with the educational duck and cover videos again showing the idea that the film revolves around 50s cold war atomic paranoia. This is further represented by the kids talking. About bombing The Iron Giant. The character of Ket Mansley is a personification of 50s American cold war paranoia as whatever happens a foreign invader is a threat and must be destroyed. Later in the film where the giant reappears, he produces the switch Hogarth pulled to show that he understands Hogarth saved him. I like the idea of the giant being like a baby and Hogarth having to teach him basic things like what a rock and tree are. Throughout the film people want to kill the iron giant, with Mansley wanting to find it linking into the cold war paranoia. Again, the giant acts a child in destroying the track and fixing it just in time fixing his mistakes like a child. When the giant gets hit all the broken pieces of the robot reattach themselves with Hogarth blocking a bolt hinting at the ending. Cold war paranoia is all over. The film with Mansley reporting to the corneal. The Iron Giant is ultimately a superman film the iron giant is like an all-American superhero with the idea of a killing machine that choses to do good. In his bedroom Hogarth has both aa superman comic and another comic. Atomo The Metal Menace shows the iron giant being portrayed as a villain as well as a link to the end of the film were the giant attacks linking to the cold war paranoia.

In a deleted dream sequence, we see the giant’s true nature in being a killing machine on his planet giving more backstory and depth to his character. The line you are who you choose to be said by dean is reincorporated throughout the film and takes on a deeper meaning at the end, throughout the film the iron giant is like a child without his true nature he is lost without Hogarth. 

When Mansley integrates Hogarth, it links into the idea of CIA Cold War paranoia. When Mansley tells Hogarth they live in wonderous times it links into the idea of Cold War paranoia and security with the iron giant likened to a piece of soviet technology and the idea of The Iron Giant being a matter of homeland security and that foreign invades must be destroyed. Throughout the film The Iron Giant takes on more human attributes as The Iron Giant is a story of what it means to be human. Mansley creates a red room in Hogarths house to track the giant down again using old cold war tactics that are shown throughout the film. In one of the scenes on the film a deer gets shot and killed by hunters as the giant learns about life and death a major theme within the film. This incident awakens the giant’s hidden self of effectively being a gun. The giant battles with himself throughout the film as he does not want to be what he was created for but instead what he chooses to be. Throughout the film the giant becomes more human he learns about life and death and the concept of souls and souls don’t die, there’s a lot of imagery in the film that adds depth such as the imagery of Hougarth wearing his dead dads hat adding depth to the film.

When the giant reacts to Hogarth’s gun he reverts into a killing machine and almost accidently kills Hogarth. The giant is in a battle with his own nature as he was created to be a killing machine but wants to be a good guy. With The Iron Giant symbolically drops his superman logo the giant is having a crisis of identity as he doesn’t want to be a gun but knows that’s what he was made for. However, the giant manages to not be a gun as shown by him rescuing the kids. The giant’s soul chooses to be good instead of a weapon. Cold war paranoia is shown throughout the film with Dean saying that they shouldn’t engage to Mansley but he lies and tells the general has killed a kid again highlighting cold war paranoia. Again, the superman parrels are shown throughout the film with The Iron Giant flying. When the giant gets shot down it seems as if Hogarth dies paralleling the deer the giant has learnt friendship and the loss is devastating. From this the giant reverts into a killing machine and the loss of his friend his attack parrels the possible soviet cold war invasion from America.

When Manlsey and the general discussing the possibility of using nuclear weapons Mansley is for it but the general rejects it again linking into the cold war paranoia and the anti-war anti-nuclear sennets of the movie. Hogarth ultimately allows the giant to choose, he does not have to be a war machine and instead can choose his own existence.  Due to the cold war paranoia Mansley launches the missile at the giant’s location potentially killing them all. The giant decides to sacrifice himself to stop the missile the reincorporation of the “you stay I go no following” line but now with the roles reversed adds more depth. The film again parallels superman in his last moments as he chooses to be a hero and not a gun sacrificing himself for the god of humanity. The giant is immortalised by Dean’s statue showing his legacy will live on. In the last moment of the film the bolt Hogarth is given by the general activates and rolls away as all the pieces of the giant come back together and put themselves together in the end.

The Iron Giant is a metaphor and criticism of American cold war paranoia. It teaches not to jump to conclusions, to not treat everything foreign as a threat and to understand the war and violence only ever leads to destruction.