It’s not a new idea – something magical occurs to cause a body swap, or some kind of crazy change. Josh wants to be big, and makes a wish on a machine at a fun fair. The next morning, he wakes up as a thirty year old, played by Tom Hanks. Remember, though, that it is the era before the internet, computers were new and therefore it takes two weeks for him and his best mate to track down the machine to return him to normal. Meanwhile, Josh needs to find a way to make money and live. Of course, he ends up working in a toy company and he has special skills, still thinking like a child.
It’s a classic and it really holds up. I mean, there are still daggy shoulder pads and many of the other aspects that are totally eighties, but it’s funny and fun. If you’ve got kids, watch it. Hell, if you don’t have kids but have a sense of humour, watch it.
Big was nominated for Oscars for Best Actor in a Lead Role (Tom Hanks) and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg)