Big (1988)
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An adolescent boy's wish to be 'big' is granted by a mysterious machine, transforming him into an adult overnight.
The story
Thirteen-year-old Josh Baskin tries to impress a girl by going on a carnival ride but is rejected as he is too short. Dejected, he inserts a coin into an antique fortune-teller machine called Zoltar, and makes a wish to be "big". The next morning, Josh discovers that he has grown into an adult overnight. Deducing that the Zoltar machine can actually make wishes come true, he tries to locate the machine, but finds that the carnival has moved on. He eventually finds his best friend Billy and, with his help, realizes it will take time to find the machine again, leading him to move to New York City to navigate his new adult life.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After becoming an adult overnight via the Zoltar machine, Josh Baskin moves to New York City and finds work at the MacMillan Toy Company. He impresses the owner, Mr. MacMillan, and is promoted to Vice President of Product Development. He begins a romance with a colleague, Susan Lawrence, but finds himself increasingly torn between his new adult life and his identity as a child. He begins to forget what it is like to be a child and struggles to maintain his connection with his best friend, Billy. Eventually, Josh learns the Zoltar machine is at Sea Point Park. He leaves a meeting to find it and makes a wish to become a child again. Susan follows him and, upon seeing the machine and the fortune, realizes he was telling the truth. After a shared moment, Josh transforms back into a child before reuniting with his family and Billy.
- First release year
- 1988
- Runtime (minutes)
- 104
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Penny Marshall
- Writers
- Gary Ross · writer; Anne Spielberg · writer
- Cast and characters
- Tom Hanks · Josh Baskin; Elizabeth Perkins · Susan Lawrence; Robert Loggia · Mr. MacMillan; John Heard · Paul Davenport
- Genres
- fantasy; comedy
- Themes
- coming-of-age; identity; childhood vs. adulthood
- Tone and mood
- light; whimsical
- Premise and plot tags
- body swap; wish fulfillment; magical realism
- Source material / true-story basis
- The Italian film Da grande (1987)
- Reception
- The film was met with wide critical acclaim, particularly for Tom Hanks' performance, and was a significant commercial success, becoming the first feature film directed by a woman to gross over $100 million.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 98% · scale: percentage · review count: 81; Metacritic · score: 73 · scale: 100 · review count: 20
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Actor · Nomination; Academy Award · Best Original Screenplay · Nomination
- Production trivia
- The Zoltar machine was modeled after a real-life 1960s machine.; It was part of a series of twin films featuring an age-changing plot.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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