SNOW DAY HIGH-TECH 'POLAR EXPRESS' TRANSPORTS CHRISTMAS CLASSIC'S MAGIC TO THE SCREEN.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Writer

There's a lot riding on ``The Polar Express,'' Robert Zemeckis' hugely expensive adaptation of Chris Van Allsburg's beloved children's book, when it opens in theaters Wednesday.

Zemeckis and star Tom Hanks are gambling that audiences will respond to the look and feel of the film, which blends live-action acting with computer animation in a way that could revolutionize cinema or put a serious dent in Warner Bros.' fourth-quarter bottom line.

``This is the only way we could have made this movie,'' Zemeckis says. ``You try to make this a live-action film and with the sets and all, you're talking about a billion dollars or more.''

``So we saved the studio $900 million - at least,'' Hanks chimes in with a twinkle in his eye not unlike that of jolly old St. Nick.

Hanks plays Santa Claus and four other roles in ``The Polar Express,'' thanks to a pioneering technique called ``performance capture.'' Van Allsburg's story is about a boy who takes a train journey to the North Pole, where he renews his faith in magic and Kris Kringle. Hanks plays the boy, the train conductor, a mysterious hobo, the boy's father and, as mentioned, Santa Claus himself, whom he describes as a ``cross between Elvis and the pope.''

To accomplish this, Hanks and a few other castmates would show up for work each morning at a Culver City warehouse. There, they'd enter a dome-shaped building made of scaffolding that enveloped a small, 10- by-10-foot stage. The scaffolds held reflective sensors that would read the movements of the 194 sensors placed on the actors' black body suits and faces. The actors would perform, their work would be recorded and then, later, animators would complete the scenes by adding digital faces and digital skin.

``It sounds like a bunch of gibberish, I know,'' Hanks says. ``For us, as actors, it was like recess. We just played. On the first day, I passed gas so loud, it just put everyone in the perfect mood.

``But how we made the movie isn't going to matter a whit unless it's any good, you know?'' Hanks continues. ``And the reason we did it this way, aside from economic feasibility, was it was the best way to convey the book. The emotion of the book is in the paintings. 'How can we make a movie in oil painting?' That was the mission that led us to this.''

What that mission will lead to in the future is uncertain. It's already a landmark in exhibition, being the first film to be released simultaneously in IMAX 3-D and conventional theaters. From an acting standpoint, Hanks says he could see a time when a performer's stored data allows him to ``act'' in some form forever.

``Not that we need that,'' Hanks says. ``People tell me all the time: 'Now Sean Connery can play James Bond again, but we can make him look like the Sean Connery of ``Dr. No.'' ' But I don't think people really want to see that. The technology has tremendous applications, but duplicating movie stars I don't think is one of them.''

``The Polar Express'' ended up costing nearly $200 million, which puts the film right up there with other big-budget extravaganzas (think Ron Howard's ``How the Grinch Stole Christmas'') that are meant to illustrate the simple pleasures and timeless truths of the holiday season.

``Yeah, you spend all this money and have this massive marketing and merchandising to tell you that it's better to give than receive,'' Hanks says, laughing. ``I think where other movies have made mistakes is that they go the standard antagonist/protagonist route. There's usually a bad guy involved.

``Here, there's no bad guy. Nobody is trying to kill anybody or stop the train. We refused to say, 'If we don't get there in time, THERE WON'T BE A CHRISTMAS!' That's not the point. Nobody's trying to steal Christmas or keep it from coming. The whole point of the book is that what matters most is in your heart. And you can't argue with that. You're either into the Christmas spirit or you're not.''

``We're hoping,'' Zemeckis interjects, ``that a lot of people are.''

Glenn Whipp, [phone]

glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com

The 5 sides of Tom Hanks

Through the use of performance-capture technology, Tom Hanks plays five different roles in ``The Polar Express.'' Here's what the two-time Oscar winner had to say about performing each of the parts:

The 8-year-old boy (known as Hero Boy): ``I was never cynical about Santa Claus when I was a kid. I was more confused about the whole thing. We moved around a lot, so we really weren't much of a Santa Claus kind of family. My dad gave us presents, but it would be like a cowboy gun, and the card would read, `To Tom. From Hoss.' And I remember watching 'Bonanza,' waiting for Hoss Cartwright to wish me Merry Christmas.''

The train conductor: ``Well, he's the one, for good or bad, who looks the most like me. And, for good or bad, he's the character who has the song 'Hot Chocolate.' It was fun singing that, but I don't think Bing Crosby has anything to worry about.''

Santa Claus: ``I think of him as a cross between Elvis and the pope, not some fat guy in a red suit. He's thick, yes, but that's not him, it's the suit. It has to have a lot of layers to keep him warm because he's flying through the freezing night at the speed of light.

``Playing him was like nothing else I've ever done. I put on the suit and beard to do the data scans, and people were following me around like I was the most powerful being on Earth. And he is that to kids, not to mention a lot of adults who like to keep that idea alive.''

The dad: ``We dig Christmas at our house. It's great when you have kids of your own. We make a big deal out of it. We have the goofiest, insane Christmas traditions that wouldn't make sense to anyone else. Some, too, are very standard - the milk and cookies, of course. I used to collect the Sunday comic sections and stack them up so I could use them as wrapping paper. I still do that every now and again.''

The hobo: ``He was the most fun. There was an anarchist quality to him that represents the dark side of Christmas. He reminds me of that cranky old uncle who's always torturing his nieces and nephews on Christmas Day.''

- G.W.

CAPTION(S):

12 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) ALL ABOARD

`THE POLAR EXPRESS'

Beloved Christmas story gets a cutting-edge computer graphics makeover - and star Tom Hanks gets a 5-character workout 

(2 -- 4) no caption (scenes from ``The Polar Express'')

(5 -- 6) An illustration from the book, left, becomes a scene from the movie, below.

(7) no caption (Tom Hanks)

(8 -- 9) no caption (animation of Tom Hanks as train conductor)

(10) no caption (Hero Boy)

(11) no caption (Santa Claus)

(12) no caption (the hobo)

Box:

The 5 sides of Tom Hanks (see text)