Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2002 International Remake)

Do not be confused with Thomas and the Magic Railroad (1997) or Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000)Thomas and the Magic Railroad (AKA Thomas and Friends: Secrets of the Magic Railroad) is a 2002 Japanese-British-Canadian children's hybrid comedy fantasy television film that was produced by Fuji Television, with a partnership with Destination International and Columbia TriStar International Television. This film is a remake of the 2000 film of the same name and was aired on Fuji TV in Japan on 12 August 2002, while it got released in various other countries in 23 November 2002. This film follows closely to the May 1999 script of the 2000 film of the same name.

Plot
When Diesel 10 arrives in the Island of Sodor, Thomas and his friends were very uncomfortable with his arrival and tries very hard to stop him from wrecking havoc. Meanwhile, Mr. Conductor has problems of his own after he is almost out of gold dust. Things get worse as P.T Boomer plans to find the lost engine and destroy her. Will Mr. Conductor, Thomas, and his friends save the lost engine before time runs out?

Live-Action Cast
Michael Brandon as Mr. Conductor, a 12-inch-tall man who is kind and charming. After he is almost out of gold dust, he gets worried and tries to find the source of the gold dust, with some help from his British cousin, Mr. Conductor, Junior.

Sean Connery as Burnett Stone, Lily's depressed grandpa who protects the lost engine from harm and has a strong rivaly with P.T Boomer.

Jamie Renee Smith as Lily, a 12-year-old girl who was going to meet his grandpa, but got on the wrong train and ended up in Shining Time Station. She then meets Mr. Conductor Jr and he takes her to the Island of Sodor.

Courtland Mead as Patch, a 13-year-old Irish boy who has a love of horse riding and adventures. He is one of the victums of P.T. Boomer.

Unknown as Mr. Conductor, Junior, a 22-year-old young British man who is Mr. Conductor's cousin. He has a love of pratical jokes and likes taking naps, surfing, the beach, laziness, and milkshakes.

Robert Tinkler as P.T Boomer, one of the main antagonists of the film. He has a strong rivaly with Burnett Stone, Patch, and Billy Two-Feathers.

Voice Cast
John Bellis as Thomas

Julie Lemieux as Percy

Michael Angelis as James/George

Steven Kynman as Edward/Henry

Robert Tinkler as Gordon/Dodge/Diesel 10/Toby

Len Carlson as Splatter/Tumbleweed/Troublesome Trucks/Cranky

Shannon Pennualt as Bill/Ben

Reception
After the TV film's premiere on Fuji Television, this film recieved mixed to decent reviews, but some people critisized the film due to it's low quality and it's fast pacing. It was also critisized due to having some unknown actors, causing lots of people to be curious and want to know who played Junior in this film.

In countries outside Japan, the reception was better, but it was widely panned in China, Thailand, Norway, and Palestine due to the fast pace, the acting, and the low quailty of the special effects.

Trivia
Robert Tinkler both acted as P.T. Boomer and voiced some of the engines.

In order to fit for airing in international countries, the film was edited to 90 minutes and some scenes were deleted, despite the fast pace of the film.

Robert Tinkler and Len Carlson ad-libbed some of their lines for Diesel 10, Splatter, and Dodge.

This is Michael Brandon's first involvement in the Thomas and Friends franchise. He would later narrate the series in 2004.

Michael E. Rodgers was originally going to reprise his role as Mr. Conductor Jr, but he was unavailable at that time, so they hired Dekisugi's voice actor, from the British English dub of Doraemon, to play Junior.

The actor of Mr. Conductor Jr ad-libbed some of his lines during filming, due to him having lots of fun on set with Michael Brandon. The most famous example of his non-scripted line humour is while he was filming for the Smelter's Yard scene of the film.

Unlike the original 2000 film, Junior wears his conductor hat almost throughout the film, and keeps his British accent.

Like the 1997 film of the same name, this film was never released in the US nor the UK, due to problems with the faliure of the 2000 film of the same name. Although, there is an extremely rare, out-of-print promotional VHS and DVD release in both of those countries.