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Calling All Engines!

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This article is about 'the film'. You may be looking for 'the book, the colouring book, the other colouring book, the Leapster game, or the segments'.


“If the airport doesn't open, it will be bad for all the engines. Both steam engines and diesel engines need passengers and freight to be useful.”
―Thomas

Calling All Engines! is a feature-length Thomas & Friends special and the first direct-to-home video Thomas & Friends film. It was distributed by HiT Entertainment in 2005. It was re-released by Lionsgate in 2009. It was later re-released again by Universal in 2014.

Plot

Summer is coming and the engines are looking forward to taking holidaymakers around the Island of Sodor. One day, the Fat Controller announces that an airport is to be built on Sodor, which will bring more holidaymakers than ever. Thomas and Percy go to the site of the new airport, only to discover that 'Arry and Bert are on the same job.

That afternoon, Thomas goes to the timber yard and finds 'Arry and Bert there. As they boast that their job is very important, Thomas doesn't think so and biffs their flatbeds just before the crane drops the timber. Whilst Thomas and Percy are shunting trucks, Diesel confronts Thomas about the trouble he had caused for 'Arry and Bert and boasts that he too has an important job.

After shunting trucks of bananas for Diesel as a prank, Thomas and Percy go to the Smelters to collect some steel girders. Upon arrival, they see that Diesel 10 has returned and are so scared that they run away. On their way home, Thomas and Percy express concern to see the Sodor Suspension Bridge is not painted and the new airport is only half-built. Worse still, Tidmouth Sheds have been demolished to make way for the new sheds, but since Thomas gave Diesel bananas the renovation is deferred. The engines are forced to sleep elsewhere, with James sleeping at the Coaling Plant, Edward sleeping at the Quarry with Diesel, Henry and Percy sleeping at the Smelter Yards, Gordon sleeping under a tent and Thomas sleeping at Knapford Sheds with Emily. That night, a fierce storm sweeps across Sodor and causes havoc, including the collapse of the suspension bridge. The next morning, the Fat Controller tells the engines that the storm damage must be cleared up before the work on the new sheds and the airport can continue. However, all the engines on the island are all cross with each other and refuse to communicate with each other.

The next morning, Thomas is sent to collect some iron beams for the suspension bridge from Brendam. Upon arrival at the suspension bridge, Thomas feels tired and declares that the beams need to be placed. When Diesel wants to do it, the foreman decides to let Thomas do it. Thomas manages to lower the beams into place, much to Diesel's fury.

When Thomas goes to collect paint for the bridge, Diesel biffs Thomas' flatbed so hard that that paint splashes all over Thomas, who is so angry that when he sees 'Arry, he biffed him into a pile of gravel. In retaliation, 'Arry bumped James under the coal hopper. The matter escalates until all the steam and diesel engines are fighting all over the island. By the end of the day, everyone is dirty and no work has been done.

The Fat Controller is angry at the delays and tells the engines that no holidaymakers will come to Sodor. This leaves the engines deeply worried over their recent actions. As a result, several of them dream what might happen to them if no holidaymakers come to Sodor and the engines are no longer useful. James has a dream that he turns into a fun fair game, Gordon turns into a playground, Edward turns into a scarecrow and Percy turns into a Roller Coaster. As for Thomas, he has a dream on how to make things better. In his dream, he sees Lady and Rusty working together. As Lady tells Thomas about teamwork, Thomas goes off to find Mavis as soon as he wakes up.

Thomas finds Mavis at the wash-down and tells her about his plan: the Diesels and steam engines must work together to save the new airport and their home. Mavis explains that they must talk to each other first, so Thomas suggests to have a meeting at the coaling plant the next day. When Thomas and Mavis tell the engines about the meeting, Thomas decides to tell Diesel 10, but gets cold wheels and backs down. The next day, Thomas races to the coaling plant and gets there, just to see 'Arry and Bert almost calling the meeting off as the engines start to argue about who is to blame for starting the trouble. Thomas explains that they must work together and at last the engines put their differences aside. When Harold brings the Fat Controller, Thomas explains that the steam engines and Diesels have finally agreed to work together.

Very soon, the new airport is complete and the first aeroplane is sent to Sodor, but when Thomas' trucks derail due to a buckled rail, they hit the water tower, which collapses to the ground and cracks the runway. The workmen quickly repave the runway, but find that they need George to finish the job and with Harvey on the other side of Sodor there is no chance of the aeroplane landing. Thomas quickly has an idea and rushes off to find Diesel 10. Thomas asks Diesel 10 to help them and tells him that he will be the most useful engine of the day. Diesel 10 is hesitant at first, but eventually agrees and follows Thomas to the airport. Mavis, Percy, Emily, Diesel, 'Arry and Bert are surprised to see Thomas and Diesel 10 working together. Seeing Diesel 10 working alongside a steam engine convinces 'Arry and Bert to finally respect the steam engines themselves. With the aid of the other engines, they clear up the mess and Thomas collects George to fix the runway.

With the runway smooth again, the aeroplane lands at last. The engines have learnt that teamwork runs a railway, not opposition about their differences. That evening, the engines are happy to see Tidmouth Sheds rebuilt, especially Emily when she finds that she is staying at Tidmouth Sheds from now on, having grown to love sharing her shed since Thomas' brief stay.

Characters

Characters Introduced

Locations

Songs

Bonus Features

UK/AUS

US

(2005 Release only)

Trivia

  • This special was made to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the franchise.
  • This special marked the first of several things:
    • The first full-length, one hour special released directly on home-media.
    • The first special narrated by Jon Kabira in Japan as well as a brand new voice cast.
    • This is the first special filmed interlaced on Digibeta technology.
    • The first appearances of Edward, Bill, Ben, Emily, Harvey, Diesel, Daisy, Mavis, Derek, 'Arry, Bert, Salty, Rusty, George, Sir Topham Hatt, Stephen Hatt, Bridget Hatt, Farmer McColl, Jem Cole, the Sodor Brass Band and the Refreshment Lady in a special.
    • The first special to adapt the standard storytelling style of narration seen in the television series, as Thomas and the Magic Railroad was primarily dialogue and script acting.
    • Daisy's first appearance since the fourth series episode Bulls Eyes, Derek's since his debut in the fifth series and Lady and Diesel 10's first appearances since Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
    • The first special to feature a narrow gauge engine (Rusty).
    • The first DVD/VHS to be released by 2Entertain though a VCI version of the VHS exists.
    • The first Thomas & Friends production to acknowledge the Steam Team. 
  • This special also marked a few one-time things:
    • The only special written by Paul Larson.
    • To date, the only special not to introduce any new characters.
    • The only special that features stock footage from Learning Segments incorporated into the narrative and the storyline.
    • The only special to have a different Logo Design for the US And UK.
    • The only special until The Adventure Begins to celebrate the franchise's anniversary.
    • The only special until The Great Race in which the narrator does not read the title and Toby appears, but does not speak.
    • Daisy and Derek's only appearances in the HiT Entertainment model era.
    • The only special to be released on VHS.
    • The only special where Rusty's gender is neutral.
  • This special marked the last of a few things:
    • Daisy's last appearance until Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure.
    • Lady and Derek's last appearances to date.
    • George's last non-cameo appearance to date.
    • The last VHS release in the UK.
    • The last time where Rusty's gender is neutral.
    • The last time a scrapped piece of the Märklin Engine appeared.
    • The last DVD to feature a bonus episode of the children's television series Kipper.
  • Stock footage from Fish, Thomas and the Circus, Emily's Adventure, Percy's New Whistle, Thomas and the Firework Display, James Gets a New Coat, Edward the Great, Emily's New Route and some Learning Segments such as Being Blue, How Does Emily Get to the Station?, Toby is Surprised to see... and How Does Thomas Get to the Timber Yards? as well as alternate footage from Percy's Scary Tale is used.
  • Almost four years after the release, the songs were re-released with extended versions with lyrics on the Songs from Sodor UK DVD.
  • This special aired on Channel Five's Milkshake in the UK in 2008 and then again on Christmas Eve 2009.
  • This special was originally going to be released on VHS in Australia, but it got cancelled due to VHS releases no longer being available in Australia from late 2005 onwards.
  • This is the only DVD Special in Australia to feature its own interactive menu instead of copying the UK release.
  • This is the second time an engine has been pushed onto the coal tipper. The first time was in the sixth series episode, Middle Engine.
  • A blackboard in the airport manager's office shows flights from Athens, Madrid, Brussels, Paris, Istanbul, Milan, Canterbury, Bristol and London.
  • Toad's scrap model from the third series episode Escape is seen when Henry and Percy are at the smelter's yard.
  • This special takes place between the eighth and ninth series.
  • Several props including a yellow paint pot along with two paint pot lids, that have all landed on top of Thomas when he gets covered in paint, were sold to The Coffey Man Preservation from The Prop Store.
  • Mavis receives a new horn sound starting with this special.
  • Rusty's small scale model is used.
  • This special was shown for one week only in Cinemax cinemas in Germany in September 2006.
  • An edited image from the seventh series episode Toby's Windmill is on the back cover of the UK DVD, with Toby's face changed from sad to happy.
  • The US cover of this special was reused for a box of fruit snacks based on the series and included a mail-away offer for a Wooden Railway Paint Splattered Thomas. One box of them made a background appearance in the CBS television show, The Big Bang Theory in an episode called "The Terminator Decoupling" in the second series.
  • In the close-up of Percy sleeping, his sleeping face was edited to make him look like he is frowning. During his nightmare, Percy was wearing goggles.
  • When re-released in 2014, the bonus features were removed for unknown reasons.
  • When the special was shown on Nick Jr. UK, the learning segments and songs were removed.
  • The original US DVD back cover says the film is 150 minutes. This was later fixed on the Lionsgate and Universal releases.
  • In the Calling All Engines game, Diesel 10's animated picture was illustrated by Richard Courtney, the same man who illustrated the book Diesel 10 Means Trouble.
  • Thomas and the Magic Railroad was never shown in Norway, Finland, Denmark and Poland, so the Norwegian and Polish audiences would not know who Lady and Diesel 10 are.
  • All the Nordic DVD Menus use an image from the sixth series episode, A Friend in Need and the Classic Series theme was used in the background.
  • A grey building from Tugs appears when Henry is pushed under the oil pipe.
  • While sleeping with Emily in the carriage shed, Thomas' sleeping face is edited to make it look like he is neutral.
  • While Edward is sleeping at Tidmouth Sheds, his wincing face mask, which was originally made for the second series episode, Edward's Exploit since its adaption from The Railway Series book Main Line Engines, was used. This would mark the third of four appearances, with the others being Halloween, You Can Do it, Toby!, and Henry's Lucky Day.
  • According to Sam Barlow, the reason why Lady and Diesel 10 were in the movie was because they were successful in the merchandise and because it was a requirement by HIT Entertainment to add them into the plot.

Goofs

  • At the beginning when Emily passes the Windmill, the middle wheel of the rear coach has been pushed out of its housing.
  • When Thomas and Percy pass each other at Brendam Docks, the truck in front of Thomas wobbles.
  • In the third interactive segment, Annie is facing backwards.
  • In some scenes of Diesel, his eyes are wonky.
  • During Diesel 10's second scene, his pupils become smaller.
  • When Diesel was preparing to biff the flatbed of paint pots, his eyes popped out for a few seconds.
  • When Thomas pushes 'Arry into the pile of gravel, his face gets covered in dust. But in the next scene when 'Arry pushes James under the coal hopper, the dust disappears. It reappears later when he pushes Henry under the broken pipe.
  • Percy is smiling in his dream before he says "Bust my buffers!"
  • Lady's wheels stop moving in the close-up shot of her.
  • Due to stock footage being used, when the narrator says "Soon all the engines on the island knew about the meeting," a fish can be seen on Thomas' boiler.
  • In the Greek version, James' English name is used once by accident.
  • Edward's whistle is bent when he was on his way to the Coaling Plant.
  • During the learning segment of Percy and Mavis, five of the paint pots on the two flatbeds are missing their cover lids.
  • After Toby arrived at Kellsthorpe, his eyes are wonky.
  • Wires are visible through Daisy's windows.
  • In the shot of the Sodor Airport office, the water tower was seen standing outside the window when it was already crashed down the runway.
  • As Harvey unloaded some cargo from the flatbed, the top of his face almost falls off.
  • Due to faces being reused from Thomas and the Magic Railroad and having new faces in the special, the size of Diesel 10's face changes throughout the special.
  • The narrator says Thomas and Diesel 10 puffed as fast as they could, but Diesel 10 is a diesel and therefore does not puff.
  • When the diesel engines honk their horns at the end of the film, Salty's sixth series horn sound is heard, but he is not present at the airport.
  • On the Taiwanese DVD back cover, it shows a picture of Thomas and the Treasure, but that episode is not on the DVD.
  • On the Taiwanese DVD main menu, it shows an image of Thomas from Thomas and the Magic Railroad.

In Other Languages

View content
Language Title
Czech Plnou parou vpřed
Danish For Fuld Damp!
Dutch Attentie, alle Treinen!
Finnish Kaikki Veturit Töihin!
German Alle Loks im Einsatz!
Greek Μηχανές ενωθείτε
Hungarian Teljes gőzzel előre!
Italian Sono tutte Locomotive!
Japanese みんなあつまれ!しゅっぱつしんこう
Norwegian Kaller alle lokomotiver!
Polish Jak Lokomotywy Uratowaly Lotnisko
Portuguese Chamando Todos As Locomotivas!
Romanian Cu Toată Viteza Înainte!
Russian На всех парах!
Serbian Sastanak lokomotiva
Slovak Výzva pre všetky lokomotívy
Spanish ¡Llamando a todas las locomotoras!
Swedish Ta i så det ryker!
Thai ตอน รวมพลังเหล่าหัวรถจักร

Merchandise

Books

Video Games

Take Along

  • Sodor Airport Set (discontinued)
  • Calling All Engines! Gift Pack (discontinued)
  • Thomas and the Paint Car (discontinued)

Motor Road and Rail

  • Thomas and the Airport set
  • Suspension Bridge
  • Ringing Paint Thomas in Tekoro

TrackMaster

  • Thomas Makes a Mess (discontinued)

Wooden Railway

  • Storm on Sodor Set (discontinued)
  • Sodor Suspension Bridge (discontinued)
  • Paint-splattered Thomas (discontinued)
  • Calling All Engines pack (discontinued)

Capsule Plarail

  • Paint-covered Thomas
  • Roller-coaster Percy
  • Sodor Airport
  • Suspension Bridge

Tomica

  • Paint-splattered Thomas

Push 'n' Go

  • Paint splattered Thomas (discontinued)

Limited Edition Collection

  • Paint splattered Thomas (discontinued)

Minis

  • Neon Splatter Thomas

Bachmann

  • Flatbed with Paint Drums (discontinued)

DVD Boxsets

UK

AUS

US

HUN

ROM

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