EXPLORERS (1985) Retrospective/Review
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- Опубликовано: 13 июн 2024
- EXPLORERS (1985) Retrospective/Review
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what still boggles my mind, is that after ALL that Oliver has made and done for his channel and brand including full blown documentaries, that he doesn't have more than a quarter million subs. His "retrospectives" are basically the end all be all of nostalgia kicks!
I really do appreciate what he does for the culture of us movie nerds from a certain generation
Same. I'm on board as a subscriber, I'm sure you are too.
@MrMmnngghh same 👍
Quality not quantity friend
Hands down best movie review channel.
Siskel nailed it when he said in his review "this movie needs a sequel not because it's a good movie but because these kids deserve to go to a more interesting place"
I really don't know why Oliver gives so much credence to Siskel and Ebert in his retrospectives. Especially Siskel. This movie wasn't made for cynical old minds.
@@philrob1978I know what you mean.
There are more knowledgeable and less cynical movie critics than those two and considering Oliver is British you would think he'd go with someone like Barry Norman rather than two from America.
@@ZXSPEX The point I'm making is that there are other critics that Oliver could use but he always refers back to these two fools.
@@DarkLordDiablos No other critics of the time were as ubiquitous.
Why should we care about some random newspaper that has rotating reviewers, when we can get an opinion from the time from people that everyone in NA had at least heard of at the time, and were known for their reviews over an extended period of time.
That's clever and funny. It's fair, too. The alien designs are great and it's a pity everyone couldn't partake in a more adventurous ending.
This movie translates very well how magical was being a kid in the 80s.
My dad was a big Bruce Springsteen fan, especially the song thunderroad. Whenever I’d rewatch this I always thought of him when the line about naming the spaceship came up. He took me to see so many of the movies that are considered classics, that all the people react to these days. Miss him a lot. Thanks for the deep dive.
Explorers is one of the most underrated children movies of the 80s they don’t make movies like this anymore movies like this is only reserved for a certain time and that was the 80s.
This review was spot on though, the ending was absolute pony and turns a nice adventure story into silly drivel. Makes it hard to rewatch.
Once it got to outer space, the plot collapsed
@@markdaly1648 I disagree. I think the plot pics up, but the ending to me was really the weak point.
For all the problems in production of this... I can promise you back in the day, us kids did not give a flying frig about any of that - it was my favourite movie as a very young sci-fi nerd. We had the VHS tape that was gifted to us from the local rental shop (because my Dad was mates with the owner - those were the days!)
The thing about Ben not really enjoying the result with the aliens could be seen as a clear message that not everything works out how you'd want it to - being an honest depiction of moving towards adolescence. Goldsmith's score is magnificent, I still have it on rotation on my playlists.
I still think it's a joyous piece of work, despite what its creators think of it.
Well said. I adore the film, and I was never disappointed by the ending, I saw it as hopeful
This and Flight of the Navigator. Pure unadulterated childhood magic.
I used to watch them back to back as a kid
I watched them back to back with my wife. Unfortunately she was the one facing the screen.
Tru that homie...it taught me as a kid I can build and fly in a spaceship haha😊
@@4879daniel Nyuck nyuck.
Thank you Oliver Harper for making the great retrospectives and being consistent for so long. You make RUclips a great place to be entertained.
It's the stuff dreams are made of.
Dude, this movie really gave me so much hope that I could actually space travel from common stuff found in my stepdad's junkyard! I absolutely love this movie to this day.
EXPLORERS still makes me feel like a kid even nearly 40 years later.
As a kid, it all made complete sense 🙂
One of my favourite films during my childhood, this along with flight of the navigator.
Everytime I see a thumbnail from another retrospective-video from Oliver, it gets my attention. Every single one on them is a beautiful piece of art, that I would put onto my walls. Thank you
Something that is missing in today’s family films is the sense of wonder that such stories warrant. This movie is a lot of fun and it is definitely not meant to be realistic, BUT the love and reverence for its subject matter and inspirations is all over the screen. This is what continues to radiate from the film over the years.
Todays movies are all about nihilism and self-awareness, there's no room for innocence, optimism, or wonder.
Society is changing.
And there is enough wonder. In VIDEO GAMES.
Plus children aren't as naive as back than, which is good.
Men who want children to be as innocent as possible give very strong Pedro vibes.
@@CordeliaWagner1999 That’s a very big reach full of projection on your part. No one is even suggesting the things you’re insinuating.
This movie was the foundation of my love of sci-fi I used to build a Thunder Road out of tables and pillows and introduced me to the classic 50s B movies
Definitely an underrated classic. Also didn't know River Pheonix wasn't keen on playing Wolfgang - credit to what a good actor he was!
The late Dick Miller who played Mr. Futterman in Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch, played Charlie, a police helicopter pilot who investigated the Thunder Road’s sightings and he found out about Ben and his friends onboard the Thunder Road who refer to Charlie as a UFO.
I remember watching this film on bbc2 with my friend. We couldn’t believe that a relatively new film was on tv so soon.
I remember watching this at the theater when I was a kid. I loved it. Every once in a while memories resurface, and I'm like... what was that show again?
"Wait... you're kids?" "Yeah." "And you what, stole the family car?" "Yeah."
Thank you for bringing this up.
The sequence from Explorers saw Thunder Road flew over the moon as we see a whole view of Earth after Ben saying “it’ll be the greatest thing ever!”
River Phoenix was so fantastic in this. Chris Chambers from Stand by Me made a great nerd.
I fell in love with cinema watching those movies : Explorers, E.T., Gremlins, Back to the future, etc.
What a magic period
Mine was Explorers, Flight of the Navigator, and Space Camp
I remember watching The Explorers on Netflix one day it is ET in reverse since the Kids visit the Aleins but man I it is an underrated 80s Sci Fi Film a hidden gem.
Really appreciated this video. Finally a backstory for a film
I loved as a kid
I worked on the film The Phenom with Ethan Hawke and we talked a good bit about this movie being underappreciated and also he had many stories about his good buddy Charlie Sheen...he is a very down to earth dude..love this flick!
@@CaptNRetro yep. The Wraith himself, Charlie Sheen.
Loved this movie as a kid. It embodied that childhood imagination.
I love the introduction to your channel. It brings back fond memories of my childhood going to my local Cannon cinema.
Oh I caught this on TV as a kid and never saw the full thing, thanks for reminding me!
Watch as part of a double bill with Flight of the Navigator! Possibly also with The Last Starfighter.
I saw this movie once on BBC as a kid and was really intrigued by the space craft building subplot.
Excellent as always. I just watched this movie last night on blu-ray, and while I did have a hard time getting it to play at first (still use my PS3 for blu-rays), I really loved it. I actually caught parts of this movie whenever it was airing on one of the premium channels. I always remembered the scenes with the aliens, while I do wish they were expanded on more, the effects and performances were fantastic, and I do appreciate the twist with the aliens being kids like them as an adult. Definitely one of Joe Dante's more underrated movies, despite its flaws. :)
I love this movie! The soundtrack was awesome!❤❤
One of my favourite films! I still watch and enjoy it regularly.
Such a great set up, cast, score… but then the moment they arrive on the spacecraft it’s just all wrong. I still love it, and I have no idea what would have actually worked as an ending, but what they went with just didn’t.
Thank you for this video! So many special memories of my childhood
Memberberries so tart it makes your tongue cramp. I luv this movie. Post of my childhood Trinity. This Flight of the Navigator. And Last Starfighter
its a comfort viewing movie, a good double header with the goonies or flight of the navigator
Finally- a proper review of Explorers and done by Oliver Harper no less!
I loved this film as a kid and still do. I get what they say about the third act--I might even agree with it to an extent--but I get what the film was going for and think it works. Just look at how many kids who grew up with it still love it.
I watched this as a kid home sick from school with a fever. I have always been convinced it wasn't an actual movie and I'd dreamt the whole thing. Forgot all about it. Thanks for confirming it actually existed.
I loved this movie as a child. Thanks Mr. Harper for remembering it.
Loved Galaxy High! Such an ahead of its time premise where the two human kids are sent to an alien high school where brains make you popular, not physical ability. So the unpopular nerd rockets into popularity. Meanwhile, not only does the arrogant jock find himself in a society that doesn't weight his abilities highly, but his abilities pale in comparison to the ones of the aliens he's pitted against. Comedy ensues.
When I was a kid I absolutely hated the average "for kids" films, because they always treated children like ADHD hollow heads. stuff like three ninjas is an example of a despicably stupid kids movie.
But I loved this movie as a kid (I was born in 1980), and I still love it.
This and movies like Goonies were fun for kids without being stupid/childish/slapstick. Treating it's audience with respect and intelligence.
These sort of films stand the test of time and are enjoyable for anyone of any age.
A beautiful presentation of a childhood favourite of mine. This film was a huge hit on VHS in Australia, at least at my local video shop in 1986. The VHS in Australia was in widescreen with the extra scenes. When the DVD came out I was confused when certain scenes weren't in it but they were on the special features.
WOW--this unlocked a couple of core memories for me---the aliens at the end are all I remember from this movie. I must have seen it 35 years ago or so. And Galaxy High! Whoa, I had all but forgotten that show. This episode has been like finding an old box of toys or photos in the attic. Cheers, Ollie!
I just finished watching Explorers and then I go to RUclips and find this. This movie is so much fun.
Thanks oliver for always bringing great content your an inspiration!
Here's an '80s movie marathon: Explorers, The Goonies, Monster Squad, E.T. and Stand By Me.
This one ranks among my favourites movies ever. I describe it as "the adventure me and my friends would have had". Saw it in theatres in 1985, and it hit home immediately. I was the perfect age for it, slightly older than the kids in the movie, but very much in the range. And the characters were, very very much how me and my friends saw ourselves. We were all enthralled by it. I love the first two thirds so much that I'm willing to forgive the meandering and weak ending.
Ah, just what I wanted, a deep dive into an underrated 80s classic.
My favourite childhood film. I first saw the teaser trailer for this on a video in '85. I then had to wait the interminable TWO YEARS for this get released on video in the UK. Postponed for cinema release because of its failure in the US, and then getting a blink and you'll miss it theatrical release, then yonks later coming out on video. I would pester my local video store almost weekly about it. Eventually they gave me the Storybook which they'd been given as promotional material for it. Imagine my shock finally seeing the film only to find several key scenes pictured in the Storybook were not in the movie! I dreamed for years of being able to see those scenes, literally _praying_ for a deluxe DVD (before Blu-Ray) and now they're available for anyone and everyone to see. There are more than the ones on the Shout Blu, as the scenes on there come from a second edit of the film. FYI, the Shout Blu has an incorrect Aspect Ratio (very slightly squished) because of the Paramount master.
_"Stuff that dreams are made of."_ - This refers to Wolfgang's dream at the start where he tells Ben he was dreaming he was at school naked. Wak played a joke on them, and in the deleted scene the bully's clothes evaporate - which was meant to be an accident.
EDIT: I was also very disappointed in the aliens / ending as a kid. But the first two thirds were pure magic, so I forgave the rest...
Not sure how you missed this one as a kid, it was on TV all the time here in Scotland.
Great Review. I miss watching your videos, I really hope you continue to do more.
I saw Explorers when I was young, very young. I thought it was great, I thought the effects were really cool. I couldn't understand why they went unnoticed, I never remembered anyone talking about how great they were.
But still, loved the film. Love Joe Dante. I'm still hoping for a "Gremlins 3" and a proper "Howling" sequel. But anything coming from him I'll watch. I'd love to see Joe Dante make another big Hollywood film. I think he's got a few more great stories to tell.
Aaahhhhh, a classic Oliver Harper Retro. Loved this one and love this movie. As an older person who did see it at the cinema at 15, also we rented it like mad. You forget its not made by Spielberg. Going to watch it tonight after this has inspired me to. Cheers Oliver. Be well
Come on Oliver, Amanda Peterson's most famous role is Can't Buy Me Love, she was legit star in that but something dark happened and she did some TV then left the industry until her death. 😞
Used to love this film as a kid. It was great up until they got into space then it went downhill.
This an Flight of the Navigator werethe two movies that set my imagination free as a kid. Oh and Goonies!
Bought the VHS back in the late 80s (I was in my mid-20s then) and when I saw the DVD available, I immediately bought it!
THE movie of my childhood. Love everything about it.
The setting for Explorers took place in the small town in Maryland as is according to Wikipedia as well as Ben’s Maryland address on his jacket that Charlie took out of the Thunder Road.
I got to meet Joe Dante at a horror convention. I got an Explorers picture.
"Even for the 80s, this is a particularly jarring skid into the offramp for Third Act Crazytown." - Me, watching this for the first time as an adult a couple of years ago
The idea of an “inertialess” space drive was first conceived in the late 1930s by the king of space opera, E. E. “Doc” Smith in his Lensman saga. Google the “Bergenholm”. Also, the concept of a floating sphere taking passengers across space can also be traced back to an E. E. “Doc” Smith series called The Skylark Saga, written in the 1920s.
You can bet your bottom dollar whoever wrote this screenplay back in the day cut their teeth on Doc Smith.
He practically invented the space opera genre. If you say you like space opera but have never heard of Doc Smith, that’s like saying you’re a fantasy fan but have never read Tolkien.
How you haven’t got 10x the views on these is astounding to me. The quality of the edits and the obvious time involved is not represented in your impressions
Yeah unfortunately this review hasn't done well. Either folk haven't seen the film before so don't want to watch it, or RUclips hasn't notified subscribers. It's really hard to know to be honest.
As a child, I remember feeling a sense of wonder watching Explorers and I would always be confused when the aliens show up and felt like I was struggling to understand what was happening. Back then I just thought I wasn't smart enough to understand but I still loved the movie as I was that kid who built stuff in the back yard and dreamt of going to space.
This movie captured my imagination when I was 8 and will always remember it, so it was made perfectly, in my opinion .
Another great review as always Ollie. I always thought Joe Dante was very underrated.
Excellent retrospective (as always), would love to see you cover more 80s / 90s action classics if you get the chance like Deep Blue Sea, The Ghost and the Darkness, Breakdown, Executive Decision, In the Line of Fire, Harley Davidson & the Malboro Man, US Marshals, The Saint, Hunt for Red October, Red Scorpion, Shoot to Kill, The Peacemaker and The Transporter (not quite in the 90s but the last movie to launch a major action star who still maintains theatrically released movies).
I recorded this on my VCR as a kid and rewatched it until the tape wore out.
I watched this movie so many times growing up.
Four years after Explorers, Ethan Hawke gets a second chance, by co-starring with the late Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society and it became a hit to critics and moviegoers back in 1989.
This was a great retrospective and it really takes me back to seeing Explorers in the theater, which was the only time I saw it. And even as a kid I had the same problem you describe here: the kids just getting off the ground is so entertaining, even magical, that space itself becomes a letdown. Every once in a while something reminds me that Weird Al was the voice of one of the aliens and even that wasn't that memorable to me because the ending was such a letdown.
Oliver Harper Retrospective ? Instant like.
I was 14 when this came out, I loved it!
These are the sort of movies I'm collecting on 4k blu ray now. 80s fantasy and sci-fi. It's like time travel. 80s cinema can't beat it.
I loved Explorers. I never understood how this film was a flop most of my friends raved about this film.
Fantastic, detailed work as always, with top-notch editing! As always, really appreciate the airtime you give to the film's score (and game adaptations - seems Explorers didn't get any!).
I always saw that final scene as being a dream, but the alien kids had to be a bit more clever in contacting them. It starts off as Ben's dream, but once the crystal activates it connected them all together. This of course fits with the home video version which has the class disappear and the Thunder Road in the classroom. It's only after dream Lori slips him the note that it seems to activate. In any case the film rises above any flaws it has, but I really wish we had gotten a longer cut.
I missed this one
Thanks for the insight
I remember watching this, as a kid on holiday, and for years I thought I'd imagined it. Then I found it again. Such good memories
From what I recall the ending was very much a hopeful send off with them seeming to be getting a much bigger piece of technology for their next adventure, that the audience will have to imagine for themselves.
I get it Oliver. Here in Germany, I've also never come across this movie. Looks like I've missed something!!
Jerry Goldsmith. Gremlins. This. Aliens. Star Trek. Hundreds of other epics... man made good films great.
_Alien._ _Aliens_ is James Horner
In the same year 1985, Jerry Goldsmith composed the score to Rambo: First Blood Part II which was a hit for Sylvester Stallone and the score consisted of Jerry’s orchestral and Yamaha DX-7 synthesizers.
@@dnasty312 both Jerry and Jim are now no longer with us. Jerry Goldsmith met his demise due to cancer on July 21, 2004 and 11 years later, Jim Horner was killed in a plane crash.
Soundtrack and building segments are fantastic. I haven’t seen the movie in 20 years, but I can remember it vividly!
I'm surprised nobody made fan-edits of the kids meeting the aliens from "Close Encounters of the Third Kind", would make a much more satisfying ending and kept the tone of a Spielberg production. Making it about the journey, not the destination.
I had this on VHS, recorded off the TV, as a kid. Watched it a ton so this movie has good place in my childhood memories.
I only saw this once on TV, when it aired on UPN. It was one of those things where the movie "hosts" would insert themselves into the movie. I don't remember exactly what they did, but there was a man and a woman host, and the woman was the actress who played the half-Klingon woman on Star Trek: Voyager.
This film introduced me to the 1953 War Of The Worlds!
Awesome film. I like the Tom Cruise version as well
That bit in the basement hiding out with nut job Tim Robbins was pretty grim. Cruise’s son was kind of annoying in it though 😁
@@garrysanderson9957
I hated the son.
@@anubusx Tom Cruise clearly had a strained relationship with his son, but man was that kid a complete dick! 🤣
I kind of hoped he was gonna be turned to dust 😜
Bob Picardo who played Wak, Wak and Neek’s father and Starkiller in Explorers went on to work with director Joe Dante in later movies, Innerspace, The Burbs, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, and Looney Tunes Back in Action. Until he went on to play the holographic doctor on Star Trek: Voyager.
This is one of those movies I always bring up when people discuss remakes. You're always on the wrong end of a losing battle when you set out to remake the likes of Ghostbusters or Robocop, because they're such beloved, high-regarded classics that still hold up to this day. But I think when it comes to movies like Explorers, there's a perfect opportunity because you have a great premise but also plenty of room for improvement. I'd also add Flight of the Navigator and Space Camp to films that fit this criteria.
But unfortunately, the reality is that the primary motivation behind remakes is capitalising on brand recognition by using existing IP's that general audiences are already familiar with, and the sad fact is that barely anyone remembers Explorers.
Explorers was like a more sci-fi "Stranger Things" for the 80's. Less creepy and more heartwarming but could easily have been written the other way.
As child of the 80’s I do like the movie, the first part plays out perfectly - I’m sure many young boys daydream about building their own spaceship. However, while I don’t think the ending is bad exactly, it’s just the ending to a different movie and it doesn’t really work. Flight Of The Navigator, another ET influenced movie, is still better.
I love Explorers, and unlike some really enjoy all the stuff with Wak and Neek. Jerry Goldsmith's score is fantastic and I'm lucky enough to have a copy of the Entrada CD
It's a shame they didn't gave this project more time. Still i liked it very much as a kid and it stuck in my mind for years and i always wanted to see it again.
Really appreciate this balanced retrospective! I saw this with my family on TV one afternoon in my early teens, and I remember how confused and disappointed we were with the reveal of the aliens.
I think this is a film that had so much potential but just didn’t get the treatment it deserved.
I think the first half was by far better than the second half. That first half was the stuff dreams were made of, seeing it as a kid. The thing of the first half is that it captured the feeling of being a kid in the 80s. I felt like we were in the edge of these...amazing possibilities. The culture turned up my expectations of that.
RIP River.
Explorers, Enemy Mine and My Science Project have found many fans on disc and streaming!!!!
Credit this film for explaining the same concept that applies to Star Trek’s inertia dampeners.