You didn't just call Thunderbirds are Go by Busted a 'disposable, generic early-2000 pop rock song' - that song absolutely slaps and was the main reason I went to see this film when I was a kid
I loved this movie as a child. Id watch it all the time. While I can see its cringy but it holds a special place in my heart. I would love to see a new live action interpretation, maybe focusing on the relationship of the brothers. Kinda like the newer show Thunderbirds are go.
My kid was 6 when this came out. He loved the original Thunderbirds and was crazy about them so we took him to see this. He loved it. I wasn't enamoured but he was crazy about it and that was good enough for me. I think this was the first time I realised I couldn't be that precious about things from my childhood if a version was made that kids today enjoyed. It doesn't take away anything from the one I love. It's a dumb kids film and that's OK. Talking of Ford concept cars.... They had a tour around Ford garages in the UK where they took Lady Penelope's car, a bunch of other stuff and had photo op for kids with a Lady Penelope look-alike in a pink Ford Ka. All you needed to do was agree a test drive in a Ford. So we went. My kid loved it and the photo of him came out well and they didn't charge for it. We spent quite some time chatting with the guy who was the minder of the Lady Penelope car and had to drive it between locations (he said it was a pig to drive) and he loved how excited my kid was about all the Thunderbirds stuff. As we were going to leave he told us to wait a minute while he went out back. He came back with at least three of the big Thunderbird models that were part of the toy-line for the film (unopened in box) and gave them to my kid as he said he enjoyed talking with us so much. My kid was absolutely over the moon, well worth the time spent hanging round a Ford garage. So yeah, not a great movie, but fond memories for the family. Can't really ask for more.
As a person who WAS a 5 year old kid when this movie came out, I appreciate your understanding that children loved this film. I used to watch the dvd of this over and over and have the music video for the song on repeat. They aimed this movie at me and I very much enjoyed it that they did.
Jonathan Frake and Patrick Stewart actors, which means that they are not necessarily like the characters they portray. Patrick Stewart as a person is nothing like Jean-Luc Picard. It comes as a shock when you realise it because one assumes that there should be some similarity.
Frakes directed a lot of the Librarians movies and TV episodes after Thunderbirds Are Gone. That worked, he was good there. There's no way in hell I'm watching Picard to see how that went... he also did an Orville episode or two so he's in a rut no matter how you look at it.
Great vehicle designs and great performances from Paxton, Myles, Cook and Edwards. Sadly... not enough actual *Thunderbirds* action! 🚀 Talking Pictures TV in the UK has recently been showing *Fireball XL5* and the original *Thunderbirds* series at 3pm on Saturdays! 👍
Remember renting this from blockbuster. Never saw the original, so I had nothing to compare it to. I enjoyed it. Watched it recently, still kind of do.
True story, I got a job at Weta Workshop a few years ago (doing animatronics) by building an animatronic John Steed (of the Avengers) marionette in the form/size of a Thunderbirds puppet. Apparently two of the boss Richard Taylor's favourite things! The workshop did have a Thunderbirds tour you could do to see the models from that new series.
I remember seeing this movie in 2004, and I liked Ben Kingsley in an “over the top” way… also Jonathan Frankes directed Clockstoppers… I never knew that, small world lol
I absolutely loved this film as a kid, I’d imagine my swimming pool had a hidden Thunderbird 1 beneath it! I would watch this endlessly. It still holds a special place in my heart, its nostalgic ❤
As a 12-year-old who saw the original Thunderbirds, (and have loved it ever since), once I had a look at what they done to the craft and read a few reviews I just couldn’t bear to watch this movie. (So I just bought the original series on DVD.) A great review as ever and I love the Geoff Love reference, wonderfully esoteric!
Thunderbirds is my favourite TV shows from the child. I still have all the toys in my room and I absolutely loved this movie when I was a kid I wish they do them all in one now. Super realistic and gritty. And the original Thunderbirds theme song is one of the hardest songs ever created
I just remember watching it with my Son, who at the time was at junior school. I thought it was damn funny and it will definitely remind of the simple joy of watching a film with my Lad.
The thing that annoyed me about this movie the most was that International Rescue isn't once called by its name, instead everyone just calls them "The Thunderbirds." 😭 Outside of that, it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't exactly great either. A lot of wasted potential. But I guess they had to introduce it to a whole new audience, the next generation some might say...
That annoyed me too. I was a Thunderbirds fan from the 90s/00s ITV revival, but old enough to have a critical eye. The fact they allowed news media to film them at all majorly bugged me in the entire film 😅 plus the fight suits looked nothing like the uniform, even though I think they look pretty stylish now.
i enjoyed the movie the first time i watched it. But more watch it these days the the beautiful look of the Thunderbirds themselves, penny, parker and hood
I find myself agreeing with everything you have said - I hadn't revisited this film since seeing at the cinema when it came out. I know why. As you rightly say a Penny and Parker spin off would have been a hoot!
I liked the movie. It entertained me for a couple of hours which is all one can expect. I grew up on Anderson shows, from Supercar to Captain Scarlet to Space 1999. The Andersons made a big impact on children's TV. And Captain Scarlet really pushed the envelope for what was appropriate. Their main character dies a gruesome death in every episode, only to come back next week fully restored. For a kid's TV show, this was about as dark as you can get! But some of that was harmed by the distributors, (ITC, I think) who made it so some shows never made it out of England or even to DVD (Captain Scarlet season two fell into this hole). In America we had a choice between something like Captain Scarlet or Thunderbirds - if it was being aired at all - or Sid And Marty Kroft's "Puffinstuff". Yeah, terrible choice! Those were dark days indeed!
Thunderbirds was still repeated on bbc two in the early 00’s and was still actively available on dvd and vhs so I grew up with it in the early 00’s before this was released when I was 5
I guess one positive thing i remember about this movie is at the time they brought out the original thunderbirds shows and movies again on dvd with all sorts of bells and whistles
As an 8-12 year old i loved this movie. that being said, I think I would only want to watch it again for the scenes with Sophia Myles that brought out some feelings i didn't expect in my early pubescent years.
Part of the novelty was the ingenuity of the model work, and I think it let them get away with the sort of plots and endangerment that would seem rougher if it was live action. Adults would be disarmed by marionettes or feel like they were getting away with something while watching it with their kids.
Compare and contrast with the MCU. Making the insane and earnest seem reasonable is a core part of movie magic. I think if they could have afforded to add enough 'normal' retro-futuristic technology, and made it look dirty and used, that audiences could have gone with it. And nothing wrong with a little endangerment...
A great review of a film that I will never watch. The references of Geoff Love & Paul Whitehouse's Chris the Cockney character were superb and more than made up for no Mr Bronson from Grange Hill jokes.
The original Thunderbirds was a kids' show that didn't feel like a kids' show -- it had action, combat, disasters, suspense, and all the trappings of "grownup" shows. In addition to forgetting about that, the movie also forgot that the stars of the show were the machines, and that much of its attraction came from the knowledge that it was *models* we were watching. The whole idea of creating an entire world, complete with amazing machines, disasters that were often on a biblical scale, and large swathes of real estate that were all made of models that just looked so... damn... COOL. The show didn't talk down to kids and had enough "wow factor" to attract older viewers interested in the model work. The 2004 film used run-of-the-mill CGI and a ridiculously dumbed-down script that featured a kid and his kid sidekicks and a lot of fixed sets, green screen, and... oh, yeah, we'd better put some of the titular machines onscreen, totally in CGI form but weird colors... and yeah, make the kids the heroes so the adults look like idiots. Your countdown was generous; as a long-time Thunderbirds fan (I'm old enough to have watched it when it was first broadcast on TV), I give it a "1" for at least attempting to reintroduce it... and it almost squandered that score by doing so in a manner that practically jammed it into a coffin and put it underneath Thunderbird 3's main engine at launch.
10:19 i won’t accept the disrespect towards Busted’s Thunderbirds Are Go. I have my issues with the film bc i love thunderbirds but that song was a bop and no i shall not accept anything said against it XDDDD even Busted themselves enjoy the song bc they played it at their recent 20 year tour and said they enjoyed it! (And that only 16 people saw the film and they were 3 of them XDD)
I didn't mind the plot. For me what let it down was what they did to the ships, and to Tracy Island. The launch sequences and the inner workings were part of the charm of both the original series and the recent CGI/live series, and his movie just turned it into some sort of industrial complex.
I didn’t know this movie had been a thing. Like, I don’t remember any ads for it, any talk of it, nothing. It’s like even being a bad film didn’t register with anyone, it just happened and that was it.
A fair review. The movie was - for me - a guilty pleasure. I watched the Thunderbirds as a 5-year old in the late 60s and it was my favorite show (unti Star Trek TOS came along). I still love the show, the concept, the music and the vehicles. I wanted a more serious adaptation on the big screen, but just hearing the music and seeing the Thunderbirds on screen was a treat. Of course, when the original series was recreated as an animated series I got the best of both worlds: New Thunderbirds episodes with up-to-date special effects supplied by Weta Workshop. I know the 2004 movie wasn't great, but it was the Thunderbirds...and the scene where T1 takes off and the puppet hand (complete with wires) takes the controls makes me smile every time.
The only thing I've seen from this film is the car in a museum. But there was also a Delorean and Lara Croft's Land Rover, so it wasn't the star attraction.
I still think the studio missed the mark in not casting the Baldwin brothers as the Tracy brothers. Throw in Adam Baldwin to round out the brood and sew further confusion. It would have been epic. It also would have trippled the casting budget, but come on...
I feel like I just woke up in a parallel universe because I've never heard of this movie, never seen it referenced or reviewed and I used to watch reruns of the show growing up not to mention I thought I'd seen most of Bill Paxton's work... good and bad. How have I never heard of this movie!? Bad ones become more popular than most of the great ones!
I watched this a lot when I was about 10, and I thought it was awesome. I know it gets a lot more criticism these days, but I can still find some enjoyment out of it (after all, it was my introduction to the amazing Ben Kingsley).
Thunderbirds has the benefit of being extremely toy-etic. You can tell that the movie was designed to sell toys, rather than actually show any care for the source material (which ended up advertising the toys even better than the movie did). If they'd just gone the Marvel route and kept the intended audience as older, they'd have had something special on their hands, but instead they aimed it at the pre-teens with a weird form of wish fulfillment and the goofy sound stingers and effects. It's not awful, but it ain't great either. It acts both as if people are intimately familiar with the series, yet also panders to the newbies. It goes for odd fan service moments when showing off some of the Rescue vehicles, but never actually gives any of them any reverence except for maybe Thunderbirds 2 and 3 (and 5 gets absolutely fucked before it even gets to be properly established.) Also props to Doctor Who for having Penny & Parker' actors in Series 2 as Madame De Pompadour and Mr. Magpie, both great performances for them there as well.
I was still quite young when this came out. I was brought up and a big fan of the original Thunderbirds before this movie came out though. I seem to remember liking it enough when I saw it, I had it on DVD and watched it several times. But looking at it now in my 30s, yes, it was an awful film! Like you say, it's a Spy Kids movie with a very thin Thunderbirds Veneer! Also, totally agree, Myles as Penny and Cook as Parker! That was some truly inspired casting! They were by far the best part of the film!
I watched the original series with my dad. This movie came out the year he left. I wanted to see it but mum wouldnt take me. I saw it when i was 18 and feel like i missed out on the nostalgia aspect. Now im just confused; why is it focused solely on alan? Who the hell is fermat?
Well done sir, another awesome and *checks view count underappreciated masterpiece. Thunderbirds was always about kewl cars and planes and 'splosions, Michael Bay would have done this franchise justice. hmm, maybe I should patent that idea. Anyway, another 10,000 subs for you sir* (*probably doesn't work that way)
I was just talking about this movie the other day with my dad and how we could barely remember anything about it. However it had a banging music video!
I think the studios had the idea to jumpstart the Thunderbirds for a new generation. I was very disappointed when I saw this movie. I am a original fan on the series (yes I'm that old.)
I thought it was well executed. Tracy Island was a cool reimagining. Sophia Myles is easy on the eyes. And the Tracy Brothers were cool role models to any kid watching.
Unfortunate that I missed the screensaver on the deluxe cut of a movie that I'm glad I have never seen. It is proposed that ST Voyager is a Tom Paris origin story :-)
I enjoyed the film, even though it's not a patch on the 1960s TV series. As a way to pass some time on a weekend afternoon, it's a pleasant distraction, mostly for the Lady Penelope and Parker scenes. But the theme by Busted is great. How can you not love the line; "It always looks real cool, when spaceships come out of the pool"?
I watched this movie lots as a kid. I loved it but it’s hard to see why now. It has its merits though. Parker and Lady Penelope are fantastic and the Thunderbirds themselves look fantastic for what little of the movie they’re in. Honestly the bit I enjoy most is just seeing the brightly coloured early 2000s interpretations of the Thunderbird cockpits
I watched this film endlessly as a kid. But even back then, i remember wishing for more actual thunderbirding and less goofy action and kids running around. Its a shame they didnt make a more straightforward story that frakes could have really sunk his teeth into... also wow, i had no idea Frakes directed this!
You didn't just call Thunderbirds are Go by Busted a 'disposable, generic early-2000 pop rock song' - that song absolutely slaps and was the main reason I went to see this film when I was a kid
i did. and i'll do it again.
He's not wrong. It's a banger though. Love Busted. Although you can tell they didn't write it themselves because they don't mention boobs.
I gasped audibly, Thunderbirds are Go was the best thing to come from this project
All your points are invalid just for this busted slander @@StamFine
@@OlanKennyhhaha they def wrote it, I was there
I loved this movie as a child. Id watch it all the time. While I can see its cringy but it holds a special place in my heart. I would love to see a new live action interpretation, maybe focusing on the relationship of the brothers. Kinda like the newer show Thunderbirds are go.
I don't understand why they would make a live action version. The puppets are the awesomest part.
My kid was 6 when this came out. He loved the original Thunderbirds and was crazy about them so we took him to see this. He loved it. I wasn't enamoured but he was crazy about it and that was good enough for me. I think this was the first time I realised I couldn't be that precious about things from my childhood if a version was made that kids today enjoyed. It doesn't take away anything from the one I love. It's a dumb kids film and that's OK.
Talking of Ford concept cars.... They had a tour around Ford garages in the UK where they took Lady Penelope's car, a bunch of other stuff and had photo op for kids with a Lady Penelope look-alike in a pink Ford Ka. All you needed to do was agree a test drive in a Ford. So we went. My kid loved it and the photo of him came out well and they didn't charge for it. We spent quite some time chatting with the guy who was the minder of the Lady Penelope car and had to drive it between locations (he said it was a pig to drive) and he loved how excited my kid was about all the Thunderbirds stuff. As we were going to leave he told us to wait a minute while he went out back. He came back with at least three of the big Thunderbird models that were part of the toy-line for the film (unopened in box) and gave them to my kid as he said he enjoyed talking with us so much. My kid was absolutely over the moon, well worth the time spent hanging round a Ford garage. So yeah, not a great movie, but fond memories for the family. Can't really ask for more.
Penelope car should have been a rolls royce
@@davidbarry9690 Agreed. But Ford paid a lot of money for product placement in that film. The Ford badge is everywhere.
Ford even spenders the new ms in that movie
As a person who WAS a 5 year old kid when this movie came out, I appreciate your understanding that children loved this film. I used to watch the dvd of this over and over and have the music video for the song on repeat.
They aimed this movie at me and I very much enjoyed it that they did.
@@davidbarry9690 Rolls Royce knocked them back at the time BMW had just bought them out.
despite its flaws i will probably rewatch this a few more times throughout my life purely for the nostalgia
Same :)
Saddest thing about this film was that it killed Jonathan Frake's directing career until Picard in 2020.
Yes. That is the saddest thing about this motion picture.
Picard's not a particularly bright spot on his resume either.
Given the movies he directed, that isn't sad
Jonathan Frake and Patrick Stewart actors, which means that they are not necessarily like the characters they portray. Patrick Stewart as a person is nothing like Jean-Luc Picard. It comes as a shock when you realise it because one assumes that there should be some similarity.
Frakes directed a lot of the Librarians movies and TV episodes after Thunderbirds Are Gone. That worked, he was good there.
There's no way in hell I'm watching Picard to see how that went... he also did an Orville episode or two so he's in a rut no matter how you look at it.
Great vehicle designs and great performances from Paxton, Myles, Cook and Edwards. Sadly... not enough actual *Thunderbirds* action! 🚀
Talking Pictures TV in the UK has recently been showing *Fireball XL5* and the original *Thunderbirds* series at 3pm on Saturdays! 👍
😊😊😊😊😊60s Thunderbirds is the. Best 2015 remake was good though
"F.A.B.!" 🚀
I was a little kid when this film came out and I have such fond memories of it. I can’t hate it-i loved the drama of it as a kid!
Bloody hell. I fell of my chair laughing at the line; "He's no Geoff Love...". Perfect!
Did your father have "Big War Movie Themes" too?
@@simoncurry5336 No, but my mate did. I bought the Horror Film Soundtracks Album on s school trip to the Big Smoke.
I loved this as a kid. Watched it over and over and it was one of my favourite movies.
1:36 I just noticed that Lady P's Rolls uses the "Kneeling Ecstasy" hood ornament. That is reserved for use on cars for the Royal Family only.
Remember renting this from blockbuster. Never saw the original, so I had nothing to compare it to. I enjoyed it. Watched it recently, still kind of do.
True story, I got a job at Weta Workshop a few years ago (doing animatronics) by building an animatronic John Steed (of the Avengers) marionette in the form/size of a Thunderbirds puppet. Apparently two of the boss Richard Taylor's favourite things! The workshop did have a Thunderbirds tour you could do to see the models from that new series.
nice one!
I didn’t realise Weta made those models, though it totally makes sense given the wonderful detailing
I actually went to the Thunderbirds tour while it was on!
I remember seeing this movie in 2004, and I liked Ben Kingsley in an “over the top” way… also Jonathan Frankes directed Clockstoppers… I never knew that, small world lol
A Stam Fine way to start a weekend, Thunderbirds Are Go
I absolutely loved this film as a kid, I’d imagine my swimming pool had a hidden Thunderbird 1 beneath it!
I would watch this endlessly.
It still holds a special place in my heart, its nostalgic ❤
Yes, the actress who played Penelope is quite beautiful. She was good in underworld too 👍
Loved this as a kid!
As a 12-year-old who saw the original Thunderbirds, (and have loved it ever since), once I had a look at what they done to the craft and read a few reviews I just couldn’t bear to watch this movie. (So I just bought the original series on DVD.) A great review as ever and I love the Geoff Love reference, wonderfully esoteric!
It's the fact that they do absolutely no rescues.
I really recommend the new series with the cool model effects by Weta.
Thunderbirds is my favourite TV shows from the child. I still have all the toys in my room and I absolutely loved this movie when I was a kid I wish they do them all in one now. Super realistic and gritty.
And the original Thunderbirds theme song is one of the hardest songs ever created
Loved this film when i was little
I just remember watching it with my Son, who at the time was at junior school. I thought it was damn funny and it will definitely remind of the simple joy of watching a film with my Lad.
The thing that annoyed me about this movie the most was that International Rescue isn't once called by its name, instead everyone just calls them "The Thunderbirds." 😭
Outside of that, it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't exactly great either. A lot of wasted potential.
But I guess they had to introduce it to a whole new audience, the next generation some might say...
💯
The Thunderbirds are the vehicles, it'd be like calling Thor Mjolnir, or Wonder Woman Invisible Jet
That annoyed me too. I was a Thunderbirds fan from the 90s/00s ITV revival, but old enough to have a critical eye. The fact they allowed news media to film them at all majorly bugged me in the entire film 😅 plus the fight suits looked nothing like the uniform, even though I think they look pretty stylish now.
@@kaitlyn__L I'd forgotten about that until a recent rewatch of the original 🤦♂️
I always loved this movie as a kid tbh and still do. Great video though I guess nostalgia is just too strong for me on this one
For what it is, I have enjoyed this movie and have watched it on several occasions and will continue to watch it.
I didnt mind it too much. Yes, it could've been a lot better. But Ron Cook's Parker was damn near perfect
I agree
Yes, I saw this movie in the theater. The only part that stood out was Cook's portrayal of Parker. I don't even remember how the movie ended.
i enjoyed the movie the first time i watched it. But more watch it these days the the beautiful look of the Thunderbirds themselves, penny, parker and hood
I find myself agreeing with everything you have said - I hadn't revisited this film since seeing at the cinema when it came out. I know why. As you rightly say a Penny and Parker spin off would have been a hoot!
I liked the movie. It entertained me for a couple of hours which is all one can expect.
I grew up on Anderson shows, from Supercar to Captain Scarlet to Space 1999. The Andersons made a big impact on children's TV.
And Captain Scarlet really pushed the envelope for what was appropriate. Their main character dies a gruesome death in every episode, only to come back next week fully restored. For a kid's TV show, this was about as dark as you can get!
But some of that was harmed by the distributors, (ITC, I think) who made it so some shows never made it out of England or even to DVD (Captain Scarlet season two fell into this hole).
In America we had a choice between something like Captain Scarlet or Thunderbirds - if it was being aired at all - or Sid And Marty Kroft's "Puffinstuff". Yeah, terrible choice!
Those were dark days indeed!
Anderson shows were better than this movie 😊
Thunderbirds 2086 is the next logical bump in this series…
Thunderbirds was still repeated on bbc two in the early 00’s and was still actively available on dvd and vhs so I grew up with it in the early 00’s before this was released when I was 5
Used to be one of my favorite movies
Wait... There was a live action Thunderbirds? And Bill Paxton was in it 😮 How'd I not ever known this!?
I loved this movie. It’s the only reason why I even know of the Thunderbirds.
I guess one positive thing i remember about this movie is at the time they brought out the original thunderbirds shows and movies again on dvd with all sorts of bells and whistles
This film is a guilty pleasure for me, comes across as a Disney channel movie. Plus that song by Busted lives on to this day.
As an 8-12 year old i loved this movie. that being said, I think I would only want to watch it again for the scenes with Sophia Myles that brought out some feelings i didn't expect in my early pubescent years.
Never knew Jonathen Frakes directed this movie! Mind blown lol
Part of the novelty was the ingenuity of the model work, and I think it let them get away with the sort of plots and endangerment that would seem rougher if it was live action. Adults would be disarmed by marionettes or feel like they were getting away with something while watching it with their kids.
Compare and contrast with the MCU. Making the insane and earnest seem reasonable is a core part of movie magic.
I think if they could have afforded to add enough 'normal' retro-futuristic technology, and made it look dirty and used, that audiences could have gone with it.
And nothing wrong with a little endangerment...
A great review of a film that I will never watch.
The references of Geoff Love & Paul Whitehouse's Chris the Cockney character were superb and more than made up for no Mr Bronson from Grange Hill jokes.
The film had a kickass theme song.
The original Thunderbirds was a kids' show that didn't feel like a kids' show -- it had action, combat, disasters, suspense, and all the trappings of "grownup" shows. In addition to forgetting about that, the movie also forgot that the stars of the show were the machines, and that much of its attraction came from the knowledge that it was *models* we were watching. The whole idea of creating an entire world, complete with amazing machines, disasters that were often on a biblical scale, and large swathes of real estate that were all made of models that just looked so... damn... COOL. The show didn't talk down to kids and had enough "wow factor" to attract older viewers interested in the model work. The 2004 film used run-of-the-mill CGI and a ridiculously dumbed-down script that featured a kid and his kid sidekicks and a lot of fixed sets, green screen, and... oh, yeah, we'd better put some of the titular machines onscreen, totally in CGI form but weird colors... and yeah, make the kids the heroes so the adults look like idiots. Your countdown was generous; as a long-time Thunderbirds fan (I'm old enough to have watched it when it was first broadcast on TV), I give it a "1" for at least attempting to reintroduce it... and it almost squandered that score by doing so in a manner that practically jammed it into a coffin and put it underneath Thunderbird 3's main engine at launch.
I often get this film mixed up with the fantastic 4 film they feel like they exist in the same universe. Might just be the London final scenes.
It wasn't that bad. Diverting entertainment. I think if I had seen it when I was 12, I would have loved it.
This is the first movie I saw at the cinema when I was 4. It was great and I’ll die on this hill and the song too 😂
Bill Paxton couldn't have phoned in his performance in this movie harder if he were playing Alexander Graham Bell.
10:19 i won’t accept the disrespect towards Busted’s Thunderbirds Are Go. I have my issues with the film bc i love thunderbirds but that song was a bop and no i shall not accept anything said against it XDDDD even Busted themselves enjoy the song bc they played it at their recent 20 year tour and said they enjoyed it! (And that only 16 people saw the film and they were 3 of them XDD)
I didn't mind the plot. For me what let it down was what they did to the ships, and to Tracy Island. The launch sequences and the inner workings were part of the charm of both the original series and the recent CGI/live series, and his movie just turned it into some sort of industrial complex.
I didn’t know this movie had been a thing. Like, I don’t remember any ads for it, any talk of it, nothing. It’s like even being a bad film didn’t register with anyone, it just happened and that was it.
A fair review. The movie was - for me - a guilty pleasure. I watched the Thunderbirds as a 5-year old in the late 60s and it was my favorite show (unti Star Trek TOS came along). I still love the show, the concept, the music and the vehicles. I wanted a more serious adaptation on the big screen, but just hearing the music and seeing the Thunderbirds on screen was a treat. Of course, when the original series was recreated as an animated series I got the best of both worlds: New Thunderbirds episodes with up-to-date special effects supplied by Weta Workshop. I know the 2004 movie wasn't great, but it was the Thunderbirds...and the scene where T1 takes off and the puppet hand (complete with wires) takes the controls makes me smile every time.
The only thing I've seen from this film is the car in a museum. But there was also a Delorean and Lara Croft's Land Rover, so it wasn't the star attraction.
As a lifelong fan of the original TV series, I have seen this film twice, once under duress. That was two times too many.
They did *try* to keep FAB 1 as a Rolls Royce, but they wanted nothing to do with the film sadly so they just weren’t able to
I still think the studio missed the mark in not casting the Baldwin brothers as the Tracy brothers. Throw in Adam Baldwin to round out the brood and sew further confusion. It would have been epic. It also would have trippled the casting budget, but come on...
Some of the Baldwin's come cheap and Alec would end up killing someone.
Never saw this but that bloody song by Busted. It was everywhere!
I feel like I just woke up in a parallel universe because I've never heard of this movie, never seen it referenced or reviewed and I used to watch reruns of the show growing up not to mention I thought I'd seen most of Bill Paxton's work... good and bad. How have I never heard of this movie!? Bad ones become more popular than most of the great ones!
2:22
He said 'champing'...
HE CORRECTLY SAID 'CHAMPING' !!!
🏆🏆🏆🏆💰💰⭐⭐⭐🌈🥲
The Movie was great. The starting credits and closing credits is brilliant. Thank you Riker. Sorry Mr. Frakes.
Thunderbirds Are Go TV series is awesome. Too bad the movie didn't work out.
None of the Movies did well. The original movie even killed off the original series.
I watched this a lot when I was about 10, and I thought it was awesome. I know it gets a lot more criticism these days, but I can still find some enjoyment out of it (after all, it was my introduction to the amazing Ben Kingsley).
The best review for a film I've never seen, and it's probably more entertaining than the film itself! xD
"This week I have been mostly watching Thunderbirds."
(Unintelligible) bill paxman (unintelligible) Thunderbirds (unintelligible) but of course I was very very drunk
Thunderbirds has the benefit of being extremely toy-etic. You can tell that the movie was designed to sell toys, rather than actually show any care for the source material (which ended up advertising the toys even better than the movie did).
If they'd just gone the Marvel route and kept the intended audience as older, they'd have had something special on their hands, but instead they aimed it at the pre-teens with a weird form of wish fulfillment and the goofy sound stingers and effects. It's not awful, but it ain't great either. It acts both as if people are intimately familiar with the series, yet also panders to the newbies. It goes for odd fan service moments when showing off some of the Rescue vehicles, but never actually gives any of them any reverence except for maybe Thunderbirds 2 and 3 (and 5 gets absolutely fucked before it even gets to be properly established.)
Also props to Doctor Who for having Penny & Parker' actors in Series 2 as Madame De Pompadour and Mr. Magpie, both great performances for them there as well.
Thank Christ they didn't do a big screen adaptation of Captain Scarlet!
I was still quite young when this came out. I was brought up and a big fan of the original Thunderbirds before this movie came out though. I seem to remember liking it enough when I saw it, I had it on DVD and watched it several times. But looking at it now in my 30s, yes, it was an awful film! Like you say, it's a Spy Kids movie with a very thin Thunderbirds Veneer!
Also, totally agree, Myles as Penny and Cook as Parker! That was some truly inspired casting! They were by far the best part of the film!
I waited over 30 years for a blockbuster live action Thunderbirds movie and 20 years later on I'm still waiting!
I honestly missed this movie when it came out. I vaguely remember it now. lol
I have no memory of this. I hear you sometimes blank out trauma.
I actually rewatched this a lot back then😅
This movie was with much british humor and tea and soccer ❤
I watched the original series with my dad. This movie came out the year he left.
I wanted to see it but mum wouldnt take me. I saw it when i was 18 and feel like i missed out on the nostalgia aspect. Now im just confused; why is it focused solely on alan? Who the hell is fermat?
Fermat was the son of Brains in the live action movie
My best friend and i LOOOVED watching this movie as tweens...bc the tracy's were hot af 😅 we were really into that boy band aesthetic
Pretty much nailed the review, they’d forgot the original fans and ‘90’s rerun fans were not children at the time of the films release,
Ron Cook elevates every role he's in.
Well done sir, another awesome and *checks view count underappreciated masterpiece.
Thunderbirds was always about kewl cars and planes and 'splosions, Michael Bay would have done this franchise justice.
hmm, maybe I should patent that idea.
Anyway, another 10,000 subs for you sir*
(*probably doesn't work that way)
This movies amazing, childhood classic
Busted making a song for the movie was a wise move. Their song is the only reason why I watched the film
I was unaware that a live-action "Thunderbirds" film had been made.
I was just talking about this movie the other day with my dad and how we could barely remember anything about it. However it had a banging music video!
I think the studios had the idea to jumpstart the Thunderbirds for a new generation. I was very disappointed when I saw this movie. I am a original fan on the series (yes I'm that old.)
I thought it was well executed. Tracy Island was a cool reimagining. Sophia Myles is easy on the eyes. And the Tracy Brothers were cool role models to any kid watching.
I was obsessed with this movie as a kid haha times were so good back then
Unfortunate that I missed the screensaver on the deluxe cut of a movie that I'm glad I have never seen. It is proposed that ST Voyager is a Tom Paris origin story :-)
Hope they make Another thunderbirds film again.
Why? It'll probably be a massive nostalgia driven cash grab turd. Let it rest in peace.
Ford was commissioned to design and build Fab 1 because Rolls-Royce sad no.
I enjoyed the film, even though it's not a patch on the 1960s TV series. As a way to pass some time on a weekend afternoon, it's a pleasant distraction, mostly for the Lady Penelope and Parker scenes. But the theme by Busted is great. How can you not love the line; "It always looks real cool, when spaceships come out of the pool"?
How did they find an actor who looks that much like Parker’s marionette?
love the fast show quote
Wasn't to bad, good to see live action thunder bird shot, lady Penelope and Parker were well cast and had good scenes
They have a 3D animation. The whole series is on RUclips, legally, and free.
I love this movie
Jonathan Frakes also cast his wife Genie Francis as the reporter... And they are still together to this day. Despite him putting her in Thunderbirds.
Probably because he put something much bigger in her.
Still love it.
R.I.P Bill Paxton.
The only good thing we got from this movie was a banging tune from Busted.
Ah, simpler days.
Also, the DVD game was pretty fun as a kid. That one with the search lights was a bitch to get past.
I watched this movie lots as a kid. I loved it but it’s hard to see why now. It has its merits though. Parker and Lady Penelope are fantastic and the Thunderbirds themselves look fantastic for what little of the movie they’re in. Honestly the bit I enjoy most is just seeing the brightly coloured early 2000s interpretations of the Thunderbird cockpits
I love this movie, more than the show!
Since he was Knighted, Ben Kingsley insists that everyone call him "Sir Ben", and his career, well ...
I loved his cameo in the Sopranos. Christopher Moltisanti: "Yo, Kingsley!"
I watched this film endlessly as a kid. But even back then, i remember wishing for more actual thunderbirding and less goofy action and kids running around. Its a shame they didnt make a more straightforward story that frakes could have really sunk his teeth into... also wow, i had no idea Frakes directed this!
Makes you wonder what would have happened if they did CPT. Scarlet and the Mysterions for live action; would have raised hell.
Vey good move happy wach we love great show that beast