Explorers (1985)

Director:

Joe Dante

Writer:

Eric Luke (written by)

Release Date:

12 July 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Sci-Fi | Fantasy | Adventure

Tagline:

You don't need a driver's license to reach the stars.

Plot:

Ben Crandall, an alien-obsessed kid, dreams one night of a circuit board. Drawing out the circuit, he and his friends Wolfgang and Darren set it up...

Plot Keywords:

Dream | Space | Alien | Alien Contact | Exploration

Awards:

1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Ethan Hawke	...	Ben Crandall
River Phoenix	...	Wolfgang Müller
Bobby Fite	...	Steve Jackson
Bradley Gregg	...	Steve Jackson's Gang
Georg Olden	...	Steve Jackson's Gang
Chance Schwass	...	Steve Jackson's Gang
Amanda Peterson	...	Lori Swenson
Danny Nucci	...	Nasty Kid at School
Jason Presson	...	Darren Woods
Dana Ivey	...	Mrs. Müller
Taliesin Jaffe	...	Ludwig Müller
James Cromwell	...	Mr. Müller
Brooke Bundy	...	Science Teacher
Tricia Bartholome	...	Girl in Classroom
Eric Luke	...	Darren's Teacher

MPAA:

Rated PG for some mild language and action, and a brief scene involving beer. (special home entertainment version)

Runtime:

109 min | 100 min (restored video version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Netherlands:MG6 | Argentina:Atp | Peru:PT | West Germany:12 | Australia:G | France:U | South Korea:12 | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:U | USA:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

1616 Wabasso Way, Glendale, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

As the boys look through the junkyard for the pieces for their ship, Rosebud (the sled from Citizen Kane (1941)) can be seen sitting at the top of a pile.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Darren puts the headphones on Wak's head, he puts them on the side of his eyes. His ears are much lower on his head.

Quotes:

Ben Crandall: I've waited all my life to say this.
Darren Woods: Be my guest.
Ben Crandall: We come in peace.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Transformers (2007)

Classic 80's Flick

A great movie, the sci-fi Goonies, if you will. Maybe it's because "Explorers" only sports three main characters, and "The Goonies" has seven (plus Sloth) ... but I'd hold this movie up with that one any day.

The humor comes from strange places, and truly lands in bizarro world during the last act, but it captured my imagination seamlessly when I first saw it at the age of eleven. I'm older now, so maybe it's just nostalgia, but if you're into the whole 1980's retro thing, this belongs in your collection with the rest of the Disney-ish buddy movies. Clever idea, and one of the last good movies Joe Dante made. Having a cast like that, though, sure doesn't hurt.