Underplayed Gems

Explorers (1985)

Explorers poster
Directed by
Joe Dante
Genre
fantasy film, comedy film, adventure film, science fiction film, science fiction comedy
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 49m
Rated
PG
Rating
6.3 of 10 from 511 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

Three teenage boys build a homemade spacecraft from junk and fly it into outer space. The film follows their adventure and the strange encounters they have there.

whimsicalnostalgiclighthearteddreamlikecautionarychildlike wonderplayfulbittersweet

What happens

Explorers is a 1985 American science fantasy film written by Eric Luke and directed by Joe Dante. The film stars Ethan Hawke and River Phoenix, both in their film debuts, and Jason Presson as young teenage boys who build a spacecraft to explore outer space. The special effects were produced by Industrial Light & Magic, with make-up effects by Rob Bottin. Rushed into production, the film was never properly finished. Dante revealed that the studio demanded that he stop editing and rush for a July release where it was overshadowed by the Live Aid concert, which was held one day after the film's release and stiff competition from Back to the Future, which opened nine days prior. It was a box office failure and received mixed reviews from critics upon its release, but it attracted a cult following with its VHS release. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.