Quintessential Kid Films from the 80's Part II

nSo here we are with part two of my Quintessential Kid Films from the 80’s list. I’ve left out some fantasy films that I love, but that’s mainlynbecause I want to stick with films that are about kids. I’ll cover films likenKRULL and LEGEND in a future post. Butnanyways, so here’s the list as promised, enjoy it! And sorry if I use the word “magical”ntoo much, it’s the 80’s that does that to me. What a magical decade!

nFilm: Honey I Shrunk the Kids (1989)

nComments: Honey I Shrunk the Kids comes to us from the mindsnof Stuart Gordon and Brian Yuzna, two director/producers who are normally notnassociated with kids films. Normally the name Stuart Gordon is accompanied bynimages of talking decapitated heads, or scientists experimenting withninterdimensional travel. But not this time around. With Honey I Shrunk the KidsnGordon and Yuzna decided to make a children’s film for Disney and surprisingly,nthey nailed it. This movie went on to become one of the biggest money makersnthat summer of ’89. Story concerns a scientist who creates a machine thatnshrinks things to minuscule sizes, his kids are accidentally zapped by it andnvoila! We have a movie! The kids get lost in the backyard and have to do battlenagainst giant ants, bees and the sprinkler system! Inventive effects make thisnone a fun ride, it also helps that Rick Moranis plays the crazy scientistnfather, damn, Moranis is sorely missed in movies as far as I’m concerned.

nQuote: “I don’t think we’re in the food chain anymorenDorothy!”

nFilm: Big (1988)

nComments: Big is a coming of age film about a 12 year oldnkid who (like many kids at that age) wishes he was bigger. When he stumblesnupon one of those cheap fortune telling machines in an amusement park, he asks thenmachine for his wish. Problem is his wish comes true and so, come next morning,nhe finds himself living in the body of a full grown adult! Who looks like TomnHanks! This movie has many great things going for it, but the best thing by farnis Tom Hanks playing Josh, the 12 year old kid. Gotta hand it to Hanks, henreally nailed it! I always wondered how Hanks got that 12 year old thing downnso perfectly, I later learned that the young actor who plays Josh at 12 (DavidnMoscow) acted out every scene after which Hanks copied and mimicked hisnperformance!

nQuote: “I wish I were Big”

nFilm: E.T. The Extraterrestrial (1982)

nComments: So ofncourse I couldn’t leave this film out of this list. It’s one of the most famousnkid films of the 80’s and one of the most emotional ones, but of course,nsentimentalism is to be expected from such a sensitive director as StevennSpielberg. Very few movies manage to retain a magic that spans generations, butnthis film has that magic, new generations keep discovering it and making it theirnown. I believe it will be one of those movies we never forget.

nQuote: “He’s a man from outer space, and we’re taking him tonhis spaceship.”

nFilm: The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984)

nComments: Muppets Take Manhattan is great fun. My personalnfavorites are the Muppet movies in which Jim Henson himself was personallyndirecting and if not Jim Henson, then Frank Oz who as it turns out is a decentndirector himself. With very few exceptions (Treasure Island and ChristmasnCarol) the Muppet movies in which Henson or Oz were not behind the camera simplynsucked, they failed to have that Muppet magic. But Muppets Take Manhattan wasnone of the good ones. Directed by Frank Oz, this one has The Muppets trying tonsell their musical stage show to producers in New York City. You see Kermitnhopes he and his friend can one day make it big on Broadway. Of course, nobodyntakes them seriously…they got a Gonzo! And what the hell is a Gonzo? Still, youngotta hand it to them for not giving up on their dream! Best part about thesenmovies is seeing all those Muppets up on screen, plus the songs (yup, it’s anmusical!) are fun, “Together Again” is a pretty catchy tune indeed! Bonus, innthis film the Muppet Babies make their debut in a flash back sequence.

nQuote: “Me? In love with a pig? Wait till I tell the guys atnmarketing!”

nFilm: Stand by Me (1986)

nComments: Stand By Menis based on a Stephen King short story called “The Body” and it tells the storynof four friends who set out to find the body of a boy who’s gone missing and isnpresumed dead. Along the way they get to know each other better and comfortneach other, each one confronting some sort of trauma that they have tonovercome. The film stars River Phoenix, Will Wheaton, Corey Feldman and Jerry OnConnor as the four friends, a great cast if you ask me. Kiefer Sutherland playsnthe leader of a gang of older kids who want to beat them to finding the deadnbody. This is the kind of film that touches upon many of the insecurities andnsituations one faces at that age. The film takes place during the 50’s, so thenentire film is filled with rock and roll tunes of the time…the soundtrack is ankeeper. Stand by Me is a film that covers all sorts of emotions. It isntouching, funny and truthful, it will more than likely make you think aboutnyour own childhood and going through those years. Highly recommend it.

nQuote: “I don’t shut up, I grow up, and when I look at you,nI throw up…ugh!”

nFilm: Critters (1986)

nComments: Critters is one of those horror films that you cannshow your little brothers or nephews if you want to get them started into thenpath of horror films. It’s not too scary and not to silly either, the balancenbetween the two is just right. This film tells the story of “The Crites” angroup of mischievous little creatures who have just stolen a spaceship andnescaped an intergalactic prison. Problem is they are headed for earth! Nownthese aren’t ten foot tall alien creatures, they are these tiny little furnballs that travel by rolling through the floor, like fury bowling balls thatnshoot poison darts! They might look like harmless little things, but in factnthey are quite ferocious and deadly! Thankfully, we have two shape shiftingnbounty hunters after their tail! So this is a fun little movie that plays a lotnlike Gremlins (1984), but with a sci-fi angle. It takes place in a farm housenin small town, hillbilly county, U.S.A. and follows the adventures of kid namednBrad and his drunkard friend Charlie as they try and put a stop to the Crites.nThis film was followed by increasingly worthless sequels, of which I think onlynthe second might be worth your time, it was called Critters 2: The Main Coursen(1988).

nQuote: “We’re here for the Crites”

nFilm: Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

nComments: Bill and Ted are two of many characters, who kindnof defined my teenage years. This first Bill and Ted adventure is where it allnbegan, this is where we meet the two who will bring harmony to the universenthrough their rock and roll! But first they need to travel through time toncollect real historical figures so they can pass their history report, or theyndon’t go on and become saviors of the universe! Strange how I was justnmentioning Critters, and now I’m talking about Bill and Ted’s ExcellentnAdventure, two movies that come to us from the same director, Stephen Herek; andirector who I might add had a string of successful films during the 80’s andn90’s. Herek even directed 101 Dalmatians (1996) for Disney. But anyways, even though this director fellninto obscurity, Bill and Ted were my role models/heroes during my early teenagenyears, not because they are two complete knuckle heads, but because I admiredntheir loyalty to each other and their friendship. They also imparted goldennnuggets of wisdom like “be excellent to each other…and….party on dudes!”

nQuote: “As you can see, Genghis very much enjoys Twinkies,nbecause of the excellent sugar rush! ”

nFilm: Adventures in Babysitting (1987)

nComments: Adventures in Babysitting is one of those moviesnwhere everything and anything happens within the span of one single night. Momnand dad are going to some fancy party and need a baby sitter to take care ofnthe kids while they are away, so they call upon Chris (the beautiful ElizabethnShue) to get the job done. Chris expects another boring night of t.v. watching andnsome extra cash in her pocket, unfortunately her friend Brenda calls from a busnstation, she is stranded and needs for Chris to pick her up! Chris thinks thisnwill be a quick in and out operation, unfortunately, things get wildly out ofnhand! They even end up meeting Thor along the way if you can believe it! Sonanyhow, this film was directed by Chris Columbus, who would go on to become andirector/producer extraordinaire, but with Adventures in Babysitting, he wasnjust getting started. That’s right my friends, this was Chris Columbus’sndirectorial debut, before he hit it big with Home Alone (1990). I say, not badnfor a first outing!

nQuote: “Chris, I’m begging you, it’s scary here! I’ve justnseen three people shoot up, a bald Chinese lady with no pants and there’s thisnold guy outside who wants his bedroom slippers!”

nFilm: Return to Oz (1985)

nComments: Out of all the Oz films, this is the darkest andnmost disturbed one of all. On this one Dorothy is committed to a psycho wardnfor talking too much about Oz. Basically, her family thinks she’s gone loonynand so of they send her to receive electro shock therapy! Every Oz film has anlevel of darkness to it; they always go into spooky/scary territory. I mean,nMGM’s The Wizard of Oz has witches, haunted forests and flying monkeys! So itnshould come as no surprise that Return to Oz has its own share of scarynsituations and premises like for example, Queen Mombi’s head collection. Younsee, Mombi is so crafty that she chops off the heads of beautiful girls, thennkeeps these heads alive by using something called “The Powder of Life”. Thisnway she is able to switch from beautiful head to beautiful head in the same waynI would change ties. This was actress Fairuza Balk’s acting debut and I mustnsay they couldn’t have chosen anyone to play a cuter Dorothy. The special effectsnon this one are amazing and highly entertaining. Loved seeing a film withnextensive use of well made stop motion animation. Highly recommend thisnunderrated sequel. It may be darker at spots and more shocking than other Oznfilms, but that doesn’t make it a bad movie, it just makes it special.

nQuote: “No Bellina, this was the yellow brick road, it leadsnto the Emerald City”

nFilm: Harry and the Hendersons (1987)

nComments: Harry andnthe Henderson’s tells the story of the Hendersons’s, a family who’s returningnfrom their hunting trip in the forest. Along the road home they hit somethingnwhich they mistake for an animal at first, but then quickly realize it’s notnsome animal; it’s not even a human being, it’s the legendary mythical creaturenknown as Big Foot! They decide to take the unconscious creature home with them,nthey quickly learn that trying to secretly keep a Yeti in your home is no easyntask. Pretty soon Big Foot Hunters and the police are after Harry and it’s upnto The Henderson’s to return Harry to his natural habitat. First up, the makeupneffects work done by Rick Baker and his team is truly excellent! The facialnexpressions the achieved with Harry’s face are astounding! Baker had donenextensive work duplicating gorilla’s for Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan Lordnof the Apes (1984) (for which he won an Oscar) so I’m sure all that experiencenwith hairy primates came in handy at the time of creating Harry. The film wasndirected by William Dear, a director that did a couple of films I’ve enjoyed anwhole lot, like the James Bond spoof If Looks Could Kill (1991). Harry and thenHendersons also benefits from having the excellent John Lithgow play the rolenof the head of the Henderson family, I’ve always enjoyed his performancesnbecause he always brings great emotion to his work. A warm hearted family film.n

nQuote: “Have you ever seen a baby pigeon? Neither have I,nbut I have a hunch they exist.”

nFilm: D.A.R.Y.L. (1985)

nComments: D.A.R.Y.L. is an experimental cyborg made by thengovernment in an attempt to create a super soldier for military purposes. Thenletters stand for Data Analyzing Robot Your Life form. One of DARYL’s creatorsndecides that the cyborg should not be used for war. While setting DARYL free thenscientist is killed, but DARYL escapes into the real world and ends up livingnin the home of a typical American family, The Richardsons. DARYL doesn’tnremember who he is, but he soon starts displaying incredible abilities innvarious fields, one of which includes flying an SR-71 military plane! This filmnis extremely similar to Short Circuit (1986), another 80’s anti-war classic. D.A.R.Y.L.n sends out an anti-military message bynaugmenting warmth, humanity and family values as the things that truly matternin life. The symbolisms behind the film being that young people are notnmindless robots meat to be used as Cannon Fodder in war, they are real peoplenwho live and breathe and deserve to be happy both mentally and physically. The youngnactor who plays DARYL is Barret Oliver, who also played Bastian in The NevernEnding Story (1984).

nQuote: “General, a machine becomes a human when you can’tntell the difference anymore”

nFilm: The Quest (1986)

nComments: Also known as Frog Dreaming, this Australian filmnis a nostalgic curiosity of mine. I remember seeing it when I was about 10 orn11, but I haven’t seen it in more than 25 years! I do remember it starred HenrynThomas, the kid from E.T. The Extraterrestrial (1982). I also remember it wasnabout a mysterious creature that emerges from a lake and has everybody spooked.nThe film has a strange, sometimes surreal vibe to it; but that’s about all I remember. I wish this one was on DVD, I’d love tonrevisit this strange film someday. Doing a bit of research I discovered that itncomes to us from Brian Trenchard Smith, the director behind BMX Bandits (1983) (another 80’s kidnclassic!) and Dead End Drive In (1986), the post apocalyptic film that takesnplace mostly inside of a drive in. Anybody out there remember seeing The Quest?n

nQuote: “First you dance with the devil, then you find outnabout Donkegin”

nFilm: Lucas (1986)

nComments: Wow, so Lucas was one of these films I saw at thenright age, at the right time. I felt that this film had been made especiallynfor me because I was about the same age as Lucas was in the film, so I feltnimmediately identified with the character. Lucas is a very touching film;nagain, as many films dealing with pre-teens and teens, this is a coming of agenfilm that follows a nerdy socially inept high school student who falls for answeet upper class girl played by Kerri Green whom most of you will remember asnAmy from The Goonies (1985), I’ve always wondered why we didn’t see more of hernin films. Lucas falls for Maggi, one could say he is absolutely blinded by love.nStill, even though Lucas doesn’t really know how to make friends, and yeah, he’sneasy to make fun of, even the bullies learn to appreciate Lucas and hisnbravery. The film is truthful and analizes classist differences, and questionsnwhy we like who we like, and why must humans always go for something similar tonthemselves? Do opposites really attract? Can a rich girl fall for a nerdy poornguy? A heart breaking scene has Maggie coldly rejecting a kiss from Lucas, wow,nthat scene had me in tears the first time I saw it! This film explores thosenfirsts, sometimes embarrassing and yes, painful steps one takes when walkingnfor the first time in the road towards love. A great movie that is not asnschmaltzy as you might think, actually, it comes off as authentic depiction ofnhigh school life. Corey Haim outdoes himself in what could quite possibly be thenbest performance of his life. A young Charlie Sheen plays an older brother typento Lucas and even Wynona Ryder plays a smaller role as the girl who falls fornLucas, but who Lucas doesn’t even notice.

nQuote: “If you’re so depressed, how come you’re eatingnpizza?”

nFOR PART ONE OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK HERE!