Flight of the Navigator

Cast: Joey Cramer, Paul Reubens, Cliff De Young, Veronica Cartwright, Matt Adler and Howard Hesseman.

Director: Randal Kleiser

Release Date: 1986

Genre: Sci Fi/Family

Running Time: 1hr 30 minutes

Rating: PG

Synopsis:

David Freeman (Joey Cramer) goes missing one night in 1978, only to reappear 8 years later in 1986. Despite 8 years passing, David hasn't aged or changed, it's no coincidence that when he returns a unidentified object is found wrapped in power cables.

This is an absolute classic! Directed by Randal Kleiser who also brought us wonderful movies like "Grease" and "Honey I blew up the Kid" needless to say in my opinion he's a pretty good director. I honestly don't think I can compare this movie to anything else, there's something very special about this film, I'd hate to see a remake to be honest. I honestly think filmmakers today would just ruin it. This is by far one of the best films of 1986. I must have seen this so many times as a child, my siblings and myself always had fun sitting down watching this on Saturday afternoons.

Starring Joey Cramer as David Freeman, sadly Joey doesn't act anymore, which is a shame, because I do think he had a bright future. Personally he does a really good job in this film, his character is really likable, this movie is primarily about his journey home, his journey through time, he generally is the star of the show in this film, despite his co stars. The story explains itself pretty well, it's really easy to understand and flows really well. It doesn't take too long to get going! Once it does, it's awesome! What an adventure!

Howard Hessesman who plays Dr Farady has quite a frequent role in this movie, we also see a very young Sarah Jessica Parker too, who also works for NASA. She's really good in this movie though and has a very interesting relationship with David. Just watch out for RALPH! He's pretty cool too and has a really interesting role in this movie with helping David on his journey. Max Is absolutely awesome, I don't wanna give much away, because it will spoil it, but what a character, he really makes this movie fantastic and works brilliantly alongside David! Keep an eye out for some pretty cool creatures in the ship too!

Set in Florida in 1978/1986, the set design is pretty good, we see some beautiful shots of America, not all of Florida mind you, San Francisco and Texas too! I must admit, a great deal of the movie is shot in a spaceship, I know for some reading this, that probably sounds a bit cheesy, but believe me it's flipping awesome! Especially when you see inside, it's definitely not a spaceship you see in "Men in Black" that's for sure! I'm not gonna lie moments of this movie haven't been edited particularly well, especially in the opening scene, it's very rushed, almost cutting it off sharp, like something is missing. The special effects are pretty awesome though!

The soundtrack to this film is absolutely awesome, yes it does have a really big 80's feel to it, but then so did "Terminator" and we all know how good that turned out right? It just works really well, it's like you can feel it explaining the story as it goes along all through the use of music, which is pretty impressive, not many films are able to do that. In fact some movies have next to no soundtrack at all, the soundtrack in this film, speaks mystery and adventure! There is also a nice little homage to Randal Kleiser with a brief song from the "Grease" soundtrack.

This really is a fantastic movie, if you haven't seen it before I cannot highly recommend it enough, it's one of those movies that is absolutely perfect for a rainy afternoon, a film the whole family can sit down and watch, there's nothing inappropriate, obviously no bad language or violence due to the PG rating. It's a wonderful family film. I love this movie and would recommend it to everyone!

5/5 stars