1h 54m
Director: Richard Donner

I'm not sure I've ever met anyone who hasn't seen this film. It's among films like Back To The Future (1985) and Gremlins (1984) I suppose because of its era of release and it is certainly a classic.

Essentially, a bunch of kids go on a treasure hunt adventure. If you haven't ever seen it, it's a kids film so don't go in expecting adult themes.

The stakes are essentially that a country club wants to expand into the "Goon docks" and is coming to foreclose on and demolish Mikey's house unless they pay them enough money by tomorrow afternoon. He finds a pirate treasure map in his attic which leads him to go on an adventure with his friends to find the booty (which he will use to pay off the country club).

Set in Astoria, Oregon the weather is constantly overcast which instantly reminds me of rainy afternoons in, cosy and familiar. A rainy afternoon in by the way is my recommended venue to maximise your viewing experience.

The characters reflect some of the stereotypes you may recognise from your time at school. Mikey is the average young man, Josh is the dude bro, chunk is the chubby comedic type, Mouth is the cocky one and Data is the nerd. Andy is the pretty girl that all the boys fancy and Stef is her slightly nerdy but snarky best friend. There's several other tropes you may recognise throughout the course of the movie and the narrative doesn't really stray from using standard depictions which you'll surely relate to and it really adds to its charm.

It's the kind of story that might remind you of childhood books like The Famous Five if you ever read any of those growing up? The screenplay is based on a story by Stephen Spielberg and you'll know if you've seen Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981), he really loves bringing comic book type serials to the big screen. I think it's partly the audience's familiarity with the genre that helped make this film (and the Indiana Jones movies) so popular.

There's lots of things which will remind you of the 80's and have you feeling a bit of nostalgia if you're old enough to remember those times! It appeals to both the kid in me, because I remember it fondly from my childhood and the film nerd because it's technically excellent.

It's a very well written screenplay. Take the opening sequence for example, Jake Fratelli is breaking out of prison and his Mum and brother are waiting outside in a getaway car. How do we know they're his family? It's the dialog and familiarity between the characters. Jake tries to get in the car, his brother grabs the door handle from the inside whilst he grabs the handle from the outside. They tussle as they're in a hurry to escape and time is of the essence and they argue with the kind of tittle-tattle you might expect from brothers. Mum intervenes, Jake gets in using the sunroof. The film just told you they're a family without explicitly stating it. It's the kind of natural human interaction that is very often absent from modern film, probably because the industry is now much more of an assembly line. These days you'd have the characters explicitly stating their relationships using dialogue, "Hello brother" and, "Hi Mum!".

There's a famous scene where Mouth tells Chunk he needs to do the 'truffle shuffle' if he wants to come into the house. The 'truffle shuffle' is where Chunk wobbles his belly about. I've recently heard this referred to as bullying and 'fat shaming'. I can only assume that people who think this are unfamiliar with the scene. Chunk does not have to do the 'truffle shuffle' but he chooses to. Bullying is when the victim is given no choice, here Chunk can choose, he doesn't have to do it - he could just say no and leave. It's an important distinction. Mikey opens the front gate using a Rube Goldberg machine which is cool!

There's quite a lot of plot convenience in this movie which I think you'll find yourself forgiving. Chunk knocks the water tank off of the cooler which smashes on the floor, the water trickles down revealing that the area below must be hollow for example and later the water pipes under the structure break and spray out the mud that leads to an escape tunnel.

There are some unconventional shots in this film. There is a rule that dialogue shots are to be cuts from 1 character to the other to avoid confusing the audience and you never move the camera between characters as they speak, Here is a shot that breaks that rule very effectively: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKbQm0cENc4
You learn the rules so that you understand when to break them as it were. The shot works well because it's frenetic and captures the mood of the scene. This film is replete with that kind of understanding, the cinematographer has used the language of film to tell the story and not just rested on accepted norms. A modern day film student would probably just do a wide angle on all 4 characters and have them do the dialogue. The more film is churned out on an industrial scale, the less it is an art. It's partly what us oldies are moaning about when we say that modern film has lost its charm. You can tell that a lot of thought has gone into every scene here and it's what a good artist does when they really care about their work.

Being a kids film, you'll notice that the writers have made sure that there's a little bit of humour in almost every scene and this really lightens up some of the more serious moments.

There's plenty of setup and payoff in this narrative. One notable example is when Chunk is captured and put with Sloth and he is watching a swashbuckling, pirate adventure on the TV. You'll notice that Sloth carries out a similar rope swing in the climax of the movie to the one he sees on the TV, to the exact same music! Chunk also has a penchant for making up stories about his exploits which comes into play later when he phones the police for help and they don't believe him - you might notice the Gremlins easter egg reference in the dialogue of that scene, "creatures that multiply when you pour water on them".

Remember I mentioned that Rube Goldberg machine earlier? You'll notice that it's very similar to one of the traps Mikey sets off during their adventure, it reflects that machine. Earlier scenes often auger later ones in the story and this seems to work very well.

There's a few thinky easter eggs in this film if you're paying attention, for example Andy has to play some music from the treasure map on a skeleton keyboard, if she gets it wrong everybody dies. At the critical moment, she says that she can't work out if one of the notes, "is an A sharp or a B flat" - musicians know that they're exactly the same note so it doesn't actually matter!

It does suffer from a loot ex machina ending but I can easily forgive that because it's a kids film and honestly, after enjoying the adventure I reckon you will too.

You can tell that the team who worked on this movie really cared about the end product, it's really well crafted. You'll recognise many of the cast (Sean Astin as Sam from Lord Of The Rings and Ke Huy Quan from his recent resurgence as Waymond Wang in Everything, Everywhere All At Once are notable as is Josh Brolin from his numerous roles in modern film).

The music is by Dave Grusin and although quite simplstic in some scenes, the main themes are emblematic and unforgettable adding a little extra magic to the proceedings.

If you want to see a masterpiece, unexpected because it's a kids film, then watch this movie. Pay close attention to the cinematography and the script, I'm tempted to write something corny about how this is the real treasure for the audience but it genuinely is. Or don't pay attention to any of the technical aspects and just enjoy the ride! Your kids will love it! It's a wholesome and magical family adventure.

"Goonies never say die!"



Trailer: