Monday, May 30, 2011

Ethan Hawke & River Phoenix in Explorers

The young, late River Phoenix, Ethan Hawke
and Jason Presson star in Explorers.
In the 1980s, I was mesmerized by "boy movies" like Explorers, NeverEnding Story, Weird Science, ET and Stand By Me. Sure, it helped that the teen male actors were adorable, but the allure was deeper than that. It gave us girls a peek at the secret lives of boys. How they talked when we weren't around. How they thought. How they joked. What their bedrooms looked like ... everything!

Sure I had a brother, but he was four years younger and still played with cap guns and GI Joes when I was 12, so he didn't really count. It was the life of preteen and young teen boys that peeked my curiosity. I'm sure most guys would admit films like Explorers and Weird Science depicted the life of boys as way more sci-fi/action/adventure than reality, but still ... 
The 1985 movie, Explorers, captured the
imaginative world of cute boys.
Basically Explorers focuses around three cute young teen boys portrayed by Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix (their first feature film) and somewhat unknown actor, Jason Presson. I thought Jason was extraordinarily special. His voice was noticeably deeper than the other stars. Slightly schlubby, he was cute without trying. His wavy hair didn't fall the way Ethan's and River's did and he seemed deep, dark and secretive.

Sorry for getting slightly off-topic... Basically Ethan Hawke's character Ben has a vivid dream about traveling through space in a special space ship. He consults his friends and they get to work putting Ben's dream into action. Explorers is obviously a fantasy film most youngsters would get excited about. You know, one of those movies you wish could really happen, but can't. 

Here are some bullet points about Explorers and a video clip of the Explorers trailer featuring Ethan, River and Jason.
  • Explorers was written by Eric Luke and directed by Joe Dante.
  • Explorers hit theaters on July 12, 1985 and suffered from
  • The DVD version of Explorers cut two scenes from the original theatrical version, but threw in an additional scene missing from the box office release.
  • Writer Eric Luke appears in the film as one of the boy's teachers. 
  • Amanda Peterson also stars in the film as a pretty 12-year-old prior to her role as Cindy in Can't Buy Me Love.


View or watch the trailer for Explorers staring Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix and Jason Presson here:
at

11 comments:

  1. Ms. AMay 30, 2011 at 2:08 AM

    I enjoyed all the movies you mentioned as much as my boys did.

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  2. LL Cool JoeMay 30, 2011 at 4:47 AM

    I loved River Phoenix in Stand By Me. I have the soundtrack to the movie too.

    I'll have to check out Explorers, as I've never seen it.

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  3. 2RadicalDudezMay 30, 2011 at 8:52 AM

    My friend and brother and I made a spaceship after we watched Explorers. We actually made it to space. All the neighborhood kids were amazed. It's a day that we'll never forget.

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  4. Lady EstrogenMay 30, 2011 at 9:11 AM

    Wow - I can't believe I've never seen that one! Stand By Me was just on TV the other day; I had to watch.
    I got to thinking of all the movies that River would have been in, if he lived. sigh.
    I Looove him in The Last Crusade - even if it's only for 15min.

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  5. Kicking RocksMay 30, 2011 at 11:50 AM

    The late River Phoenix was in Indiana Jones and the last crusade.

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  6. mombo880May 30, 2011 at 12:44 PM

    I've never seen or heard of this movie. I'll have to netflix it or something, thanks for the review!

    I've given you The Versatile Blogger Award!
    http://dorothymcfadden.blogspot.com/2011/05/bluebellscreams-so-kindly-awarded-me.html

    ReplyDelete
  7. ErikDesignworkMay 30, 2011 at 3:16 PM

    I remember watching this movie as a kid.

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  8. Elliot MacLeod-MichaelMay 30, 2011 at 7:37 PM

    Have never seen this movie. Must. See. Immediately.
    +followed

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  9. AndrewMay 31, 2011 at 1:05 AM

    Oh, man....
    This was one of my favorite films back when I was a kid.

    The fact that they built their spacecraft out of a Tilt-A-Whirl ALONE made me love it!

    And remember the talking hamster??? "I...would...like...some...cheese..." Hilarious!

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  10. AdaMay 31, 2011 at 1:21 AM

    Ethan Hawke is super cute as a kid!

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  11. TeachinfourthMay 31, 2011 at 11:21 AM

    Man, I saw it as a kid and liked it, but I don't think I would enjoy it nearly as much today...

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