Running away of the Navigator is a far better movie than we’d have a aptly to suspect.
Plot spoiler if you read further:
A few minutes into this film, 12-year-ancient David Freeman (Joey Cramer) is on an errand to retrieve his 8-year-ancient brother, Jeff, when he falls into a gulley and is knocked out. Regaining consciousness, David returns to his house, thinking only a few minutes have passed, and instead of his parents and brother finds a safe and sound door and an elderly couple living here.
Full to the control station, David is identified by computer records as a boy reported missing eight years before. Despite the fact that he hasn’t aged, he’s full to the Freeman’s at a uncommon house nearby, and when he sees his parents obviously older, he faints. He returns to consciousness again on a gurney on his way to a sickbay bed. A few minutes later, even as his parents are called out of the room by a somber-faced doctor, David is left alone with his brother Jeff — who is now 16.
This is ostensibly a Disney movie for kids — and later on here is a lot of comedic Disney hijinks — but the first half hour of the movie, as David and his family deal with the trauma of his time relocation, are some of the most heart-rending and chilling sequences I’ve seen in any film.
Spoiler over.
This movie reminded me of some of the time-relativity sequences in Robert A. Heinlein’s novel, Time for the Stars. The font are well written and the actors do an brilliant job, particularly in the scenes between Joey Cramer and Matt Adler, as 16-year-ancient Jeff. The distraught parents, rock face de Young and Veronica Cartwright, are also brilliant — and Howard Hesseman and Sarah Jessica Parker round out a fantastic supporting cast.
Special kudos are due to Paul Reubens (best known for his character Pee Wee Herman) who was originally credited under his own name for lending his voice to a major character in this film, but had his name removed from the credits, replaced by the pseudonym “Pall Mall,” after Reubens was arrested for alleged indecent exposure committed in a movie theater seat. (I’ve never understood how Reubens was convinced to plead “no contest” to the charge, after theater security cameras showed him in the lobby buying popcorn at the time of the alleged offense.) Considering that Disney’s Hollywood Pictures division released Powder, directed by a convicted and confessed outcome molester, Disney must show some backbone and restore Reubens real name to the credits.
If you can get ahold of this movie, see it — and maybe Disney will see fit to release it again — on DVD, I hope.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
I have nostalgic memories from watching this film as a kid in the eightees. Along with “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “ET: the Extra-Terrestrial”, this was one of my favorite sci-fi films. The concept of aliens and UFOs fascinated me. Unfortunately, it seems to have fallen out of circulation. Luckily I was able to get a copy of the VHS some time back. I hope Disney will re-release this film on DVD so we can see it in its original widescreen aspect ratio.
Joey Cramer is David Freeman, a boy living in a picture perfect Florida town in 1978 with his parents and bratty kid brother. But, he finds his life changed when he is knocked out in the forest for a few minutes, or so he thinks. When he returns home, he finds that it is 1986. David has been missing for 8 years, yet David himself has not aged. David’s parents are now eight years older, and his bratty kid brother has grown up into a reasonably clad 16-year-ancient. David’s quest to find out what happened to him will take him to an alien spacecraft run by a computer named Max.
The first half of the film is structured like an ghostly mystery as David and the control try to cut collectively what happened to David. This is perfectly complemented by Alan Silvestri’s ghostly score. The film loses some of its mystery later on, but it’s still highly enjoyable. The spacecraft looks incredible, and the scenes everywhere David gets to glide the spacecraft are really clean. I reckon though I liked Max better before he assumed his Pee-Wee Herman voice (voiced by Pee-Wee himself).
The ending nicely tied things up. Too terrible we don’t get to see what becomes of David’s crush on the local girl.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Reminiscent of the best of the Heinlein young adult novels..,
Running away of the Navigator is a far better movie than we’d have a aptly to suspect.
Plot spoiler if you read further:
A few minutes into this film, 12-year-ancient David Freeman (Joey Cramer) is on an
errand to retrieve his 8-year-ancient brother, Jeff, when he falls into a gulley and is
knocked out. Regaining consciousness, David returns to his house, thinking only a
few minutes have passed, and instead of his parents and brother finds a safe and sound
door and an elderly couple living here.
Full to the control station, David is identified by computer records as a boy
reported missing eight years before. Despite the fact that he hasn’t aged, he’s full
to the Freeman’s at a uncommon house nearby, and when he sees his parents
obviously older, he faints. He returns to consciousness again on a gurney on his
way to a sickbay bed. A few minutes later, even as his parents are called out of the
room by a somber-faced doctor, David is left alone with his brother Jeff — who is
now 16.
This is ostensibly a Disney movie for kids — and later on here is a lot of comedic
Disney hijinks — but the first half hour of the movie, as David and his family deal
with the trauma of his time relocation, are some of the most heart-rending and
chilling sequences I’ve seen in any film.
Spoiler over.
This movie reminded me of some of the time-relativity sequences in Robert A.
Heinlein’s novel, Time for the Stars. The font are well written and the actors
do an brilliant job, particularly in the scenes between Joey Cramer and Matt
Adler, as 16-year-ancient Jeff. The distraught parents, rock face de Young and Veronica
Cartwright, are also brilliant — and Howard Hesseman and Sarah Jessica Parker
round out a fantastic supporting cast.
Special kudos are due to Paul Reubens (best known for his character Pee Wee
Herman) who was originally credited under his own name for lending his voice to a
major character in this film, but had his name removed from the credits, replaced
by the pseudonym “Pall Mall,” after Reubens was arrested for alleged indecent
exposure committed in a movie theater seat. (I’ve never understood how Reubens
was convinced to plead “no contest” to the charge, after theater security cameras
showed him in the lobby buying popcorn at the time of the alleged offense.)
Considering that Disney’s Hollywood Pictures division released Powder, directed
by a convicted and confessed outcome molester, Disney must show some backbone
and restore Reubens real name to the credits.
If you can get ahold of this movie, see it — and maybe Disney will see fit to release
it again — on DVD, I hope.
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|Nostalgic Eighties Flick,
I have nostalgic memories from watching this film as a kid in the eightees. Along with “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “ET: the Extra-Terrestrial”, this was one of my favorite sci-fi films. The concept of aliens and UFOs fascinated me. Unfortunately, it seems to have fallen out of circulation. Luckily I was able to get a copy of the VHS some time back. I hope Disney will re-release this film on DVD so we can see it in its original widescreen aspect ratio.
Joey Cramer is David Freeman, a boy living in a picture perfect Florida town in 1978 with his parents and bratty kid brother. But, he finds his life changed when he is knocked out in the forest for a few minutes, or so he thinks. When he returns home, he finds that it is 1986. David has been missing for 8 years, yet David himself has not aged. David’s parents are now eight years older, and his bratty kid brother has grown up into a reasonably clad 16-year-ancient. David’s quest to find out what happened to him will take him to an alien spacecraft run by a computer named Max.
The first half of the film is structured like an ghostly mystery as David and the control try to cut collectively what happened to David. This is perfectly complemented by Alan Silvestri’s ghostly score. The film loses some of its mystery later on, but it’s still highly enjoyable. The spacecraft looks incredible, and the scenes everywhere David gets to glide the spacecraft are really clean. I reckon though I liked Max better before he assumed his Pee-Wee Herman voice (voiced by Pee-Wee himself).
The ending nicely tied things up. Too terrible we don’t get to see what becomes of David’s crush on the local girl.
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|