The years following the release of the classic Steven Spielberg movie E.T. brought on a flurry of cheap rip-offs, each one trying to cash in on the movie's popularity. One of those was the 1986 Disney film Flight of Navigator, directed by Randal Kleiser (Grease). This time travel family film brought in a meager $18 million at the box office. It deserved a lot more.
12-year old David Freeman (Joey Cramer) is all set for a great 1978 Fourth of July celebration when he falls down a ditch deep in a forest looking for his brother. When he wakes up, he's 8 years in the future and hasn't aged a day. He's lost, confused, and scared as his parents have not only moved, but of course aged. The authorities get a hold of NASA who soon take David to study him. At the same time, they find a flying saucer that seems to have a connection with the child. With the help of an intern (a young Sarah Jessica Parker), he escapes for a wild ride on the ship with the help of Max (Paul Reubens), a computerized robot eye.
I'm not sure what to say about this movie. Anyone who seen it as a child loved it during the theatrical run back in 1986 and anyone who sees it today will have fun. This is a perfect family film with some great special effects, strong acting, and it's a wild ride throughout. The time travel aspects can be confusing to a child (I had no clue what was going on when I was younger), but they'll still have fun thanks to the spaceship, cute creatures, great music, and wisecracking robot. After you've shown the young ones E.T. for the first time, sit them down with this one next. (**** out of *****)
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Article comments
1 - jadester
thanks for reminding me of this li'l gem! i lvoed it the very first time i saw it, waaaaay back one time when it was on terrestrial tv. My favourite bit is when the kid is looking around the spaceship at the different creatures.
2 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
I loved this movie as a kid, or, as we call them in the North Of The Ireland, "wee bastards", and i remember being quite disturbed when he returns and everything different. thats freaked me asunder, is what.
A pity they couldn't have put a decent cover on it though. The 80's UK Video Cover was great.
3 - Geotis
I remember watching this movie over and over again as a child. This is a great movie and I am thrilled that they have finally released it on DVD! Now I can share it with my friends.
4 - Phillip Winn
Duke, I don't know -- the 1980s video cover made it stand out when I walked by a display in Target a few days ago. So far I've managed to resist clicking that shiny order button, but $14.99 for such a pleasnt childhood memory seems like a better deal with each passing day.
5 - Chris Kent
Great post Matt on a film many may have forgotten.
I was a few years past childhood when I saw this at the theater but still loved it. The film's parents reminded me of my own parents. I had a little sister similar to the kid protagonist. It's really a family film that crosses boundaries. I used to own this film on tape, but gave it to an ex-girlfriend's son who watched it over and over again. He loved it. The first 20-30 minutes are kind of slow moving, but once he's in the saucer/ship, it really takes off. It has sort of an 80s ambiance to it, but that's a plus. You've jogged my memory and I'll have to pick this up....
6 - jojo
Does anyone know the band in the MTV video when David was in the NASA security watch in his room and Caroline came in? I would love to know. Great Movie too!