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The Goonies (1985)
Starring Sean Astin, Corey Feldman, Joe Pantoliano, and Anne Ramsey. Cinematography by Nick McLean. Edited by Michael Kahn. Produced by Harvey Bernhard and Richard Donner. Written by Steven Spielberg and Chris Columbus. Directed by Richard Donner.
The Goonies are a group of outcast kids that live in the Pacific Northwest. Perkins Construction has purchased their entire neighborhood and plans to tear it down to build a new, high-class golf course. The families who live in the soon-to-be construction zone are upset, but lack the resources to contest the deal. So houses are being packed up in preparation for a move. In one such house a treasure map is found by the Goonies that promises the location of the famous pirate One Eyed Willy’s gold. Their journey starts in a tunnel that begins under the old Fratelli house, which is the hideout for three ruthless criminals. The Fratelli’s soon catch wind of the hidden fortune and set out to beat the kids there.
In the early 1980’s nearly everything that Steven Spielberg touched turned to gold. He had broken almost every box office record with E.T. the Extra Terrestrial. He had collaborated with his friend George Lucas to create one of the most respected and successful film franchises in the history of Hollywood with Raiders of the Lost Ark and its sequel. He was also about to launch into adapting Alice Walker’s The Color Purple; a film he hoped would earn him credit as a dramatic filmmaker. His next big idea was for an adventure story that would run along the lines of his Indiana Jones serials, but would be targeted for kids. The screenwriting job was delegated to Amblin Entertainment staff screenwriter Chris Columbus, who had been working with Spielberg since he bought his script for Gremlins. Spielberg loved the treatment and wanted to see it on the screen, but ultimately just couldn’t direct it himself so he asked the enormously popular Richard Donner to take the helm. When Donner accepted and The Goonies was born.
The Goonies is not like many other kid’s films. Instead of portraying the sanitized version children from most Disney productions, the Goonies are like normal kids; obnoxious, awkward, and profane. And as Spielberg must have known, this dose of reality was a breath of fresh air to many late adolescents and early teenagers who were too old for The Black Cauldron but too young for Out of Africa. The Goonies found moderate success in the box office, but it wasn’t truly discovered until its home video release. It went on to achieve a cult-like status and fans today are as enthusiastic now as they were twenty years ago. There are hundreds of different Goonies items listed on auction sites like eBay with everything from buttons and t-shirts to pieces of the actual house used in the film up for sale. There are also dozens of incredibly well assembled fan websites floating around out there. And there has been talk about a sequel for many years now, but only time will tell if that dream ever becomes a reality.
Budget: $???
Total US Gross: $61,389,680
Genre: Adventure
Runtime: 132 Minutes
US Release Date: 6/7/85
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Awards: none
Tagline: They Call Themselves “The Goonies.” The SecretCaves. The Old Lighthouse. The Lost Map. The Treacherous Traps. The Hidden Treasure. And Sloth… Join The Adventure.
Quote: “Don't you realize? The next time you see sky, it'll be over another town. The next time you take a test, it'll be in some other school. Our parents, they want the best of stuff for us, but right now they got to do what's right for them because it's their time. Their time! Up there! Down here… it's our time.”
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