Amanda Peterson, Dana Ivey, Ethan Hawke

Ben Crandall, an alien-obsessed kid, dreams one night of a circuit board. Drawing out the circuit, he and his friends Wolfgang and Darren set it up, and discover they have been given the basis for a s...( read more  read more... )tarship. Setting off in the ThunderRoad, as they name their ship, they find the aliens Ben hopes they would find... but are they what they seem?

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67% liked it

9,381 ratings

Critics

76% liked it

17 critics

PG, 1 hr. 49 min.

Directed by: Joe Dante

Release Date: July 12, 1985

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DVD Release Date: October 19, 2004

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Stats: 631 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (631)


  • October 21, 2009
    one of those classic films from my childhood that i am now excited to share with me kids. early ethan hawke, and even better, early cindy mancini, this is one of those completely unbelievable stories that isnt fleshed out well at all but you didnt care as a kid because it was so...( read more) much fun. a good family classic.
  • February 10, 2009
    Great film that has been forgotten in time which is criminal. Pivotal cast and slick effects make this a true 80's classic :)
    It was even overlooked back in its day really, E.T. held the monopoly on friendly aliens (I hated that film).
    A kind of space adventure version of the Goo...( read more)nies, gem of a kids flick.
  • November 29, 2007
    child hood fav
  • September 15, 2007
    This is a great movie fit for adults and kids. It is space exploration with a twist. Kids band together and make a space ship of their own, and you'll enjoy their trip through space and the comedy involved in meeting a new, alien culture. Ethan Hawke is the main hero - the one th...( read more)at most viewers will relate to - the average 80's kid hooked on television, daydreaming during school lessons and a huge crush on the girl next door. River Phoenix is his nerdy computer-whiz friend with an Einstein-like crazy father (played by James Cromwell) and Jason Presson is the mature, yet weird kid with a troubled home-life. The magic of this movie is in its innocence and the dreams that the kids are able to turn into reality. The part following in which the aliens are introduced did not contribute much. I think this is mainly because the movie ended right after that part. Though not as innovative as it should have, "Explorers" should still be a clean, fun and gentle ride.
  • July 14, 2007
    An 80's kids' space odyssey. It was a sensation in it's time, but barely memorable 20 years later. The aliens are quirky and fun, but for what? Big cosmic showtune of an end theme during the credits. I always thought of this movie: "What's all the hub-bub, Bub?"
  • September 30, 2009
    Along with Goonies, this was one of my favourite 'kids go adventuring' movies.
  • September 16, 2009
    I loved this movie when I was a child. After watching this again as a adult I still liked it but it didn't hold that same feeling anymore. It still is a great movie for kids. A very young Ethan Hawke stars in this. A great young cast and a solid adventure sci-fi story. The F/X wa...( read more)s still decent for the time it was made. Worth checking out if you enjoyed films like E.T. or Flight of the Navigator.
  • August 9, 2009
    It's certainly imaginative, and it starts out well, but as the film progresses, it gets just too extreme and over the top. It's a fun movie though, very light and entertaining. Decent special effects.
  • July 15, 2009
    Classic, I totally forgot about this one.
  • June 24, 2009
    If "Goonies" is the '80s most perfect distillation of every kid's fondest swashbuckling pirate fantasies, then "Explorers" is that decade's science fiction equivalent... at least until it makes an unfortunate last act detour into the ridiculous. Escapist whiz Joe Dante seems almo...( read more)st preternaturally tuned into what makes young people tick, and in this film he has a crackerjack premise to work with, about a trio of young misfits who bond over a basement-level mad science experiment that results in the discovery of a magical, indestructible force field. Doing what any 12-year-old boys would do with such technology, they set about building themselves a jerry-rigged spaceship out of an old tilt-a-whirl cart, stock up on chips and junk food, then fly off into the wild blue yonder. It's a terrific idea, and for about two thirds of its running time it makes for a delightful bit of escapist adventure. It seems to get even more promising once the trio end up in space for an intergalactic encounter with a vast alien ship... but sadly that's about where the script runs out of gas. Instead of exploring the great unknown, our heroic trio meet up with a pair of grotesque "cute" alien creatures who look like sun-bloated toads spackled under tons of glistening pancake makeup and who speak in a constant chatter of obnoxious pop-culture references gleaned from Earth tv... and that's pretty much it. The last thirty minutes aren't just groan-inducing on a Jar-Jar Binks level, they completely vacuum out all of the wonder and excitement that the flick had been building up... it's like soaring off into the heart of the universe only to find out that it's all one great big fart joke. Too bad, because up until it flies off the rails, "Explorers" is glorious fun.

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Explorers Trivia


  • Which Disney character was raised by gorillas in the jungle, and didn't even know that he was a human being until he stumbled upon a party of explorers  Answer »
  • What was Ethan Hawke's first movie, alongside River Phoenix?  Answer »
  • In this movie, Ethan Hawk, River Phoenix, and Jason Presson build a spaceship and encounter extra-terrestrials  Answer »
  • Which actor stars in Training Day and Explorers?  Answer »

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