Thunderbirds (2004)

Réalisateur:

Jonathan Frakes

Writers (WGA):

Gerry Anderson (television series) &
Sylvia Anderson (television series) ...

Release Date:

30 juillet 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Fantasy | Aventure | Comedie | Sci-Fi | Family

Accroche:

Coming to the rescue

Plot:

When The Hood finds and invades International Rescue's secret base and traps most of the Tracy family, only young Alan Tracy and his friends can save the day.

Plot Keywords:

London England | Soaked Clothes | Wet T Shirt | Bathtub Scene | London

Avis des utilisateurs:

A new form of punishment for unruly children

US TV Schedule:

Fri. July 11	8:00 PM	DISN
Sat. July 12	12:00 PM	DISN

Ensemble

Brady Corbet	...	Alan Tracy
Debora Weston	...	Teacher
Soren Fulton	...	Fermat
Lou Hirsch	...	Headmaster
Alex Barringer	...	Excited Kid
Demetri Goritsas	...	News Anchor
Genie Francis	...	Lisa Lowe
Philip Winchester	...	Scott Tracy
Deobia Oparei	...	Mullion
Bill Paxton	...	Jeff Tracy
Kyle Herbert	...	Know It All Kid
Dominic Colenso	...	Virgil Tracy
Ben Torgersen	...	Gordon Tracy
Sophia Myles	...	Lady Penelope
Ron Cook	...	Parker

Autre(s) titre(s) :

The Thunderbirds (USA) (working title)
Thunderbirds - Les sentinelles de l'air (France)
Sentinelles de l'air, Les (Canada: French title) [fr]

MPAA:

Rated PG for intense action sequences and language.

Durée:

95 min

Pays:

UK | France

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Son:

DTS-ES | Dolby Digital EX | SDDS

Classification:

Malaysia:U | Iceland:L | Finland:K-11 (original rating) | Finland:K-7 (re-rating) | South Korea:All | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Germany:6 | Italy:T | Netherlands:MG6 | Philippines:G | Singapore:PG | UK:PG | USA:PG

Emplacements De Pelliculage:

Cliveden House, Taplow, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Working Title Films

Anecdotes:

Whereas Lady Penelope's car in the TV series, FAB 1, was a futuristic Rolls Royce, in this movie the famous car was modeled by Ford Europe when Rolls Royce declined to participate on the project.

Goofs:

Continuity: Parker's hair during fight in Bank of London vault.

Guillemet:

The Hood: Who will rescue the rescuers?

Soundtrack:

Thunderbirds are Go

A new form of punishment for unruly children

I've always thought that most huge box-office flops usually have something to recommend them, but after the remake of Around the World in 80 Days and Thunderbirds, I'm beginning to doubt it. For those not familiar, it's based on a puppet show about a family of astronauts who use state of the art rockets, spaceships and subs to rescue people from various disasters (falling bridges, stricken planes, burning buildings, etc) each week. Well, the puppets are gone (replaced by far more lifeless teenagers), and so is the premise - only one ineptly staged rescue and a plot shamelessly ripped off from Spy Kids without any signs of imagination, wit or entertainment. Young Alan Tracey feels left out of all the rescuing we never see the other Traceys do because dad won't let him play with a real rocket until he passes his exams. Grounded on a beautiful tropical island (some punishment!), his chance to shine comes when the rest of the family - a bunch of identikit bleach-blondes who look like a gay neo-Nazi boy band without a single bit of characterisation between them - are stranded in space and he has to have the day by, er, running around the jungle, making a phone call, firing a hose at the inept comedy relief villains and dousing them in gunk for bad measure.

The good points are few and far between. One of them is that the film is mostly in focus. The other is they all got to go to the Seychelles, which looks nice.

The bad points: where to start? Ben Kingsley's career lowpoint performance? The aforementioned inept comedy relief sidekicks who would disgrace the Children's Film Foundation at its worst? The almost complete lack of action or effects in a $70m sci-fi film? The terrible script, the lifeless direction, the odious moralising? But most of all is the fact that the film is so patronising in every possible way. Forget the life lessons and off the peg sentiment, this is a movie aimed straight at the under-eights by people who know they're making a kid's movie and are constantly talking down to their intended audience, throwing in fifth-rate jokes and routines that would insult most children who had only recently mastered the art of speech. This film could replace being sent to bed early without their dinner as parents' favourite punishment for kids.

The biggest flop in British film history (it didn't even cover the cost of prints and marketing), it's just about watchable if only as an object lesson in how NOT to make a summer movie.