‘Explorers’ at 40: How Joe Dante Captured Childhood Awe, Wonder

If “The Goonies” was written by Carl Sagan, it might have resembled “Explorers,” the 1985 fantasy that director Joe Dante chose as his follow-up to “Gremlins.”

Unlike that widely popular film, which was released in 1984 by Warner Bros., “Explorers” was an expensive flop poorly managed by Paramount Pictures. It’s worth noting that, to date, Dante has never made another movie at that studio again.

Ethan Hawke (in his film debut), Jason Presson and River Phoenix play grade-school kids who, in different ways, are outsiders and not well-liked at school. Their home lives are equally complicated, with parents who are either affectionate, odd or irresponsible.

When their shared, recurring dreams of an alien circuit board (which resembles the Flux Capacitor from “Back to the Future”) become increasingly vivid, they decide to build the thing. What begins as the discovery of a new, powerful, spherical force field leads to the inspiration to build a spaceship.

The early scenes evoke a sense of awe and Spielbergian feel of urban restlessness. This is about growing up in the suburbs, longing for adventure and an acknowledgement of the possibilities that are outside of your neighborhood.

As the poster tagline put it so perfectly, “An Adventure That Begins in Your Own Backyard!”

While “Explorers” has a distinctly ’80s look and feel (coming mid-decade, of course it does), it achieves what Spielberg’s “Amazing Stories” TV series or the ’80s version of “The Twilight Zone” did in their best episodes: present its story in a nostalgia-fueled glow and twist the extraordinary out of the ordinary.

“Explorers” may be silly, but it’s filled with wonder.

The three leads give winning, natural turns, with Phoenix particularly amusing as a kid even nerdier than Matthew Broderick in “War Games” (1983). I liked these characters because, rather than come across as obnoxious, they’re intelligent and resourceful.

Dante is clearly having fun here, as the kid’s school is named Charles M. Jones Junior High, Hawke declares his affection for “This Island Earth” (1955) and “Forbidden Planet” (1956) and there’s a scene at a drive-in with a movie called “Star Killer.”

The actor in the movie-within-a-movie is Robert Picardo, who appears with Dick Miller, another Dante favorite.

Mike Ploog concept art of the alien, Wak, from Joe Dante’s EXPLORERS. Wak was created by Rob Bottin and played by Robert Picardo. EXPLORERS was released on this date in 1985. pic.twitter.com/Kggepp7XbQ

— Body Snatchers (@BodySnatchers79) July 13, 2024

There’s also a hilarious talking mouse, made possible by a voice box that translates its thoughts. We’re introduced to it being harassed by a cat, yelling, “Help!” The cat is shooed away and the mouse replies, “Thank You… I want cheese!”

The special effects are from Industrial Light and Magic and they’re truly beautiful. So is Jerry Goldsmith’s score. The flying and surreal dream sequences are stunning, particularly a final shot of a sky full of young dreamers, soaring through the night sky.

The first act seems like this could be Dante’s masterpiece. Then, around the time a mechanical spider appears, things begin to feel off and become overly jokey. Once the boys travel through space and encounter the beings who sent them the blueprints for their spaceship, it plays like a much different, subpar children’s film has hijacked a great movie.

There is visual beauty in this long sequence, in which TV monitors surround the characters and depict TV as a means of alien communication and fuel for our dreams. However, the cornball execution of the quipster alien characters is cringe-worthy, as is a musical number and a stand-up routine that drags on too long.

There is even a suggestion of TV providing aliens with proof of man’s cruelty, an oddly similar idea that was better handled in the director’s cut of “The Abyss” (1989).

Few moments in cinema have captured the magic of true wonder like Dick Miller watching Ethan Hawke and River Phoenix fly off into space in EXPLORERS.

I wish Joe Dante could’ve finished the movie the way he wanted. It might’ve been his masterpiece.

Happy 40th to a classic. pic.twitter.com/jsNebjjyna

— Joe Russo (@joerussotweets) July 13, 2025

The film mostly course-corrects when it touches back down to earth. It also offers an interpretation that matches the film’s famously being released unfinished and heavily edited. At one point, Hawke asks, “It feels like a dream, doesn’t it?”

It very well could be, as the narrative, as a whole, makes a great deal of sense if interpreted as the dream of an older man looking back on his childhood. Specifically, the story could be the dream of Miller’s character, who tellingly says, “I haven’t had dreams like this since I was a kid.”

The botched alien sequence (which, in addition to being corny, is too elaborate for a movie with an intimate, small-town scope) and the jumbled editing in the third act keep this from soaring as high as it could have.

Yet, the film is still, in its best passages, thrilling and evokes a rich sense of childhood discovery.

I haven’t been a kid in a long time and don’t know if there are still kids who look at the night sky with their telescope, watch monster movies, lay on their roof and gaze at the milky way in awe. This movie was made for kids like that, kids like Hawke’s character, and big kids like me.

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