THE GOONIES (1985) ¢ ¢
D: Richard Donner
Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Martha Plimpton,
Corey Feldman, Kerri Green, Jeff Cohen,
Joe Pantoliano, Robert Davi, Anne Ramsey
To begin with, the Goonies aren't some little gremlin-like creatures out to terrify some nice American kids. They are the kids, the offspring of working-class families about to be evicted from their homes to make way for a country-club golf course in this scenic spot on the Oregon coast. On their way to saving the day and the neighborhood, the gang comes across a map in an attic that sends them off in search of a legendary pirate treasure. Many predictable, theme-park-style adventures follow. It's a shrill, frantic, repetitive movie, likely to appeal to kids of a certain age. Grownups can decide for themselves what to make of a pirate captain named One-Eyed Willie, and a camera that can't stop playing peek-a-boo with Kerri Green's tennis dress. Highlights include Robert Davi, who almost tries to keep a straight face as an opera-singing villain, and Martha Plimpton in an early role as a girl whose sexual ambiguity the others seem to accept without much thought. Don't ask, don't tell, don't really care.
