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Amazon.co.uk Review
Thunderbirds Are Go followed the remarkable success of the Thunderbirds television series, bringing the three-dimensional puppet animation adventures of International Rescue to the big screen. Set in the 21st century, there is no attempt to explain the background story: as in the TV show International Rescue is a private family organisation who use hi-tech craft to rescue anyone in peril. Here it is the first manned flight to Mars which is in danger, as International Rescue foils a sabotage attempt at the launch, then race to avert disaster when the spaceship returns to earth. What could have made a 50-minute TV episode is expanded to feature length with Martian "rock monsters" and a surreal dream-sequence involving Alan Tracy, Lady Penelope and "Cliff Richard Jnr" & the Shadows, with a new song performed by the real Cliff and the Shadows. In the cinemas this was competing against another British children's TV SF spin-off, the equally colourful Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150AD, and would be followed by Thunderbird 6 (1968). Yet apart from more complex model work, a bigger orchestra and even bigger explosions, on TV this plays like a widescreen double-length episode.
On the DVD: The mono sound is powerful, with Barry Gray's stirring music suffering intermittent distortion. Presented in anamorphic widescreen the picture is very good, with strong colours and only minimal grain, though the print does show occasional damage. Unfortunately the original extremely wide 2.74:1 Techniscope image is cropped to more conventional 2.35:1, to the extent that the careful compositions are noticeably damaged, which director David Lane refers to in his joint commentary with producer Sylvia Anderson (who also played Lady Penelope). 35 years after the event their commentary is packed with details of the filming process and full of information about the many problems of and solutions to making an animated feature. Both Anderson fans and budding animators will find this a real education. The original, rather battered, trailer is included, as are galleries of behind the scenes photos, promotional artwork and posters. Altogether it's rather FABulous. --Gary S Dalkin
Special Features
2.35 Wide Screen
16:9 Wide Screen
DVD 9
English\German
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Mono English
Dolby Digital Mono
Commentary
Interactive Menu Screens With Chapter Selections
Original Theatrical Trailer
Stills Gallery Of Promotional Artwork And Behind The Scenes
Danish\Dutch\English\Finnish\French\German\Italian\Norwegian\Spanish\Swedish
16:9 Wide Screen
DVD 9
English\German
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Mono English
Dolby Digital Mono
Commentary
Interactive Menu Screens With Chapter Selections
Original Theatrical Trailer
Stills Gallery Of Promotional Artwork And Behind The Scenes
Danish\Dutch\English\Finnish\French\German\Italian\Norwegian\Spanish\Swedish
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Anybody who grew up watching Thunderbirds, as I did, will welcome the chance to see this movie version, which runs to 89 mins. The start is as we all remember, the marvellous music by Barry Gray, with slightly amended opening credits. The picture quality is pretty good and of course this being a Cinema release its in full widescreen 2.35:1 ratio (although originally even wider apparently), which is much better than the 4:3 of the TV series.
The story is typical Thunderbirds material stretched out to make it into a movie length film. This its one failing. The elaborate launch of the zero-x occurs twice in the film, the first time is interesting as the models and ingenuity are fabulous, but the second time through I just felt this was filler and could have been cut considerably. However this is a minor quibble.
I did not notice the music distortion mentioned by the Amazon reviewer, but the commentary is very good, making this an essential purchase for anybody interested Thunderbirds or Gerry Anderson in general.
The story is typical Thunderbirds material stretched out to make it into a movie length film. This its one failing. The elaborate launch of the zero-x occurs twice in the film, the first time is interesting as the models and ingenuity are fabulous, but the second time through I just felt this was filler and could have been cut considerably. However this is a minor quibble.
I did not notice the music distortion mentioned by the Amazon reviewer, but the commentary is very good, making this an essential purchase for anybody interested Thunderbirds or Gerry Anderson in general.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Now this is much much more than just an extended episode of the great Thunderbirds TV series...yes there are rescues and intrigues galore but there are two touches of genius present...
1) the superb Zero-X with its lifing bodies, Martian Exploration Vehicle and even the sleek nose cone showed the model making skiils of the team at their best ( the coming together of the sections before launch and the Martian surface sequences are just brilliant )
2) Putting Cliff Richard (Junior!) and The Shadows into this film was the icing on the cake with the haunting "Lady Penelope" track by The Shadows being one of my all-time favourite tracks.
Yes I did watch this as a child in the cinema but it still works for me now.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Thunderbirds FAB was one of the first films I saw as a child at the cinema.
You can imagine my excitement back then - a chance to see a big screen version of my favourite television show in glorious colour (tvs back then were only black and white!)
Now, you can watch the movie on the small screen. All the elements of the show are there - the Thunderbird launch sequences, the gadgets and gizmos and a few added surprises to including Cliff Richard and the shadows.
The bigger screen you have, the better, because the film was shot in superwide screen format, but it has been cropped for DVD unfortunately and ruins the directors setups from time to time.
A bit more effort could have been put into the restoration: The picture is a bit dodgy from time to time and the sound a bit wobbly.
Overall, its an enjoyable romp and worth adding to your Sylvia and Gerry Anderson collection. Watch the film with the directors and producers commentary on to learn just how much effort went into making these puppet spectaculars.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Hopurs of peace - and memories!
Having loved Thunderbirds myself as a youngster I got this for our little boy.
He adores it and sits watching it for hours!
He adores it and sits watching it for hours!
Published 7 months ago by Sheld01
DVD Thunderbirds Are GO
Bought this for my grandson. The first person to hog the DVD was my son, now in his forties.
He was an avid Tracey Island fan as a child. Read more
He was an avid Tracey Island fan as a child. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Patrice Forbes
Life as we don't know it...
As a child I loved Thunderbirds and the other fantastic creations from Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. Thunderbirds is regarded (and rightly so) as their magnum opus, and the success of... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Carl Denham
Get this !
I saw some of the series when I was just a kid in the USA, this series retains an excellent storyline and the effects are astounding considering we're talking about 1965 here !!!! Read more
Published on 16 Oct 2009 by Erik Dahle Harvey
Very enjoyable
Excellent choice. Choose it for my 5 year old step son. It kept him quiet for ages. Only thing is I know it word for word now.
Published on 10 Sep 2009 by Darren Mitchell
old skool!
Anyone who grew up loving thunderbirds like me will love this film. It's so quaint and I think it's great. Read more
Published on 28 July 2008 by Ms. F. I. Macdonald
Awesome
I am of the age where I have to watch this in secret and make sure nobody can find out.Its brilliant.Made an old man very happy.Its probably ok for kids as well.
Published on 21 July 2008 by N. Tate
THUNDERBIRDS
THUNDERBIRDS
Published on 28 Jun 2004 by "azor78"
If you love the show you'll love the movie too!
One episode of Thunderbirds lasts 50 minutes, but the movie is longer so if you love the show you'll love the movie too! Read more
Published on 3 April 2001
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