Flight Of The Navigator Blu-ray Review

24th Oct 2012

I really count this as one of the best films from the 80’s and one of my favourite children’s films of all time. David returns home one night to find that eight years have mysteriously passed. NASA step in, convinced that David has something to do with a mysterious craft they’ve discovered. David has enough of their experiments and decides to go home, wherever, or rather whenever, that is.

A great complicated story, it doesn’t patronise a younger audience by dumbing down the content. They never shy away from the emotional trauma that the family has gone through, enduring David’s absence for eight years. As an adult, I never felt bored by the story, it’s genuinely a family film, in that it appeals across a wide demographic.

Visually, it really stands the test of time and the special effects are pretty good. The spaceship still looks absolutely convincing and interior sets wouldn’t be out of place in a more contemporary science fiction film. The commentary goes into details about all the work and the people who were involved from special effects specialists to magicians.

I have to say, as a huge fan, I was disappointed by the lack of extras on the blu-ray version. However, the steller commentary does go someway to make up for this. I’m impressed that after 30 years, the Director Randal Kreisner and Executive Producer Jonathon Sanger could talk in so much detail about the production. From the claymation stairs to learning that Navigator contains the first use of the word ‘shit’ in a Disney film, it’s pretty detailed. As a committed commentary listener (yep, I really do listen to them) I was really interested. Most excitingly of all they reveal they are bringing the team back together to make another sci-fi film.

Great soundtrack by Alan Silvestri, who is no stranger to the genre having worked on the Back to the Future trilogy around the same time. It’s full of these great synthesised melodies that are so quintessentially 80’s and set up the film brilliantly.

If you liked E.T, Goonies and the Never Ending Story, then this is just as good as any of those films (ok, maybe E.T. is in a league of its own) – but as you can guess, I really love this film and the great picture and sound quality on the blu-ray don’t disappoint.