Stallion Reviews Movies

Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985)





Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is a film from 1985 which stars Paul Reubens as his creation Pee-Wee Herman, and is directed by Gothic mastermind Tim Burton. (Fun Fact: The late Saturday Night Live legend Phil Hartman actually helped write the movie. Shocking, right?) Up front, if you're a fan of the Pee-Wee's Playhouse television show from from the 80s, you should know that there's a lot of what you'd like about that show, but it's also very different at times through tone, direction, and it's comedy. On the other end of the coin, a lot of people who don't enjoy Pee-Wee's Playhouse or the Pee-Wee Herman character don't give this movie a chance, but they really should because artistically, it is substantially different in fun, inventive ways.

Plot-wise, this movie starts out with Pee-Wee Herman doing Pee-Wee things (If you're not familiar with Mr. Herman, imagine a strange hybrid creature comprising of SpongeBob SquarePants and Mr. Bean). It is revealed that Pee-Wee's prized possession is his bike- a customized classic red beach cruiser. Pee-Wee's mortal foe is a cocky, rich snob named Francis who covets Pee-Wee's slick ride. An awkward love interest (of sorts) is introduced in Dottie, who works at the local bike shop. To sum things up shortly, Pee-Wee gets his bike stolen and the bulk of the movie him in a solo cross-country trip to retrieve his prized possession. Pee-Wee travels the country and encounters a lot of interesting people and places, from the Alamo and the Warner Bros. Studio Lots to an escaped convict and Twisted Sister's Dee Snider. This movie also includes one of the greatest chase sequences in cinematic history, though I won't spoil it in case you haven't seen it.

The direction of Tim Burton is quickly evident in the film, with a lot of scenes one could easily consider "Burton-esque": unnatural shapes, dark lighting, Gothic influence, and even a Danny Elfman score. Speaking of the score, it's your typical Danny Elfman quick, upbeat, almost "floaty" score, which really works well with the movie.

Character-wise, Pee-Wee really undergoes a nice little character arc through the film. At the beginning of the movie, through his interactions with other characters, he comes off as, for lack of a better term, a dick-head (dik hed; noun; vulgar slang; a stupid, irritating, or ridiculous person). However, though his "Big Adventure", you really get the sense that he has learned some humility and has progressed as a human being by the end of the film.

The movie at this point really can be summed up as iconic. It's extremely quotable, there are numerous iconic scenes: from the tequila dance number, the tour of the Alamo, to even the Large Marge scene (which has given me nightmares for decades now). However, for all the good this movie accomplishes, if you find Pee-Wee's laugh annoying or just don't find his mannerisms funny, you might have a hard time getting into the film. However, his over-the-top demeanor seems to settle down after the opening act. This movie doesn't rely on Pee-Wee making faces or his manic laughter for it's jokes, there are many legitimately funny jokes and scenes set up through writing and direction.

Overall, while personally Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is one of my all-time favorite movies (and quite possibly the greatest road trip movie of all time), Pee-Wee Herman as a character can be hard to handle in large doses, and if you're just not a fan of Pee-Wee this could be a hard movie to enjoy. But aside from Pee-Wee's character, this is a well-crafted comedy adventure that's definitely worth a view, earning my ranking of a B+.