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Thunderbirds

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Thunderbirds (2004)

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19 %
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Reviews Counted:99

Fresh:19

Rotten:80

Average Rating:4.1/10

Consensus: Live-action cartoon for kids.

Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for intense action sequences and language

Runtime: 1 hr 35 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Theatrical Release:23-07-2004

Synopsis: Based on the cult British television show from the 1960s, THUNDERBIRDS explodes into the 21st Century with this thrilling live-action version of the franchise. Drawing on similar themes and... Based on the cult British television show from the 1960s, THUNDERBIRDS explodes into the 21st Century with this thrilling live-action version of the franchise. Drawing on similar themes and familiar characters, director Jonathan Frakes (STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT) sticks closely to the spirit of the original show while making use of the new technology available to him 40 years after the program first aired to give the film a modern look. The International Rescue organization--a team of highly organized law enforcers--is the focal point for the movie. International Rescue is based on a remote desert island location, and is called into action whenever the world's sinister masterminds threaten to disturb the balance of society. Jeff Tracy (Bill Paxton) heads up the team, and employs his sons to help him out. Teenager Alan Tracy (Brady Corbet) is a little too young to join, and is constantly frustrated by his lack of opportunity to join the brothers on their missions. But when the evil villain known as The Hood (Ben Kingsley) traps the International Rescue team in outer space, it seems Alan's time has come. The Hood steals one of the many spacecrafts designed by International Rescue, and executes an outlandish scheme to rob the Bank of England. Alan and his pal Fermat (Soren Fulton) attempt the double-whammy of rescuing the trapped family and stopping The Hood, by drawing on help from the sultry detective Lady Penelope (Sophia Myles), her butler Parker (Ron Cook), and a few gadgets and vehicles courtesy of International Rescue. With comic references to the original show scattered liberally throughout the movie, and a sense of fun and adventure, this is a film that should appeal to both old and new fans of these popular crime-fighting characters. [More]

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Bill Paxton, Anthony Edwards, Sophia Myles

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Bill Paxton, Anthony Edwards, Sophia Myles, Brady Corbet, Soren Fulton

Director: Jonathan Frakes

Director: Jonathan Frakes
Screenwriter: William Osborne, Michael McCullers
Producer: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Mark Huffman
Composer: Hans Zimmer
Studio: Universal Pictures

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Reviews for Thunderbirds

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
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What impenetrable, overwrought codswallop this one’s turned out to be.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Filmed in a zany, colourful style reminiscent of the Spy Kids movies, this is enjoyable fun until earnest lines of dialog bring everything to a shrieking stop.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
05/27/04
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Fans of the original will likely be upset, but the kids will probably love it.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
01/06/04
Daniel Etherington
Daniel Etherington
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite some incidental pleasures, thin writing, shabby direction and heavy-handed performances make this neither one for the purists nor thrill-seeking kids.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
07/23/04
Ian Freer
Ian Freer
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The puppets still leave more of a lasting impression.

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
07/22/04
Wendy Ide
Wendy Ide
Times [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Thunderbirds vehicles are impressively realised (even the tarted up, purist-bothering motor of Lady P looks grand), but this live action adaptation of Gerry Anderson's iconic creations lacks any soul.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
07/20/04
Nev Pierce
Nev Pierce
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It’s badly acted, poorly written and completely lacking in wit, tension, or excitement.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
07/24/04
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

Largely a case of what could have been, rather than what was.

Full Review Source: FilmFocus | comment Comment
07/25/04
Joe Utichi
Joe Utichi
FilmFocus

Director Jonathan Frakes throws lots of bright colors and weird gadgets at the audience, but none of this hides the lack of imagination at the movie's center.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
08/08/04
Ethan Alter
Ethan Alter
Film Journal International

It's strictly for kids.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
07/30/04
William Arnold
William Arnold
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The people who made Thunderbirds took a unique property and made it utterly commonplace.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
07/30/04
Joe Baltake
Joe Baltake
Sacramento Bee

What's the point of this live-action version of a puppet show? As in 'Pinocchio,' the magic disappears when the marionettes become flesh and blood.

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
08/05/04
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

A pretty entertaining, extremely good-looking cinematic blip.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment 2 Comments
07/29/04
Allison Benedikt
Allison Benedikt
Chicago Tribune

A piece of whiz-bang children's entertainment that could appeal to the family market far and wide.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
07/20/04
Ray Bennett
Ray Bennett
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is another example of the idiocy that often results when Hollywood attempts to convert an animated TV show into a non-animated movie.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment 1 Comment
07/27/04
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

This foolishly conceived movie version of the 1960s sci-fi TV show is not only achingly dull, it has no respect for its origins.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
07/30/04
Jami Bernard
Jami Bernard
New York Daily News

A new and rather breathtakingly misconceived attempt to revisit a vintage TV show that did not under any circumstances need to be revisited.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
07/21/05
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle

Aside from possibly launching a Ben Kingsley line of cosmetics, Thunderbirds seems destined to leave no lasting mark.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
07/30/04
Jay Boyar
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel

Ultra-campy marionettes come to blah life in director Jonathan Frakes' souped-up but poorly written adaptation of the cult English sci-fi kids' show.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
09/01/06
Betsy Bozdech
Betsy Bozdech
Hollywood.com

Contains the depth of a petri dish that's already filled to the rim.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
08/13/04
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing
 
 
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Latest News for Thunderbirds

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