The Rocketeer

THE ROCKETEER [1991 / 2011] [20th Anniversary Edition] [Blu-ray] [US Release] High-Flying Entertainment! Buckle Up and Hang On Tight!Celebrate the 20th Anniversary of director Joe Johnston’s action-filled, witty ‘THE ROCKETEER.’ And now with state-of-the-art digital restoration and enhanced high definition sound, experience it as it jets off for the first on this Disney Blu-ray disc.The discovery of a top-secret jetpack hurls test pilot Cliff Secord [Billy Campbell] into a daring adventure of mystery, suspense, and intrigue! Cliff Secord encounters an assortment of ruthless villains, led by a Hollywood screen star that’s a secret Nazi spy Neville Sinclair [Timothy Dalton]. With the help of his actress girlfriend Jenny Blake [Jennifer Connelly], Cliff Secord, dubbed "The Rocketeer" by the press, embarks on a mission that could alter the course of history and make him a true hero and see the young pilot battles enormous odds to defeat his foes that are anxious to use the device in an evil plan to rule the world! The dangerous mission transforms the ordinary young man into an extraordinary hero. The film was based on a comic character created by Dave Stevens.FILM FACT: Awards and Nominations: 1992 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: Win: Best Costumes for Marilyn Vance. Nominated: Best Science Fiction Film. Nominated: Best Supporting Actress for Jennifer Connelly. Nominated: Best Special Effects for Ken Ralston of Industrial Light & Magic. 1992 Hugo Awards: Nominated: Best Dramatic Presentation for Danny Bilson (Story/Screenplay), Joe Johnston (Director), Paul De Meo (Story/Screenplay), William Dear (Story) and Dave Stevens (based on the graphic novel).Cast: Billy Campbell, Jennifer Connelly, Alan Arkin, Timothy Dalton, Terry O'Quinn, Ed Lauter, James Handy, Paul Sorvino, Jon Polito, William Sanderson, Margo Martindale, John Lavachielli, Clint Howard, Melora Hardin, Rick Overton, Max Grodénchik, Tiny Ron Taylor, Eddie Jones, Don Pugsley, Nada Despotovich, America Martin, Michael Milhoan, Daniel O'Shea, Joe D'Angerio, Tommy J. Huff, Pat Crawford Brown, Paul DeSouza, Gene Daily, Bob Leeman, Julian Barnes, Bret Culpepper (uncredited), Scott Ditty (uncredited), Wilhelm Frick (archive footage) (uncredited), Adolf Hitler (archive footage) (uncredited), Michael Mills (uncredited), Steve Moriarty (uncredited), Tim Neeley (uncredited) and William Woodson (Newsreel Announcer voice) (uncredited)Director: Joe JohnstonProducers: Charles Gordon, Dave Stevens, Larry J. Franco, Lawrence Gordon, Lisa Bailey and Lloyd LevinScreenplay: Danny Bilson (screenplay), Danny Bilson (story), Paul De Meo (screenplay/story), William Dear (story) and Dave Stevens (graphic novel "The Rocketeer")Composer: James HornerCinematography: Hiro NaritaImage Resolution: 1080p [Technicolor]Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 [Panavision]Audio: English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and French: 2.0 Dolby Digital StereoSubtitles: English SDH and FrenchRunning Time: 108 minutesRegion: All RegionsNumber of discs: 1Studio: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment / Silver Screen Partners IVAndrew’s Blu-ray Review: ‘THE ROCKETEER’ [1991] film debuted in the cinema to great excitement and here the Walt Disney Studios pays homage to a film that celebrates B-movie serial films that you would view at the Saturday Morning Pictures that were so popular in those days and is a visually impressive restoration. The Disney's ‘THE ROCKETEER’ is based on the comic book by Dave Stevens and has now been released on this Blu-ray to celebrate its 20-year anniversary.The story takes place in 1938 Hollywood and centres on Cliff Secord [Billy Campbell], a young man who loves to fly planes. But his dreams suddenly take a sharp turn when the airplane he has spent most of his life building ends up broken into pieces on the runway after a shootout between the FBI and a couple of mob members. All appears to be lost until he discovers a small rocket engine hidden in one of the older planes where the mob stashed it for safe keeping. With the help of his mechanic, Peevy [Alan Arkin], Cliff Secord manages to wear the engine and becomes “The Rocketeer.”A gang of crooks has stolen a top-secret rocket backpack from Howard Hughes. Pursued by the FBI, they ditch it in Cliff Secord's hanger, where he finds it. After a few experiments to see how it works, he straps it on and becomes “The Rocketeer” that the newspapers call him and is born. But, while Cliff Secord's intentions are to use the pack only for honourable purposes and return it to the legitimate owner upon request, others want it for darker reasons, and they're willing to do almost anything to get it. Soon, Cliff finds himself pursued by gangsters, Nazis, and a big, ugly man with a rubber mask.‘THE ROCKETEER’ film cheerfully tries to roll back the years by about a half-century and has all the ingredients that were once so popular in films of this genre, as per example: a hero with a good heart, a sexpot girlfriend with ample cleavage and a stunning smile, a dastardly villain with thoughts of world domination, and lots and lots of action. Director Joe Johnston, whose previous films include ‘Honey I Shrunk the Kids’ and ‘Jumanji,’ but consciously goes for the retro feel and for the most part it is totally successful.‘THE ROCKETEER’ contains a fair number of special effects, most of which are the original "old-fashioned" way as opposed to CGI computer generated images that are produced today. When the film came out, and pioneering CGI computer generated effects were beginning to make their presence. The flying sequences are surprisingly believable, and the climactic sequence on the airship dirigible is by far a very impressive effects and of course nostalgia certainly plays a big role in ‘THE ROCKETEER’ films success. But on the other hand in ‘THE ROCKETEER’ it looks back nostalgia on Hollywood through the proverbial rose-tinted glasses, and showing us what we want to see and believe.In the end, however, ‘THE ROCKETEER’ film was not a big box office smash hit that the Walt Disney Studios was hoping for, but because on its release in the cinema people thought it had a slightly old-fashioned outlook and approach genre. ‘THE ROCKETEER’ film has aged more gracefully than the ‘Batman’ film. The image techniques used with this film gives a very vibrant and rich look to it. You would be hard pressed to find many films of today’s standard that look as good as ‘THE ROCKETEER’ does on this brilliant Blu-ray disc. If you did not know this was made 20 years ago, you would swear it was a brand new film. ‘THE ROCKETEER’ may be to some people not to be that perfect, but it's an excellent example of how to adapt a comic book hero to the big screen presentation and to me I love this film and have a great fondness for it and especially the effort the director Joe Johnston has put his heart and soul into the film.THE ROCKETEER MUSIC TRACK LISTDER HOELLE RACHE [From Queen Of The Night's aria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart] [Performed by Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra]YOU'RE A SWEET LITTLE HEADACHE [Vocals by Helen Forrest] [Performed by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra]DRUM MAJORETTE [Written and Performed by Arnold Steck]AMBOSS POLKA [Written by A. Parlow]VILIA [Performed by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra]BEGIN THE BEGUINE [Performed by Melora Hardin]ANY OLD TIME [Vocals by Billie Holiday] [Performed by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra]IN A SENTIMENTAL MOOD [Written by Duke Ellington]WHEN YOUR LOVER HAS GONE [Performed by Melora Hardin]NIGHT AND DAY [Written by Cole Porter]EASY TO LOVE [Written by Cole Porter]BARRAGE (accompanies the Nazi newsreel sequence) [Written and Performed by Charles Williams]ALL DRESSED UP AND NO PLACE TO GO [Performed by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra]Blu-ray Image Quality – Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment once again brings us a top quality 1080p digital restoration that is very impressive and of course is helped along the way with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio. The blacks and contrast are solid, and the colours are accurate overall. There is some slight noise at times, but this was likely present in the original print of the film. The stunt scenes look especially great in high-definition and the wonderful edge detail in all those green screen shots makes the 1990s special effects really stick out. The encode image is fairly pristine and there is no compression or ghosting noted. And the print is clean, save for a speck of dust every now and then. The image does flicker from time to time, and cinematography does favour a soft visual design, but neither is too distracting. This film looks pretty remarkable in HD. In film terms, twenty years isn’t all that old, but for a twenty year film, this does look wonderful.Blu-ray Audio Quality – Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment presents us with a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio experience that sounds spectacular! The original score composed by James Horner sounds beautiful, and utilizes mostly the front left and right channels with some organic uses of the rear surround and subwoofer (LFE). However, the audio really flexes its muscle with the flight scenes, when the planes swoop and dive dynamically from speaker to speaker. Overall, the audio sound experience is crisp and perfectly balanced. There is plenty of action to give your audio system a very good workout, and supplementary channels are more restrained during more dramatic and dialogue-laden sequences. The audio track does provide an organic, impressive listening experience, especially considering the film is 20 years old now.Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:Theatrical Trailer [1991] [480i] [1.33:1] [2:19] This is the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘THE ROCKETEER.’ What a shame this could not have been shown in the proper Panavision 2.35:1 aspect ratio.Finally, for those new to ‘THE ROCKETEER,’ the film was based on a comic series of the same name. In the film, Cliff Secord [Bill Campbell], a young down-on-his-luck pilot with dreams of making a name for himself, and getting the girl of his dreams girlfriend Jenny Blake [Jennifer Connelly]. When Cliff Secord and his old friend Peevy [Alan Arkin] stumble upon a mysterious self-manned rocket pack, and soon realises this could be his ticket. ‘THE ROCKETEER’ is a great piece of old school vintage cinema that has aged quite well over the years. Director Joe Johnston, his cast and his crew nail the film's 1930's authentic aesthetic and tone. And the narrative keeps you on your toes, especially as it is one of the best early comic-book adaptions of its time. ‘THE ROCKETEER’ is a fun combination of Indiana Jones derring-do, Iron Man aerial acrobatics, and a Flash Gordon-esque hero. The film might have flopped when it first got released, but ‘THE ROCKETEER’ remains a beloved cult classic film gem, that is a film rightfully deserves. I really wish they had made some sequels to this since it would have been great to continue this series. Please note Disney: it is not too late! Highly Recommended!Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film AficionadoLe Cinema ParadisoUnited Kingdom

Rocketeer is directed by Joe Johnston and co-written by Danny Bilson, Paul De Meo and William Dear. It is based on Dave Stevens' comic book The Rocketeer. It stars Billy Campbell, Jennifer Connelly, Alan Arkin, Timothy Dalton and Paul Sorvino. Music is scored by James Horner and cinematography by Hiro Narita.It took eight years to get to the screen, with many rewrites, changes in personal, changes in setting and etc, the only thing consistent was Disney's inconsistency. Once out the film received generally positive reviews but posted only a small profit, in the wake of a Tim Burton inspired reinvention of the Super Hero genre, Rocketeer fell away into cultdom, sequels planned were shelved and its reputation remains to this day one of being a misfire. Unfair say I! Rocketeer is a lovingly crafted adventure film, nodding towards the serials of the 1930s, it's awash with period Hollywood delights, Art Deco imagery, has a damsel in distress, square jawed heroics, Nazi villains, wonderful effects and a blunderbuss Zeppelin finale. Backed by beautiful smooth tone photography and an evocative heart stirring music score, it's a family friendly blockbuster that ticks all the requisite boxes. The quality of the action sequences still hold up today, and Johnston, who wanted the job big time, directs with a knowing grasp of the setting, and crucially he never once loses a grip on tone and pacing. There's no self parody here, no deep Fruedian dissection of the main character, just a honest to goodness good against bad axis, with a romantic cause deftly wafted over proceedings.The role of Cliff Secord (Rocketeer) proved hard to cast, where Vincent D'Onofrio turned it down and "name" actors such as Dennis Quaid, Emilio Estevez, Kurt Russell and Bill Paxton auditioned for the part. Paxton, it's believed, was very close to getting it as well. Disney wanted an A list man, Johnny Depp and Kevin Costner were mooted, but Johnston had a feel for unknown Billy Campbell and managed to convince nervous Disney heads that he was perfect. Much of the scorn that has flown towards Rocketeer has landed at Campbell's door, again, this is unfair. It's hard to tell if one of those A list actors could have made the character work better, for it helps in this instance to not have a familiar face propelling the adventure. There's an innocence, an awkwardness to Campbell's portrayal that just sits right for a guy stumbling upon a rocket pack and finding himself submerged in a chase and harry battle against bad. He also has the looks, a handsome dude who creates a homespun based chemistry with the sensuous Connelly. It's Dalton's movie, though, he's having a devil of a time as the chief villain. Modeled on Errol Flynn and the spurious notion that he was once a Nazi spy, Dalton has the looks, the gusto, the moustache twirling shiftiness and a voice perfect for such material. A roll call of great character actors fill out the support slots, with Terry O'Quinn, Paul Sorvino and Ed Lauter particularly striking the right chords.A smashing piece of escapism, no pretensions or ideas above its station. The willingness to tap into the basic premise of a comic book actioner and entertain in grand Hollywood terms, to be applauded. And I do, and I do love it so. 8/10

Bought as a gift.

This wonderfully entertaining family film from the early 1990s has aged amazingly well. Maybe it's because of its period setting in 1930s Hollywood. With that setting even today's audiences are probably quite happy to settle for special effects from nearly 30 years ago.The story revolves around Cliff (Billy Campbell), a young daredevil pilot and a rocket powered jet pack. Cliff's sweetheart Jenny (Jennifer Connelly) is an aspiring actress who is seduced by swashbuckling Hollywood star Neville Sinclair (Timothy Dalton), and Cliff does everything to win her back while constantly having to dodge German Nazi agents who are trying to get their hands on the jet pack. A pack of mobsters thrown in for good measure add to the fun.This mixture of fantasy, romance and spy adventure is elevated by the spirited performances of the cast. Billy Campbell looks great and is eminently likable as the young hero and Jennifer Connelly is drop dead gorgeous as the damsel in distress, but it is Timothy Dalton in the role of the gleeful villain who steals the show with a beautifully OTT performance at a time when he was still the reigning Bond. Also worth mentioning is the cracking score by James Horner, one of his best. Highly recommended all round.The DVD is fine, both picture and sound quality are good and subtitles for the hard of hearing are available. No extra features.