The Rocketeer (1991)

The Rocketeer (1991)

6/10

Starring

Bill Campbell

Alan Arkin

Jennifer Connelly

Paul Sorvino

Timothy Dalton

Directed by Joe Johnston

The Rocketeer is a nice film and does not try to do more than that. You sit and enjoy the ride as once again we see how the Nazi and their numerous plans for world domination is stopped. The movie has some nice visual effects which I must recognize were amazing for a movie made in 1991. Some movies done now do not even meet up.

The movie is not perfect and may not have the excellent power of the MCU but Disney did a good job with this adaptation. The movie for me is one very straight forward flick about an ordinary good guy who was lucky to discover this magnificent rocket pack which he can strap on and fly. He has a girl he loves and the bad guys want this rocket pack and took his girl. The movie does not even entertain any form of complexity, just straight to the point superhero kind of stuff.

The movie is based upon the character of the same name created by comic book artist and writer Dave Stevens in the 80s.

Boasting of fine acting from all the cast, I cannot see anyone siting through this movie viewing it with the eyes of the 90s and hating it much. Although with the likes of MCU and DCEU now a days this movie is not in comparison to them and children may prefer the all round actions of Marvel and DC to this fine movie.

The movie and the comic are set in the late 1930s during World War II and I like the movie’s set, the dressing and everything has a warm feel of what I think is the 1930s. It introduces us to Cliff (Billy Campbell) a stunt pilot who has the plane he was flying destroyed when a gangster was trying to get away from the Feds. The getaway resulted in gun fights which damaged the plane Cliff was flying and it crashed. Cliff was lucky to survive the crash.

When he was putting away the debris of the plane he discovered that the man getting away from the Feds hid something in his plane, he opened it and found a rocket pack.

Cliff and his friend Peabody (Alan Arkin) took it out and tested it, Cliff was eager to try it on. We soon discover that a man who seem to be working undercover for the bad guys had paid men to steal the rocket pack. Same men who were chased by the Feds in the beginning and caused Cliff to crash.

That man was working undercover as an actor and luck will have it for him one of his co-actors is Cliff’s girl Jenny (Jennifer Connelly).

This actor wants the rocket pack, the Feds also want the rocket pack and Cliff seems to be happy to keep the pack until he finds the rightful owner. With all the cards on the table we get to see things go off, which led to Jenny getting kidnap and Cliff on the run.

The movie was not a box office splash, but there is a possibility for a sequel to be done some time to be shown on Disney+.