Last week saw the release of Battleship, Peter Berg's Bay-esque explosion extravaganza based on the Hasbro board game of the same name. With that in mind, I decided that this week's Multiplex Goes Retro will be looking at the original film based on a board game, 1985's Clue, named after the US version of Cluedo. I first caught Clue on one of those late night channel-hopping quests and it seemed like a fairly decent comedy but, as I only watched half an hour the first time round, now seems like a perfect time to revisit it.
This week’s double header takes us on a trip down memory lane as we take in two childhood movies (assuming you are of a certain age) that are driven by a youthful sense of adventure. Somehow, whenever you had your own mini-adventures in the summer holidays they were never quite as eventful as the ones experienced by the kids in these two films. Whenever we did get on our bikes and head off into a wood or down the abandoned railway line, not once did we find a dead body or find an old pirate ship chock full of gold. Granted the pirate ship would have been pretty unlikely in landlocked Staffordshire, but there we go.
There are plenty of great childhood movies to choose from here but the two I’ve plumped for are both absolute classics. They both hark back to those carefree days long before the drudgery of work and the responsibilities of adulthood. First up is a Rob Reiner classic about four friends who set off into the Oregon countryside on the hunt for a missing local boy who is presumed dead after being hit by a train. Along the way they begin to open up to each about their own hopes for the future. It’s the ultimate coming-of-age tale Stand by Me. Next it’s a slightly more light-hearted affair which sees a group of friends setting out to find a dead pirate’s treasure in order to stop their neighbourhood being sold to the local country club. It’s the great childhood adventure movie The Goonies.
Released in 1986 and 1985 respectively, these two films both became staple VHS viewings for a whole generation of us and are still much loved today.
