EXPLORERS (1985) ** Space aliens go to great length to shake down earth teenagers, but it turns out that all they're interested in is Ethan Hawke's picture of Amanda Peterson. When the aliens come-and they will come-they're gonna be after our wimmen! Which is fine with Republicans, I guess, so long as they get to keep the oil. Why doesn't anyone ever make a movie where the space creatures are interested in terrestrial males? Is it because we're typically duller, dumber, and uglier? I concede any case, I'm just wondering. This is a fun film, and River Phoenix' family is a particularly entertaining depiction and variation of what most teenagers think their family looks like from outside. Then the dreaming Hawke starts channeling techno-genius monsters and fun is afoot...such as it is. The best parts are probably Jason Presson's proposed and repetitive considerations regarding dispute resolution, but River has his moments too. It never gets going all that much, and bogs down entirely once the creatures are revealed, but every generation of kids deserves something new to accompany the classics, and this was passable enough.
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