Pee-wee's Big Adventure is a 1985 American
adventureAdventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....
comedy filmComedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by
Tim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
in his full-length debut and starring
Paul ReubensPaul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
as
Pee-wee HermanPee-wee Herman is a comic fictional character created and portrayed by American comedian Paul Reubens. He is best known for his two television series and film series during the 1980s. The childlike Pee-wee Herman character developed as a stage act that quickly led to an HBO special in 1981...
. Reubens also co-wrote the script with
Phil HartmanPhilip Edward "Phil" Hartman was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and graphic artist. Born in Brantford, Ontario, Hartman and his family moved to the United States when he was 10...
and
Michael VarholMichael Varhol is a screenwriter and film producer. He is most notable for his work on Pee-wee's Big Adventure and The Big Picture.-External links:* at the Internet Movie Database...
. Supporting roles are played by
Elizabeth DailyElizabeth Ann Guttman , better known by her stage names of Elizabeth Daily and E.G. Daily, is an American voice actress, actress, singer-songwriter, and musician...
,
Mark HoltonMark Holton is an American actor.-Career:Holton's most famous roles may be that of Francis Buxton, Pee-Wee Herman's nemesis, in the 1985 blockbuster Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and Joe Charbonic in Bille August's Convicted, starring Connie Nielsen and Aidan Quinn. Other notable 1980s roles were as...
,
Diane SalingerDiane Louise Salinger is an American actress, voice actress, and comedienne.-Filmography:* Creature as Melanie Bryce * Pee-wee's Big Adventure as Simone * The Morning After as Isabel Harding...
and
Judd OmenJudd Omen is an American film and television actor. He is most notable for his role as Mickey Morrelli, the convict in Pee-wee's Big Adventure . He also had supporting roles in Red Dawn and Howling II: Stirba - Werewolf Bitch...
.
Pee-wee's Big Adventure tells the story of Pee-wee Herman embarking on nation-wide adventure in search of his stolen
bicycleCruiser bicycles, also known as beach cruisers, combine balloon tires, upright seating posture, single-speed drivetrains, and straightforward steel construction with expressive styling...
.
After the success of
The Pee-wee Herman ShowThe Pee-wee Herman Show is a stage show developed by Paul Reubens in 1980. It marks the first significant appearance of his comedic fictional character, Pee-wee Herman, five years before Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and six years before Pee-wee's Playhouse...
, Reubens began writing the script to
Pee-wee's Big Adventure when he was hired by
Warner Bros. PicturesWarner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
. The producers and Reubens hired Burton to direct when they were impressed with his work on
VincentVincent is a 1982 stop-motion short film written, designed and directed by Tim Burton and Rick Heinrichs. At approximately six minutes in length, there is currently no individual release of the film...
and
Frankenweenie. Filming took place in both
CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and
TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
When
Pee-wee's Big Adventure was released on August 9, 1985, it grossed over $40 million worldwide, but received generally mixed reviews. However, it eventually developed into a
cult filmA cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
and has since accumulated positive feedback. The film was nominated for a
Young Artist AwardThe Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist...
and spawned a sequel,
Big Top Pee-weeBig Top Pee-wee is the 1988 American family comedy sequel to the 1985 film, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and stars Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman, Penelope Ann Miller, Valeria Golino, and Kris Kristofferson. The original music score is composed by Danny Elfman. The film is marketed with the tagline...
. The financial success of the film, followed by the equally successful
BeetlejuiceBeetlejuice is a 1988 American comedy horror film directed by Tim Burton, produced by The Geffen Film Company and distributed by Warner Bros...
in 1988, prompted Warner Bros. to hire Burton as the director for the 1989 film,
BatmanBatman is a 1989 superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, directed by Tim Burton. The film stars Michael Keaton in the title role, as well as Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl and Jack Palance...
.
Plot
Pee-wee Herman (
Paul ReubensPaul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
) loves his bike more than anything else in the world and refuses to sell it to spoiled neighbor Francis Buxton (
Mark HoltonMark Holton is an American actor.-Career:Holton's most famous roles may be that of Francis Buxton, Pee-Wee Herman's nemesis, in the 1985 blockbuster Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and Joe Charbonic in Bille August's Convicted, starring Connie Nielsen and Aidan Quinn. Other notable 1980s roles were as...
). The bike is stolen while he was visiting Dottie (
Elizabeth DailyElizabeth Ann Guttman , better known by her stage names of Elizabeth Daily and E.G. Daily, is an American voice actress, actress, singer-songwriter, and musician...
) at a bicycle shop called "Chuck's Bikeorama", and then that night, Pee-wee visits a psychic named Madame Ruby (
Erica YohnErica Yohn is an American actress. She has had many small parts in American movies and television shows, including ER, Murphy Brown, Quantum Leap and Kojak. She has also had recurring roles on State of Grace, Beverly Hills, 90210, and Picket Fences.-External links:...
) who lies and tells him that the bike is hidden in the basement of the
Alamo Mission in San AntonioThe Alamo, originally known as Mission San Antonio de Valero, is a former Roman Catholic mission and fortress compound, site of the Battle of the Alamo in 1836, and now a museum, in San Antonio, Texas....
, Texas. On the way there, he meets Simone (
Diane SalingerDiane Louise Salinger is an American actress, voice actress, and comedienne.-Filmography:* Creature as Melanie Bryce * Pee-wee's Big Adventure as Simone * The Morning After as Isabel Harding...
), a waitress at a restaurant with a yearning to see
ParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Her jealous boyfriend Andy (Jon Harris) thinks Pee-wee and Simone are romantically linked, which results Andy to get Pee-Wee into a fight, but Pee-wee flees into a
boxcarA boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
on a moving train. Making it to San Antonio, he finds that the Alamo has no basement. Disappointed, Pee-wee visits a bar to use the telephone, but disturbs a biker gang after accidentally knocking over their motorcycles. Fearing they are going to kill him, Pee-wee asks for one last request and dances to "
Tequila"Tequila" is a 1958 Latin-flavored rock and roll song recorded by the group, the Champs. The title of the song constitutes the entirety of the lyrics, and is spoken a total of three times during the course of the song. "Tequila" became a #1 hit on both the pop and R&B charts at the time of its...
", winning the respect of the bikers. The bikers give him a motorcycle, but Pee-wee quickly crashes it through an
advertisement signBillboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
, ending up in the hospital. There, he learns that his bike now belongs to Kevin Morton (
Jason HerveyJason Robert Hervey is an American actor, television producer and former public relations agent. He is best known for his role as "Wayne Arnold" on The Wonder Years.-Early life and acting:...
), a child star who is currently filming a movie with the bike as a prominent plot device.
Pee-wee enters
Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Studios in
Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
, disguises himself as a nun, and steals the bike back. In a wild chase scene, he flees from the Warner Bros. security staff through a variety of sets, causing havoc throughout the lot. Various actors and props, including a boat-shaped car, a
Santa ClausSanta Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
sleigh, and a man in a
Godzillais a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
costume, get swept into the chase. He also interrupts the shooting of a
Twisted SisterTwisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
music video for "Burn in Hell" from
Stay Hungry. Using the gadgets on his bike when driving through the set of
TarzanTarzan is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungles by the Mangani "great apes"; he later experiences civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer...
and a western set, Pee-wee manages to evade and fake out the guards and escape the studio. As he blissfully rides away however, Pee-wee discovers a burning pet shop. After heroically saving all the animals, Pee-wee faints on the sidewalk near the store's doorstep upon having to carry out the pet snakes just as the fire department and police arrive. Though the fireman considers Pee-wee a hero, the policeman states that Pee-wee is under arrest.
Pee-wee is brought before a Warner Bros. studio executive who offers to buy the
rightsRights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people, according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory...
to Pee-wee's story in exchange for dropping all charges. Dottie is summoned into the office, bringing along Pee-Wee's beloved bicycle. He attends the
premiereA premiere is generally "a first performance". This can refer to plays, films, television programs, operas, symphonies, ballets and so on. Premieres for theatrical, musical and other cultural presentations can become extravagant affairs, attracting large numbers of socialites and much media...
at his local
drive-in theaterA drive-in theater is a form of cinema structure consisting of a large outdoor screen, a projection booth, a concession stand and a large parking area for automobiles. Within this enclosed area, customers can view movies from the privacy and comfort of their cars.The screen can be as simple as a...
, and it turns out to be a
James BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
-style action film involving
James BrolinJames Brolin is an American actor, producer and director, best known for his roles in soap operas, movies, sitcoms, and television. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin and husband of singer/actress Barbra Streisand.-Early life:...
and
Morgan FairchildMorgan Fairchild is an American actress. She achieved prominence during the late 1970s and early 1980s with continuing roles in several television series, in which she usually conveyed a glamorous image. Fairchild has also performed in live theater and played guest roles in television comedies...
fighting
ninjaA or was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations...
s. Pee-wee has a cameo appearance as a bellhop, with his voice dubbed over. After watching for a few minutes, Pee-wee decides to leave, having already lived the real story. Reunited with his bike, he rides away with Dottie, happily ever after.
Cast
- Paul Reubens
Paul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
as Pee-wee Herman: A strange man who acts like a child. He sports a gray flannel suit with a red bow tie and clean-cut hair. He is very obsessive over his bicycle, traveling across America in search of it.
- Elizabeth Daily
Elizabeth Ann Guttman , better known by her stage names of Elizabeth Daily and E.G. Daily, is an American voice actress, actress, singer-songwriter, and musician...
as Dottie: She helps run a bike shop and also has feelings for Pee-wee, though Pee-wee declines to go out with her.
- Mark Holton
Mark Holton is an American actor.-Career:Holton's most famous roles may be that of Francis Buxton, Pee-Wee Herman's nemesis, in the 1985 blockbuster Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and Joe Charbonic in Bille August's Convicted, starring Connie Nielsen and Aidan Quinn. Other notable 1980s roles were as...
as Francis Buxton: A fellow man-child like Pee-wee, and his rival. He is very spoiled. He offers to buy Pee-wee's bike, but Pee-wee refuses. Francis hires someone to steal the bike before it is purchased by Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
- Diane Salinger
Diane Louise Salinger is an American actress, voice actress, and comedienne.-Filmography:* Creature as Melanie Bryce * Pee-wee's Big Adventure as Simone * The Morning After as Isabel Harding...
as Simone: A waitress that Pee-wee meets in TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. She develops a friendship with Pee-wee and yearns to live in France. Her violent boyfriend Andy flunked French in high school, and therefore dislikes France. At the end of the film, Simone is dating a French man named Pierre.
- Judd Omen
Judd Omen is an American film and television actor. He is most notable for his role as Mickey Morrelli, the convict in Pee-wee's Big Adventure . He also had supporting roles in Red Dawn and Howling II: Stirba - Werewolf Bitch...
as Mickey Morelli: A convict Pee-wee meets on his way to Texas. Mickey is a fugitive on the run from the law because he cut off a "do not remove under the penalty of law" mattress tag. He also has a bad temper and abandons Pee-wee for his safety. However, Pee-wee ends up inviting Mickey to his movie.
Michael VarholMichael Varhol is a screenwriter and film producer. He is most notable for his work on Pee-wee's Big Adventure and The Big Picture.-External links:* at the Internet Movie Database...
, who co-wrote the script with Reubens and Hartman, cameos as a photographer and director Tim Burton has an uncredited cameo as the street thug who confronts Pee-wee in the rainy back-alley. Other minor roles include
Alice NunnAlice Elizabeth Nunn, was an American film and theatre actress. She was born in Jacksonville, Florida and died at her apartment in West Hollywood, California...
as Large Marge and
Cassandra PetersonCassandra Peterson is an American actress best known for her on-screen horror hostess character Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. She gained fame on Los Angeles television station KHJ wearing a black, gothic, cleavage-enhancing gown as host of Movie Macabre, a weekly horror movie presentation...
(aka Elvira, Mistress of the Dark) as Biker Mama.
James BrolinJames Brolin is an American actor, producer and director, best known for his roles in soap operas, movies, sitcoms, and television. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin and husband of singer/actress Barbra Streisand.-Early life:...
portrays "P.W. Herman" and
Morgan FairchildMorgan Fairchild is an American actress. She achieved prominence during the late 1970s and early 1980s with continuing roles in several television series, in which she usually conveyed a glamorous image. Fairchild has also performed in live theater and played guest roles in television comedies...
is Dottie for the scene when Warner Bros. turns Pee-wee's life in a full-length film.
Dee SniderDaniel "Dee" Snider is an American singer-songwriter, screenwriter, radio personality, and actor. Snider is most famous for his role as the frontman of the heavy metal band Twisted Sister...
and
Twisted SisterTwisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
and veteran comedy star
Milton BerleMilton Berlinger , better known as Milton Berle, was an American comedian and actor. As the manic host of NBC's Texaco Star Theater , in 1948 he was the first major star of U.S. television and as such became known as Uncle Miltie and Mr...
cameo as themselves.
Pee-wee's Big Adventure contains numerous "conceptual continuity" links to other Tim Burton films and other productions:
- Several cast members from The Pee-Wee Herman Show (who would go on to appear in Pee-wee's Playhouse
Pee-wee's Playhouse is an American children's television program starring Paul Reubens as the child-like Pee-wee Herman. The show was developed from Reubens' popular stage show and the one-off TV special The Pee-wee Herman Show, produced for HBO, which was similar in style but featured much more...
) have cameo roles in the film. In the movie studio sequence, Lynne Marie StewartLynne Marie Stewart is an American film and television actress, best known for her performance as Miss Yvonne, the Most Beautiful Woman in Puppet Land. She originated the role in the 1981 stage show The Pee-wee Herman Show and on the CBS television show Pee Wee's Playhouse...
(Miss Yvonne) plays the Mother Superior and John Paragon (Jambi the Genie) plays the high-voiced studio extra in red armor whom Pee-wee asks for directions and the reporter interviewing Francis in the final scene at the drive-in is played by Phil HartmanPhilip Edward "Phil" Hartman was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and graphic artist. Born in Brantford, Ontario, Hartman and his family moved to the United States when he was 10...
(Cap'n Carl).
- Jan Hooks
Janet V. "Jan" Hooks is an American actress and comedienne best known for her work on NBC's Saturday Night Live , on which she appeared from 1986 to 1991...
(who played the Alamo tour guide, Tina) was a fellow member of the GroundlingsThe Groundlings are an improvisational comedy troupe based in Los Angeles, California. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin to produce sketches and improvised scenes...
comedy troupe with Reubens, Hartman and Paragon, who went on to co-star in Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
with Hartman. She also had a cameo role as a publicist in Burton's Batman ReturnsBatman Returns is a 1992 American superhero film directed by Tim Burton. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is the sequel to Burton's Batman , and features Michael Keaton reprising the title role, with Danny DeVito as the Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.Burton originally did not...
- Paul Reubens and Diane Salinger
Diane Louise Salinger is an American actress, voice actress, and comedienne.-Filmography:* Creature as Melanie Bryce * Pee-wee's Big Adventure as Simone * The Morning After as Isabel Harding...
(Simone) were reunited in the opening sequence of Burton's Batman ReturnsBatman Returns is a 1992 American superhero film directed by Tim Burton. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is the sequel to Burton's Batman , and features Michael Keaton reprising the title role, with Danny DeVito as the Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.Burton originally did not...
, in which they portrayed the parents of The Penguin.
- Supporting actors Monte Landis
Monte Landis is an American character actor best known for playing the comic foil in multiple episodes of The Monkees, most notably the Devil in "The Devil and Peter Tork".-Partial filmography:*The Mouse That Roared...
(Mario) and Lou CutellLou Cutell is a movie and television actor. He portrayed the proctologist, Dr. Cooperman, in "The Fusilli Jerry" episode of the television series Seinfeld and Leo Funkhouser on Curb Your Enthusiasm. Among cult movie fans, he is best known for his portrayal of Dr...
(Amazing Larry), who featured together in a deleted scene in Mario's Magic Shop, had both appeared as extras in Mel BrooksMel Brooks is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is best known as a creator of broad film farces and comic parodies. He began his career as a stand-up comic and as a writer for the early TV variety show Your Show of Shows...
' Young FrankensteinYoung Frankenstein is a 1974 American comedy film directed by Mel Brooks and starring Gene Wilder as the title character, a descendant of the infamous Dr. Victor Frankenstein. The supporting cast includes Teri Garr, Cloris Leachman, Marty Feldman, Peter Boyle, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars, Richard...
.
- in the Warner Bros. studio chase sequence, Pee-wee rides through a set where a Japanese crew are filming a "kaiju
is a Japanese word that means "strange beast," but often translated in English as "monster". Specifically, it is used to refer to a genre of tokusatsu entertainment....
" type monster movie with monsters closely resembling Godzillais a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
and Ghidorah.
- the full chase sequence through Warner Bros Studios was longer than the version in the final cut of the film and showed much more of the WB backlot, including the vast storage yard where props and set pieces were stored. A full-scale prop of a Visitor shuttlecraft from the original TV miniseries V (1983) is clearly visible in the foreground in one shot. Another deleted scene in this section was filmed on the famous WB "Western town" set which has been used for innumerable film and TV productions, including the 1960s Batman
Batman is an American television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company network for three seasons from January 12, 1966 to...
TV series. Ennio MorriconeEnnio Morricone, Grand Officer OMRI, , is an Italian composer and conductor, who wrote music to more than 500 motion pictures and television series, in a career lasting over 50 years. His scores have been included in over 20 award-winning films as well as several symphonic and choral pieces...
's music score from The Good, the Bad and the UglyThe Good, the Bad and the Ugly is a 1966 Italian epic spaghetti western film directed by Sergio Leone, starring Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach in the title roles. The screenplay was written by Age & Scarpelli, Luciano Vincenzoni and Leone, based on a story by Vincenzoni and Leone...
is heard in that scene.
Production
The success of
The Pee-wee Herman ShowThe Pee-wee Herman Show is a stage show developed by Paul Reubens in 1980. It marks the first significant appearance of his comedic fictional character, Pee-wee Herman, five years before Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and six years before Pee-wee's Playhouse...
prompted
Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
to hire
Paul ReubensPaul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
to write a script for a full-length Pee-wee Herman film. Reubens' original idea was to do a remake of
Pollyanna with Pee-wee Herman in the
Hayley MillsHayley Mills is an English actress. The daughter of John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell, and sister of actress Juliet Mills, Mills began her acting career as a child and was hailed as a promising newcomer, winning the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer for Tiger Bay , the Academy Juvenile Award...
role. Reubens claims that
Pollyanna is his favorite film. Halfway through writing the script, Reubens noticed everyone at Warner Bros. had a bike to get around the
backlotA backlot is an area behind or adjoining a movie studio, containing permanent exterior buildings for outdoor scenes in filmmaking or television productions, or space for temporary set construction....
, and so he requested one of his own. This inspired Reubens to start on a new script.
Having left
The Walt Disney CompanyThe Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
and with
Frankenweenie receiving positive reviews within film studios,
Tim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
was looking for a full-length film to direct. When Reubens and the producers of
Pee-wee's Big Adventure saw Burton's work on
VincentVincent is a 1982 stop-motion short film written, designed and directed by Tim Burton and Rick Heinrichs. At approximately six minutes in length, there is currently no individual release of the film...
and
Frankenweenie, they decided to hire Burton for their film. Burton felt he connected with Reubens' personality and the humor of the
Pee-wee Herman Show. After hiring Burton to direct, Reubens,
Phil HartmanPhilip Edward "Phil" Hartman was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and graphic artist. Born in Brantford, Ontario, Hartman and his family moved to the United States when he was 10...
and
Michael VarholMichael Varhol is a screenwriter and film producer. He is most notable for his work on Pee-wee's Big Adventure and The Big Picture.-External links:* at the Internet Movie Database...
reworked the script again.
Filming locations included
GlendaleGlendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...
,
Pomona-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Pomona had a population of 149,058, a slight decline from the 2000 census population. The population density was 6,491.2 people per square mile...
,
Santa ClaritaSanta Clarita is the fourth largest city in Los Angeles County, California, United States and the twenty-fourth largest city in the state of California. The 2010 US Census reported the city's population grew 16.7% from the year 2000 to 176,320 residents. It is located about northwest of downtown...
,
Santa MonicaSanta Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
,
BurbankBurbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
,
CabazonCabazon is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 2,535 at the 2010 census, up from 2,229 at the 2000 census.-History:...
,
Port HuenemePort Hueneme is a small beach city in Ventura County, California surrounded by the city of Oxnard and the Pacific Ocean. The name derives from the Spanish spelling of the Chumash wene me, meaning "Resting Place". The area was discovered by Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in the mid 16th century...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and
San AntonioSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
,
TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Burton and Reubens had tensions with Warner Bros. studio executives over the
shooting scheduleA shooting schedule is a project plan of each day's shooting for a film production. It is normally created and managed by the assistant director, who reports to the production manager managing the production schedule...
. Burton hired
CalArtsThe California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
classmate
Rick HeinrichsRichard Heinrichs is an American production designer, effects artist, art director and film producer. He is well known to have worked on the Pirates of the Caribbean series, Ang Lee's Hulk and The Nightmare Before Christmas...
for scenes involving stop-motion animation.
Soundtrack
To compose the
film scoreA film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
, Burton brought in
Danny ElfmanDaniel Robert "Danny" Elfman is an American composer, best known for scoring music for television and film. Up until 1995, he was the lead singer and songwriter in the rock band Oingo Boingo, a group he formed in 1976...
, who had previously composed the music for
Forbidden ZoneForbidden Zone is a 1982 musical comedy film based upon the stage performances of the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo. The film stars Hervé Villechaize, Susan Tyrrell and members of the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, and features appearances by Warhol Superstar Viva, Joe Spinell and The...
. Elfman already had the main title theme written before he signed on. At the time, Elfman was the lead singer of
Oingo BoingoOingo Boingo was an American new wave band. They are best known for their influence on other musicians, their soundtrack contributions and their high energy Halloween concerts. The band was founded in 1972 as The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, a performance art group...
, but the working relationship between Burton and Elfman would continue for most of Burton's films.
Track listing
- "Overture" / "The Big Race" (3:07)
- "Breakfast Machine" (2:36)
- "Park Ride" (1:14)
- "Stolen Bike" (1:44)
- "Hitchhike" (0:56)
- "Dinosaur Dream" (0:48)
- "Simone's Theme" (1:35)
- "Clown Dream" (1:58)
- "Studio Chase" (1:24)
- "The Drive-In" (2:02)
- "Finale" (3:12)
The film also featured "Burn in Hell" by
Twisted SisterTwisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
and "
Tequila"Tequila" is a 1958 Latin-flavored rock and roll song recorded by the group, the Champs. The title of the song constitutes the entirety of the lyrics, and is spoken a total of three times during the course of the song. "Tequila" became a #1 hit on both the pop and R&B charts at the time of its...
" by
The ChampsThe Champs were an American rock and roll band, most famous for their Latin-tinged instrumental "Tequila". Formed by studio executives at Gene Autry's Challenge Records to record a B-Side for the Dave Burgess single, the intended throwaway track became more famous than its A-Side, "Train to...
.
Reception
Pee-wee's Big Adventure opened on August 9, 1985 in the United States in 829 theaters, accumulating $4,545,847 over its opening weekend. The film went on to gross $40,940,662 domestically, recouping five times its $7 million budget, making it a financial success.
Pee-wee's Big Adventure received generally mixed reviews at the time of the film's release, before eventually developing into a
cult filmA cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
. Based on 36 reviews collected by
Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
,
Pee-wee's Big Adventure has a 92% overall approval rating. By comparison
MetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
calculated an average score of 47 from 13 reviews collected. The film was nominated with a
Young Artist AwardThe Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist...
for Best Family Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical).
Christopher NullChristopher Null is a film critic, columnist and former blogger for Yahoo! Tech, editor of Drinkhacker.com, and is the founder and editor in chief of Filmcritic.com.-Publications:...
gave positive feedback, calling it "Burton's strangest film."
VarietyVariety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
compared
Paul ReubensPaul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
to
Charlie ChaplinSir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
and
Buster KeatonJoseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
, while
EmpireEmpire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
called the film "a one-comic masterpiece" and "a dazzling debut" for Burton. Stephanie Zacharek of
Salon.comSalon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
explained "Everything about
Pee-wee's Big Adventure, from its toy-box colors to its superb, hyper-animated
Danny ElfmanDaniel Robert "Danny" Elfman is an American composer, best known for scoring music for television and film. Up until 1995, he was the lead singer and songwriter in the rock band Oingo Boingo, a group he formed in 1976...
score to the butch-waxed hairdo and wooden-puppet walk of its star and mastermind is pure pleasure." Burton had no interest in directing
Big Top Pee-weeBig Top Pee-wee is the 1988 American family comedy sequel to the 1985 film, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and stars Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman, Penelope Ann Miller, Valeria Golino, and Kris Kristofferson. The original music score is composed by Danny Elfman. The film is marketed with the tagline...
, and the financial success of the film prompted
Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
to hire him to direct
BatmanBatman is a 1989 superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, directed by Tim Burton. The film stars Michael Keaton in the title role, as well as Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl and Jack Palance...
.
Warner Home VideoWarner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
released
Pee-wee's Big Adventure on DVD in May 2000. The release included
audio commentaryOn disc-based video formats, an audio commentary is an additional audio track consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with video...
by
Tim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
,
Paul ReubensPaul Reubens is an American actor, writer, film producer, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor...
and
Danny ElfmanDaniel Robert "Danny" Elfman is an American composer, best known for scoring music for television and film. Up until 1995, he was the lead singer and songwriter in the rock band Oingo Boingo, a group he formed in 1976...
as well as
deleted sceneIn Entertainment, especially the film and television industry, Deleted scenes are parts of a film removed or censored from or replaced by another scene in the final "cut", or version, of a film...
s.
External links
- Pee-wee's Big Adventure at Box Office Mojo
Box Office Mojo is a website that tracks box office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. Brandon Gray started the site in 1999. In 2002, Gray partnered with Sean Saulsbury and they grew the site to nearly two million readers when, in July 2008, the company was purchased by Amazon.com through...