01
Flight of the Navigator
Why this pick
A suburban boy’s encounter with a sleek alien craft has the same kid-first sense of discovery, playful sci-fi imagination, and wistful adventure as Explorers.
A FILM WORTH A CLOSER LOOKTHE FEATURE PRESENTATION
MOVIE1985 1h 49m USA
IF THIS ONE STAYED WITH YOU
Movies like
Explorers
AdventureFamilyFantasyScience Fiction
CINEHUNCH / THE NEXT FRAME
Keep the feeling.
SIMILAR PICKS / A PERSONAL CONNECTION
If you loved Explorers, try these.
01
02
The Last Starfighter
Why this pick
Like Explorers, it turns a young dreamer’s fascination with science fiction into an earnest, effects-driven cosmic adventure without losing its small-town adolescent viewpoint.
03
D.A.R.Y.L.
Why this pick
Another warm 1980s suburban fantasy centered on resourceful kids, secret technology, and a friendship that makes the high-concept premise feel emotionally grounded.
04
*batteries not included
Why this pick
It shares Explorers’ affectionate, handmade-style wonder: ordinary people and children meet extraordinary machines in a gentle, comic, warmly nostalgic sci-fi world.
05
The Goonies
Why this pick
Its unruly group chemistry, suburban-kid perspective, improvised adventure, and sincere belief that childhood quests can become enormous make it a close tonal companion.
Finding the atmosphere, tension and little details that made this one stay with you.
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01 / THE STORY
A little about the film.
Ben Crandall is a young teen living in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., who experiences vivid dreams about flying through clouds and over a vast, city-like circuit board...usually after falling asleep watching old sci-fi films (''The War of the Worlds (1953 film)'' is a favorite). Every night, upon waking from the dream, he draws the circuit board. Ben shows the sketches to his friend, child prodigy Wolfgang Muller. At school, Ben develops a crush on Lori Swenson, but he isn't sure whether it's mutual. Both boys meet punkish-but-likable Darren Woods, with whom they share their circuit board-concepts. Wolfgang builds an actual microchip based on Ben's drawings. The chip enables the generation of an electromagnetic bubble which surrounds a pre-determined area. As the boys discover, the bubble is capable of moving at near-limitless distances and speeds without the usual ill-effects from inertia. They construct a rudimentary spacecraft out of an abandoned Tilt-A-Whirl car; they name their ship the ''Thunder Road (song)'', after Bruce Springsteen's song of the same title. Their experiments with the ''Thunder Road'' draw attention from the US government, which sends agents to scout the area for UFOs.
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02 / FACES IN THE FRAME
The people who bring it to life.
Ethan Hawke
Ben Crandall
Jason Presson
Darren Woods
Georg Olden
Steve Jackson's Gang
Danny Nucci
Nasty Kid at School
James Cromwell
Mr. Müller
Brooke Bundy
Science Teacher
Tricia Bartholome
Girl in Classroom
Karen Mayo-Chandler
Starkiller's Girlfriend