Pee-wee: Some night, huh?
Large Marge: On this very night, ten years ago, along this same stretch of road in a dense fog just like this. I saw the worst accident I ever seen. There was this sound, like a garbage truck dropped off the Empire State Building… And when they finally pulled the driver’s body from the twisted, burning wreck. It looked like this…!

Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure is a movie that it is almost impossible for me to view with my nostalgia tinted glasses. It is filled with images and dialogue that have stayed with me for years. Chances are if you are a child of the 80’s and watched this film more than once, then the quote above immediately brought back memories of Large Marge and the distorted face that comes next. Thanks to this movie I have a comeback that works in just about any situation, “I know you are but what am I?”, and I still use it to this day. So when I watch this film now it is hard for me to view it as an adult, instead I revert back to my childhood self and enjoy it in the same way that I did when I was 6 years old.

I think one of the things that works so well for this movie is that embraces the feelings, desires, and emotions of childhood. There are moments of pure joy, sadness, anger, and fear (in fact if you grew up with this movie and are still scared of clowns Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure might be the reason) displayed throughout the film. Director Tim Burton and star Paul Reubens created a movie that I believe will still speak to children today, while watching it recently there was not much that I saw in the film that made feel like it was a product of the 80’s (well outside of the Mr. T breakfast cereal).

Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure is currently available to watch on Netflix streaming, and I highly recommend it, especially if you enjoyed this movie as a child. I hope that a new generation will be introduced to this classic and that it will live on for years to come.

4/5 Popcorn Buckets