Delayed Reaction: The Rocketeer

The Pitch: Look, there's money in these super hero movies, I guess. Just look at Superman and Batman. We gave Marvel a fair shot with Howard the Duck but I don't see anyone being able to turn a profit with one of their characters. What we need, is a Dark Horse candidate. Let's try this old timey looking rocket guy. How can that miss?

How I Came Into It: I've only heard good things about The Rocketeer. Everyone seems to agree that it was ahead of its time and the world wasn't ready for non-Time Burton superhero movies yet.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) The cast is made up of people that nearly are comic book characters in their own right. Billy Campbell is a generic, classic superhero type, Superman without a cape. Jennifer Connelly is the girl next door who is too attractive to have ever lived next door to you in real life. Timothy Dalton is a skeevy debonair guy. Paul Sorvino looks fresh out of any mobster movie. The casting did nearly all the work to begin with. Add that to a script that is completely earnest and you have a winning formula.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: Well, it's a nice movie. That doesn't mean I don't understand why it tends to be overlooked. I don't care when this movie opened, it was never going to blow up. It's a throwback in its very nature. By the time even the original comic of this came out (1982) people responded to more conflicted heroes in their movies and superheroes had to be super conflicted. While there's always fun to be had beating some Nazis, I fully understand why this movie is a footnote, not a building block.


Verdict (?): Strongly Recommend