Thunderbirds are go!!!

Just got back from watching Thunderbirds on my day off from the call center. I was looking forward to watching it since I caught sight of the trailers and remembering enough watching a couple of episodes back in my earlier years.

After close to 40 years since it aired as a series on British TV, the Thunderbirds have undergone a major facelift to a certain degree while still retaining its retro-futuristic roots. Of course, the movie's production value tries hard to retain the look and feel from the 60's show with a more current spin to it. CGI definitely brings new life and scale to the Thunderbird machines since some discrepancies were noted when the translation from TV series to film became noticeable.

Given how the current crop of movies are nowadays in the first decade of this of this new millenium are, they cater more towards kids. This catering to kids tactic in making and marketing movie is not really the definite route to rake in for the box-office goal for sure.

The movie focusses on the youngest Tracy brother, Alan. He was saddled with the unfortunate role of being fifth wheel to the International Rescue machine that his dad and brothers always go off to on missions while stuck in school doing homework and studies. Talk about being a bench-warmer for the family team franchise. Alan steps up to the challenge when Tracy Island was compromised by the appearance of The Hood, a long-standing Thunderbirds nemesis, who harbored a grudge against IR. Alan aided by his friends Fermat and Tintin (Some critics would note the Harry Potter archetypes here.) as well as the beautiful and sophisticated Lady Penelope (played by Underworld's Sophia Myles) and her loyal chauffeur/butler Parker, the group were able to retake Tracy Island and effect the rescue of his trapped father and brothers aboard Thunderbird 5 brought about by the machinations of The Hood. Alan gets to operate Thunderbirds 1,2 and 4 in succession for the climax of the film. After the smoke clears with The Hood and henchman put behind bars, Alan, TinTin and Fermat gets to inducted as Thunderbirds as well. The movie ends with Alan now as part of the IR team when the call is sounded.

In spite the kiddie fluff in terms of the story and central focus on teen characters, the movie was quite a ride to go on. I mean who wouldn't like the thrill of riding a Thunderbird machine, huh? It is a rather good retread of a good series with or without the blessing of its creator Gerry Anderson.

Today's critics are pretty much jaded and overly nitpicking in terms of the movies they watch as well as it goes in other respects of entertainment. Has it been the case for them that they have seen all to end all and they just like to defuse the enjoyment of others just by being outraged and bored to tears for going through the tedium of it? My what a cynical audience we live with. I don't nitpick things too much since my standards to entertainment are not way to high as compared to other people. I am pretty much a cheese aficionado if such a terms exists or endears. The jaded just watch movies for the sake of watching it and then criticising it to no end. I just watch movies to be entertained period, no matter how shallow it may be. There is yet for me to encounter something that merits below in cheesiness which can be considered as capital B.A.D.

Enough of my rant on that. Anyways, back to the salt mines called a call center for me and the banality of it would play havok with my sleep cycle and my creative thoughts.