PEE WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE
A film review by Jeff Alan
Copyright 1997 Jeff Alan
For various reasons, Paul Reubens, who created and played Pee Wee Herman for more than a decade, is sometimes dismissed by critics. There is no question that Mr. Reubens's downfall was perpetuated (or climaxed) by the incident a few years back where he was enjoying himself a little too much in a movie theatre. America was stunned: The person that they let their children watch on Saturday morning was now a sexually ambiguous figure. Parents do not like ambiguity when it comes to sexual orientation: Take Ellen DeGeneres for example, she in a matter of weeks will come out of the closet in a television sitcom. No public outcries here folks (except for the always outspoken Rev. Jerry Falwell).
It is unforunate that Mr. Reubens's brilliancy is masked by one night in his life which turned out to be a huge mistake. Brilliancy? Why would I say that? Well it's fairly simple: The character in Pee Wee Herman that was created by Reubens was an extremely unique character that first started off being raunchy in specials he did in the late 70's for HBO, but then turned into kids' oriented, really being perpetuated by the movie Pee Wee's Big Adventure.
Some very creative talents collaborated on this film: Phil Hartman (co writer) who is of SNL fame, and Tim Burton, one of this earliest movies, which really showed how masterful he could direct with weird and make-believe worlds (just as he showed us with EDWARD SCISSORHANDS and THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS). It is my point, that this film and Mr. Reubens's are highly underrated: I think Mr. Reubens's has done a lot more than people think in the film industry.
Pee Wee's Big Adventure was a great film. It was an entertaining piece of film that was extremely appealing: It involved a world where everyone was happy and nothing could hurt you (well, except maybe your feelings when you get your big red bicycle stolen!). Some critics lauded it. Some looked down upon it, dismissing it as stupid. I don't think you can appreciate this movie if you do not appreciate the creative genius that Paul Reubens possesses.
Sure, Pee Wee Herman is now an old character. Sure, Mr. Reubens has went on to different projects, like playing small roles in films like BATMAN II and GEORGE, and even the annoying product of nepotism in MURPHY BROWN, playing a guy named Andrew. But Mr. Reubens's creative genius should be noted. Why? I think that if he and Burton and Hartman had not made that effort, there would not have been an EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, nor would there have been a MARS ATTACKS.
In a nutshell, Pee Wee's Big Adventure was an entertaining film that let creative genius be shown in the sheer limelight, allowing other directors to expand upon the efforts of the film's creators.
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