'Thunderbirds'
(Bill Paxton, Anthony Edwards, Sophia Myles / PG / 87 mins / Universal)
Overview: Former astronaut Jeff Tracy (Bill Paxton) and his five sons live on a secluded island, from which they run International Rescue, an organization dedicated to defusing dangerous international military or security situations. The team is known as the Thunderbirds, and evil mastermind The Hood (Ben Kingsley) is trying to eliminate them in order to complete his nefarious schemes in peace.
Verdict: Filmed in a zany, colourful style reminiscent of the 'Spy Kids' movies, 'Thunderbirds' is enjoyable fun ... until earnest lines of dialog bring everything to a shrieking stop! A pretty entertaining, extremely good-looking cinematic blip, this is another example of the idiocy that often results when Hollywood attempts to convert an animated TV show into a non-animated movie. OK, let's put this another way, shall we ... 'Thunderbids' is visually impressive, but largely a lifeless, limp noodle that strips the details that made the 1960s TV series work and features a bland coming-of-age story and a by-the-numbers revenge plot. Get the picture?!
'Thunderbirds'