Thunderbirds (2004). Alan of Confusion. 

You didn't just call Thunderbirds are Go by Busted a 'disposable, generic early-2000 pop rock song' - that song absolutely slaps and was the main reason I went to see this film when I was a kid

I loved this movie as a child. Id watch it all the time. While I can see its cringy but it holds a special place in my heart. I would love to see a new live action interpretation, maybe focusing on the relationship of the brothers. Kinda like the newer show Thunderbirds are go.

despite its flaws i will probably rewatch this a few more times throughout my life purely for the nostalgia

My kid was 6 when this came out. He loved the original Thunderbirds and was crazy about them so we took him to see this. He loved it. I wasn't enamoured but he was crazy about it and that was good enough for me. I think this was the first time I realised I couldn't be that precious about things from my childhood if a version was made that kids today enjoyed. It doesn't take away anything from the one I love. It's a dumb kids film and that's OK. Talking of Ford concept cars.... They had a tour around Ford garages in the UK where they took Lady Penelope's car, a bunch of other stuff and had photo op for kids with a Lady Penelope look-alike in a pink Ford Ka. All you needed to do was agree a test drive in a Ford. So we went. My kid loved it and the photo of him came out well and they didn't charge for it. We spent quite some time chatting with the guy who was the minder of the Lady Penelope car and had to drive it between locations (he said it was a pig to drive) and he loved how excited my kid was about all the Thunderbirds stuff. As we were going to leave he told us to wait a minute while he went out back. He came back with at least three of the big Thunderbird models that were part of the toy-line for the film (unopened in box) and gave them to my kid as he said he enjoyed talking with us so much. My kid was absolutely over the moon, well worth the time spent hanging round a Ford garage. So yeah, not a great movie, but fond memories for the family. Can't really ask for more.

Saddest thing about this film was that it killed Jonathan Frake's directing career until Picard in 2020.

Loved this film when i was little

Bloody hell. I fell of my chair laughing at the line; "He's no Geoff Love...". Perfect!

I was a little kid when this film came out and I have such fond memories of it. I can’t hate it-i loved the drama of it as a kid!

I loved this as a kid. Watched it over and over and it was one of my favourite movies.

Great vehicle designs and great performances from Paxton, Myles, Cook and Edwards. Sadly... not enough actual *Thunderbirds* action! 🚀 Talking Pictures TV in the UK has recently been showing *Fireball XL5* and the original *Thunderbirds* series at 3pm on Saturdays! 👍

Loved this as a kid!

A Stam Fine way to start a weekend, Thunderbirds Are Go

I absolutely loved this film as a kid, I’d imagine my swimming pool had a hidden Thunderbird 1 beneath it! I would watch this endlessly. It still holds a special place in my heart, its nostalgic ❤

Yes, the actress who played Penelope is quite beautiful. She was good in underworld too 👍

It's the fact that they do absolutely no rescues. I really recommend the new series with the cool model effects by Weta.

I remember seeing this movie in 2004, and I liked Ben Kingsley in an “over the top” way… also Jonathan Frankes directed Clockstoppers… I never knew that, small world lol

True story, I got a job at Weta Workshop a few years ago (doing animatronics) by building an animatronic John Steed (of the Avengers) marionette in the form/size of a Thunderbirds puppet. Apparently two of the boss Richard Taylor's favourite things! The workshop did have a Thunderbirds tour you could do to see the models from that new series.

Remember renting this from blockbuster. Never saw the original, so I had nothing to compare it to. I enjoyed it. Watched it recently, still kind of do.

Thunderbirds 2086 is the next logical bump in this series…

The thing that annoyed me about this movie the most was that International Rescue isn't once called by its name, instead everyone just calls them "The Thunderbirds." 😭 Outside of that, it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't exactly great either. A lot of wasted potential. But I guess they had to introduce it to a whole new audience, the next generation some might say...

I didnt mind it too much. Yes, it could've been a lot better. But Ron Cook's Parker was damn near perfect

Thunderbirds is my favourite TV shows from the child. I still have all the toys in my room and I absolutely loved this movie when I was a kid I wish they do them all in one now. Super realistic and gritty. And the original Thunderbirds theme song is one of the hardest songs ever created

As a 12-year-old who saw the original Thunderbirds, (and have loved it ever since), once I had a look at what they done to the craft and read a few reviews I just couldn’t bear to watch this movie. (So I just bought the original series on DVD.) A great review as ever and I love the Geoff Love reference, wonderfully esoteric!

I just remember watching it with my Son, who at the time was at junior school. I thought it was damn funny and it will definitely remind of the simple joy of watching a film with my Lad.

I guess one positive thing i remember about this movie is at the time they brought out the original thunderbirds shows and movies again on dvd with all sorts of bells and whistles

Thunderbirds was still repeated on bbc two in the early 00’s and was still actively available on dvd and vhs so I grew up with it in the early 00’s before this was released when I was 5

For what it is, I have enjoyed this movie and have watched it on several occasions and will continue to watch it.

The film had a kickass theme song.

I loved this movie. It’s the only reason why I even know of the Thunderbirds.

Wait... There was a live action Thunderbirds? And Bill Paxton was in it 😮 How'd I not ever known this!?

I always loved this movie as a kid tbh and still do. Great video though I guess nostalgia is just too strong for me on this one

This film is a guilty pleasure for me, comes across as a Disney channel movie. Plus that song by Busted lives on to this day.

Never knew Jonathen Frakes directed this movie! Mind blown lol

I find myself agreeing with everything you have said - I hadn't revisited this film since seeing at the cinema when it came out. I know why. As you rightly say a Penny and Parker spin off would have been a hoot!

Bill Paxton couldn't have phoned in his performance in this movie harder if he were playing Alexander Graham Bell.

I liked the movie. It entertained me for a couple of hours which is all one can expect. I grew up on Anderson shows, from Supercar to Captain Scarlet to Space 1999. The Andersons made a big impact on children's TV. And Captain Scarlet really pushed the envelope for what was appropriate. Their main character dies a gruesome death in every episode, only to come back next week fully restored. For a kid's TV show, this was about as dark as you can get! But some of that was harmed by the distributors, (ITC, I think) who made it so some shows never made it out of England or even to DVD (Captain Scarlet season two fell into this hole). In America we had a choice between something like Captain Scarlet or Thunderbirds - if it was being aired at all - or Sid And Marty Kroft's "Puffinstuff". Yeah, terrible choice! Those were dark days indeed!

The original Thunderbirds was a kids' show that didn't feel like a kids' show -- it had action, combat, disasters, suspense, and all the trappings of "grownup" shows. In addition to forgetting about that, the movie also forgot that the stars of the show were the machines, and that much of its attraction came from the knowledge that it was *models* we were watching. The whole idea of creating an entire world, complete with amazing machines, disasters that were often on a biblical scale, and large swathes of real estate that were all made of models that just looked so... damn... COOL. The show didn't talk down to kids and had enough "wow factor" to attract older viewers interested in the model work. The 2004 film used run-of-the-mill CGI and a ridiculously dumbed-down script that featured a kid and his kid sidekicks and a lot of fixed sets, green screen, and... oh, yeah, we'd better put some of the titular machines onscreen, totally in CGI form but weird colors... and yeah, make the kids the heroes so the adults look like idiots. Your countdown was generous; as a long-time Thunderbirds fan (I'm old enough to have watched it when it was first broadcast on TV), I give it a "1" for at least attempting to reintroduce it... and it almost squandered that score by doing so in a manner that practically jammed it into a coffin and put it underneath Thunderbird 3's main engine at launch.

The only thing I've seen from this film is the car in a museum. But there was also a Delorean and Lara Croft's Land Rover, so it wasn't the star attraction.

10:19 i won’t accept the disrespect towards Busted’s Thunderbirds Are Go. I have my issues with the film bc i love thunderbirds but that song was a bop and no i shall not accept anything said against it XDDDD even Busted themselves enjoy the song bc they played it at their recent 20 year tour and said they enjoyed it! (And that only 16 people saw the film and they were 3 of them XDD)

1:36 I just noticed that Lady P's Rolls uses the "Kneeling Ecstasy" hood ornament. That is reserved for use on cars for the Royal Family only.

As an 8-12 year old i loved this movie. that being said, I think I would only want to watch it again for the scenes with Sophia Myles that brought out some feelings i didn't expect in my early pubescent years.

They did *try* to keep FAB 1 as a Rolls Royce, but they wanted nothing to do with the film sadly so they just weren’t able to

Thunderbirds Are Go TV series is awesome. Too bad the movie didn't work out.

A great review of a film that I will never watch. The references of Geoff Love & Paul Whitehouse's Chris the Cockney character were superb and more than made up for no Mr Bronson from Grange Hill jokes.

Part of the novelty was the ingenuity of the model work, and I think it let them get away with the sort of plots and endangerment that would seem rougher if it was live action. Adults would be disarmed by marionettes or feel like they were getting away with something while watching it with their kids.

I didn't mind the plot. For me what let it down was what they did to the ships, and to Tracy Island. The launch sequences and the inner workings were part of the charm of both the original series and the recent CGI/live series, and his movie just turned it into some sort of industrial complex.

It wasn't that bad. Diverting entertainment. I think if I had seen it when I was 12, I would have loved it.

Ford was commissioned to design and build Fab 1 because Rolls-Royce sad no.

"This week I have been mostly watching Thunderbirds."

I didn’t know this movie had been a thing. Like, I don’t remember any ads for it, any talk of it, nothing. It’s like even being a bad film didn’t register with anyone, it just happened and that was it.

i enjoyed the movie the first time i watched it. But more watch it these days the the beautiful look of the Thunderbirds themselves, penny, parker and hood

The best review for a film I've never seen, and it's probably more entertaining than the film itself! xD

Never saw this but that bloody song by Busted. It was everywhere!

I still think the studio missed the mark in not casting the Baldwin brothers as the Tracy brothers. Throw in Adam Baldwin to round out the brood and sew further confusion. It would have been epic. It also would have trippled the casting budget, but come on...

Thank Christ they didn't do a big screen adaptation of Captain Scarlet!

Hope they make Another thunderbirds film again.

I was obsessed with this movie as a kid haha times were so good back then

As a lifelong fan of the original TV series, I have seen this film twice, once under duress. That was two times too many.

I feel like I just woke up in a parallel universe because I've never heard of this movie, never seen it referenced or reviewed and I used to watch reruns of the show growing up not to mention I thought I'd seen most of Bill Paxton's work... good and bad. How have I never heard of this movie!? Bad ones become more popular than most of the great ones!

Used to be one of my favorite movies

A fair review. The movie was - for me - a guilty pleasure. I watched the Thunderbirds as a 5-year old in the late 60s and it was my favorite show (unti Star Trek TOS came along). I still love the show, the concept, the music and the vehicles. I wanted a more serious adaptation on the big screen, but just hearing the music and seeing the Thunderbirds on screen was a treat. Of course, when the original series was recreated as an animated series I got the best of both worlds: New Thunderbirds episodes with up-to-date special effects supplied by Weta Workshop. I know the 2004 movie wasn't great, but it was the Thunderbirds...and the scene where T1 takes off and the puppet hand (complete with wires) takes the controls makes me smile every time.

Jonathan Frakes also cast his wife Genie Francis as the reporter... And they are still together to this day. Despite him putting her in Thunderbirds.

I was just talking about this movie the other day with my dad and how we could barely remember anything about it. However it had a banging music video!

Thunderbirds has the benefit of being extremely toy-etic. You can tell that the movie was designed to sell toys, rather than actually show any care for the source material (which ended up advertising the toys even better than the movie did). If they'd just gone the Marvel route and kept the intended audience as older, they'd have had something special on their hands, but instead they aimed it at the pre-teens with a weird form of wish fulfillment and the goofy sound stingers and effects. It's not awful, but it ain't great either. It acts both as if people are intimately familiar with the series, yet also panders to the newbies. It goes for odd fan service moments when showing off some of the Rescue vehicles, but never actually gives any of them any reverence except for maybe Thunderbirds 2 and 3 (and 5 gets absolutely fucked before it even gets to be properly established.) Also props to Doctor Who for having Penny & Parker' actors in Series 2 as Madame De Pompadour and Mr. Magpie, both great performances for them there as well.

I honestly missed this movie when it came out. I vaguely remember it now. lol

How did they find an actor who looks that much like Parker’s marionette?

Busted making a song for the movie was a wise move. Their song is the only reason why I watched the film

I often get this film mixed up with the fantastic 4 film they feel like they exist in the same universe. Might just be the London final scenes.

love the fast show quote

I have no memory of this. I hear you sometimes blank out trauma.

I actually rewatched this a lot back then😅

Since he was Knighted, Ben Kingsley insists that everyone call him "Sir Ben", and his career, well ...

This was the first DVD my family ever owned and I've watched this movie more times than I can count. I absolutely get all of the criticism but this was undeniably a huge part of my childhood.

Unfortunate that I missed the screensaver on the deluxe cut of a movie that I'm glad I have never seen. It is proposed that ST Voyager is a Tom Paris origin story :-)

Ron Cook elevates every role he's in.

This movie was with much british humor and tea and soccer ❤

By the way, Comet TV runs Thunderbirds on Sunday mornings. I think that one of the most underrated achievements in the series was the audio work. You can make cool miniature sets and vehicles and explosions, but the sound effects are what sells it and allow you to suspend disbelief and enjoy the show on its own terms.

R.I.P Bill Paxton.

This movies amazing, childhood classic

The Movie was great. The starting credits and closing credits is brilliant. Thank you Riker. Sorry Mr. Frakes.

I enjoyed the film, even though it's not a patch on the 1960s TV series. As a way to pass some time on a weekend afternoon, it's a pleasant distraction, mostly for the Lady Penelope and Parker scenes. But the theme by Busted is great. How can you not love the line; "It always looks real cool, when spaceships come out of the pool"?

Shoutout to "Pisspool" Ted, a real one.

I watched this movie lots as a kid. I loved it but it’s hard to see why now. It has its merits though. Parker and Lady Penelope are fantastic and the Thunderbirds themselves look fantastic for what little of the movie they’re in. Honestly the bit I enjoy most is just seeing the brightly coloured early 2000s interpretations of the Thunderbird cockpits

I love this movie

Still love it.

I thought it was well executed. Tracy Island was a cool reimagining. Sophia Myles is easy on the eyes. And the Tracy Brothers were cool role models to any kid watching.

The look of the 60s puppets was clearly an influence on Clone Wars as well as Team America

I was unaware that a live-action "Thunderbirds" film had been made.

They have a 3D animation. The whole series is on RU-vid, legally, and free.

I tried finding this movie for a long time

Rolls Royce were asked about FAB 1 and said, "pass".

I watched this a lot when I was about 10, and I thought it was awesome. I know it gets a lot more criticism these days, but I can still find some enjoyment out of it (after all, it was my introduction to the amazing Ben Kingsley).

I waited over 30 years for a blockbuster live action Thunderbirds movie and 20 years later on I'm still waiting!

i was very excited about this film when it came out, i didn't hate it but it disappointed. oh well. great review, thanks for sharing!

Phew... for a moment there I didn't think you would get Sophia Miles' two best points into the review; but you redeemed yourself in the end 😂

I love this movie, more than the show!

But why is this video funnier than the movie 😅

2:22 He said 'champing'... HE CORRECTLY SAID 'CHAMPING' !!! 🏆🏆🏆🏆💰💰⭐⭐⭐🌈🥲

It’s amazing I have see the puppet thunderbirds but never even knew there was a live action version.

Man, what I would do for you to review Terrahaws. It was my jam as a kid