The Rocketeer (1991)

A young pilot stumbles onto a prototype jetpack that allows him to become a high flying masked hero.

Director:

Joe Johnston

Writers:

Dave Stevens (graphic novel "The Rocketeer"), Danny Bilson (story)

Stars:

Billy Campbell, Jennifer Connelly, Alan Arkin

1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Billy Campbell	...	Cliff (as Bill Campbell)
Jennifer Connelly	...	Jenny
Alan Arkin	...	Peevy
Timothy Dalton	...	Neville Sinclair
Paul Sorvino	...	Eddie Valentine
Terry O'Quinn	...	Howard Hughes
Ed Lauter	...	Fitch
James Handy	...	Wooly
Robert Miranda	...	Spanish Johnny (as Robert Guy Miranda)
John Lavachielli	...	Rusty
Jon Polito	...	Bigelow
Eddie Jones	...	Malcolm
William Sanderson	...	Skeets
Don Pugsley	...	Goose
Nada Despotovich	...	Irma

Storyline

Straight from the pages of a pulp comic from a past era, the Rocketeer recreates 1930's Hollywood, complete with gangsters, Nazi spies, and the growth of the Age of Aviation. Young pilot Cliff Secord stumbles on a top secret rocket-pack and with the help of his mechanic/mentor, Peevy, he attempts to save his girl and stop the Nazis as The Rocketeer.

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Plot Keywords:

dieselpunk | jet pack | 1930s | based on comic book | superhero | 

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Taglines:

An Ordinary Man Forced to Become An Extraordinary Hero.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Family | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

21 June 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rocketeer

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,600,754, 23 June 1991, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$46,704,056

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Silver Screen Partners IV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During filming, the scenes involving Jenny with Neville Sinclair (as background in the dueling scene and when they are dining at the South Seas Club) followed each other in the shooting schedule. If you look closely, Jennifer Connelly has a sty in her left eye that a doctor had to lance, so that the schedule would not be disrupted.

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Goofs

There are numerous times when the rocket pack exhaust should have burned pants, bed sheets, vegetation, interior walls, truck beds, and many other items.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Peevy: [as they bring the Gee Bee out for its maiden flight] Keep her straight, keep her level. It's your first time up, so don't do anything interesting.
Cliff Secord: Who, me?
Peevy: And remember, she stalls out at about a hundred. So keep the air speed up. Otherwise, you're gonna be drifting around all over the sky. And if the ailerons start to shimmy...
Cliff Secord: Peevy, I have flown a plane or two in my life.
Peevy: Not like this one, you haven't. This one's... This one's a handful. You sneeze in this thing and you're ...
[...]

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Connections

References The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

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Soundtracks

DRUM MAJORETTE
Written and Performed by Arnold Steck

User Reviews

Into the Wild Blue Yonder

This movie has the tendency to fly off the screen at you, especially if you saw it on the big screen like I did. I was 9 years old when the Rocketeer came out, and after seeing it I couldn't help but day dream about flying, and winning over the girl. Of course I tended to have the same day dreams after watching Superman the movie. But this film is a little different. It seemed more believable to me, as a kid, in that it incorporated some semi historical facts with the story line. I believe it to be one of Disney's finnest films, perhaps a modern epic. It's one of those films you've got to watch at least once a year. However I do have a question concerning it, "How did the Rocketeer manage with all those flames blasting at his ass?"