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Life After the Navigator (2020)
Don't just watch this. OWN it on Blu-Ray!
If you're reading this, you're probably already a big fan of the '80s cult classic Flight of the Navigator. And if you're a big fan of the movie, you absolutely must watch this documentary! Even better, buy it on Blu-Ray!
Like you, I read the news article on Joey Cramer's arrest a few years back (was absolutely shocked!), and then scrolled through his Wikipedia to find more info. At the time his Wikipedia page was bare bones, and there really wasn't any other source for more info on him or the movie. Cue Life After the Navigator.
This documentary amply fills in the blanks on what happened between 1986 and 2016. But more interesting, to me at least, was learning the behind the scenes aspects of the movie. This doc does a great job balancing the troubling life of Joey Cramer with background stories and tidbits from the original cast and crew.
If I have one critique it's that it didn't get into as much detail of the bank robbery as I would have liked (was he really wearing a wig? Did he have a gun? How much money did he get? Did he spend it all? What did he spend it on?). To be fair, Joey offers enough disconcerting personal anecdotes, and perhaps the media made this a much bigger story than it actually was (after all, this happened at a small bank in Canada and wasn't a Heat-style bank robbery). That said, kudos for Joey for his candor!
A huge question I've always had for the past 5 or 10 years was, "is the original ship actually atop a soda stand at Disney World?" No spoiler alerts, but the director does answer that question! (I don't recall if it's in the actual documentary or the bonus features on the Blu-Ray).
Fun fact:
My favorite quote of the movie:
"So until you can tell me something that makes one ounce of sense, then we're all going home, and that's all there is to it."
"Right on, Dad!"
Don't ask me why, but I've always laughed and cheered on Bill and Jeff Freeman every time I watch that scene.
A more fun fact:
To this day I still get freaked out when I watch the scene when Detective Banks brings Joey home and his parents are older. When I was younger, I thought "if that ever happened to me, I'd hope there was a detective like that to help me out." That character seemed like the only trustworthy person at that point in the movie and had a calming presence. Anyway, I attended the reunion screening in November 2019 at the Egyptian Theater and while I was outside the doors I saw the same actor, Raymond Forchion, walk past me on the cell phone. Actually, it was dark so I heard his voice first and immediately recognized it! I honestly had no idea he (or anyone else) was going to be there.
And if you're still reading:
I met Raymond Forchion after the movie and he was so nice! Just like in the movie! He introduced himself to me and we chatted a bit. What a fun night.
Anyway, buy this movie!