1966 film directed by David Lane
Thunderbirds Are Go
|
---|
![A bold title in the centre of the image reads "Thunderbirds Are Go". A top caption spanning the width of this colourful film poster reads "Their First Big-Screen Adventure In Colour!" Between the title and the caption, three rocket-shaped vehicles – one blue, one green and one red – appear to blast outwards from the poster itself. Other images lining the sides of the poster include an exotic pink car, a snake-like rock creature apparently shooting fire from its mouth and, at the base, portraits of some of the principal cast members, who are marionette puppets.](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/52/Thunderbirds_Are_Go_poster.jpg/220px-Thunderbirds_Are_Go_poster.jpg) UK film poster
|
Directed by
| David Lane
|
---|
Screenplay by
| Gerry
&
Sylvia Anderson
|
---|
Based on
| Thunderbirds
by Gerry & Sylvia Anderson
|
---|
Produced by
| Sylvia Anderson
|
---|
Starring
| |
---|
Cinematography
| |
---|
Edited by
| Len Walter
|
---|
Music by
| Barry Gray
|
---|
Production
companies
| |
---|
Distributed by
| United Artists
|
---|
Release date
|
- 12 December 1966
(
1966-12-12
)
[1]
[2]
[3]
|
---|
Running time
| 93 minutes
|
---|
Country
| United Kingdom
|
---|
Language
| English
|
---|
Budget
| £250,000
[4]
[5]
[6]
|
---|
Thunderbirds Are Go
is a 1966 British
science-fiction
puppet film based on
Thunderbirds
, a
Supermarionation
television series created by
Gerry
and
Sylvia Anderson
and produced by their company
Century 21 Productions
. Written by the Andersons and directed by
David Lane
,
Thunderbirds Are Go
concerns spacecraft
Zero-X
and its
human mission to Mars
. When
Zero-X
suffers a malfunction during
re-entry
, it is up to life-saving organisation International Rescue, supported by its technologically-advanced
Thunderbird
machines
, to activate the trapped crew's
escape pod
before the spacecraft hits the ground.
Filmed between March and June 1966 at Century 21's studios on the
Slough Trading Estate
and on location in Portugal,
Thunderbirds Are Go
features guest appearances by puppet versions of
Cliff Richard
and
The Shadows
, who also contributed to the film's score. It was the first film to be shot using an early form of
video assist
called "Add-a-Vision". The film's
special effects
sequences, directed by
Derek Meddings
, took six months to complete.
Although early reviews praised the film as a successful cinematic transfer of the TV series,
Thunderbirds Are Go
drew a lukewarm public response and proved to be a box office failure. Later reviews would criticise the film for its minimal characterisation, lengthy effects shots, and inclusion of a fantasy
dream sequence
centring on Richard and The Shadows. Surprised by the film's underperformance, and confident that
Thunderbirds
still had cinematic potential, distributors
United Artists
ordered a sequel,
Thunderbird 6
. However, this too received a mediocre critical and commercial response and caused the franchise to be abandoned until the early 2000s.
Zero-X
later appeared in the
first episode
of
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
, the Andersons' follow-up to
Thunderbirds
, while tie-in publication
TV Century 21
ran a
Zero-X
comic strip until 1969.
Plot
[
edit
]
In 2065,
[7]
the first
human mission to Mars
is launched from Glenn Field in the form of the spacecraft
Zero-X
. Unknown to Captain Travers and his four-man crew, master criminal the
Hood
has stowed away on board to photograph
Zero-X
'
s wing mechanism. Shortly after lift-off, the Hood inadvertently traps his foot in the craft's hydraulics, jamming them and causing
Zero-X
to go out of control. As the astronauts eject in the
escape pod
, the Hood extracts his crushed foot and parachutes to safety from the
undercarriage
.
Zero-X
crashes into the ocean and explodes.
In 2067,
[7]
[8]
[Note 1]
the Inquiry Board of the Space Exploration Center concludes that
Zero-X
was sabotaged. Meanwhile, a second
Zero-X
has been built and another mission to Mars planned. International Rescue agrees to provide security at the launch given the possibility of further sabotage.
Jeff Tracy
dispatches
Scott
to Glenn Field in
Thunderbird 1
to monitor the situation from the ground, while
Virgil
and
Alan
are assigned to escort
Zero-X
through the atmosphere in
Thunderbirds 2
and
3
. Posing as a reporter at the pre-launch press conference,
Lady Penelope
arranges for each member of the crew to wear a
St Christopher
brooch with a concealed
homing device
. On launch day, Dr Grant's device is no longer registering, even though Grant is on board
Zero-X
awaiting lift-off. Scott unmasks "Grant" as the Hood in disguise. The Hood flees Glenn Field in a car, pursued by Penelope and
Parker
in
FAB 1
. Reaching the coast, he transfers to a speedboat and then a helicopter. Parker shoots down the helicopter with FAB 1's machine gun.
[Note 2]
Meanwhile, the kidnapped Grant is found and returned to
Zero-X
and the spacecraft is launched without further incident.
Mission complete, Penelope invites Scott and Virgil to join her at popular nightclub The Swinging Star. Returning to Tracy Island, Alan feels unappreciated when Jeff insists that he stay at base while the others spend the night partying. Asleep in bed, Alan has a surreal dream in which he and Penelope travel to another Swinging Star located in space. Appearing at the nightclub are
Cliff Richard
Jr and
the Shadows
, who perform a song called "Shooting Star" and an
instrumental
called "Lady Penelope". The dream ends when Alan falls out of The Swinging Star and back to Earth, waking to discover that he has merely fallen out of bed.
After a six-week flight,
Zero-X
reaches Mars on 22 July and all of the astronauts except Space Navigator Newman touch down on the planet in their
lander
, the Martian Excursion Vehicle (MEV). Investigating the surface, the men are puzzled to find strange, coil-like rock formations. Space Captain Martin destroys one of the structures with the MEV's gun and Dr Pierce prepares to go outside to collect samples. The other structures come to life, revealing themselves to be one-eyed rock snakes. The aliens bombard the MEV with fireballs from their mouths, forcing the astronauts to take off prematurely. Docking with Newman in orbit, they start back to Earth.
As
Zero-X
re-enters
Earth's atmosphere on 2 September,
lifting body
no 2 fails to connect with the spacecraft due to a radio control fault, and damages various systems, including flight control and the escape pod circuit. With the astronauts unable to eject and
Zero-X
set to impact on Craigsville, Florida (pop 4,800),
[Note 3]
Jeff launches Scott and
Brains
in
Thunderbird 1
and Virgil, Alan and
Gordon
in
Thunderbird 2
. Craigsville is evacuated. Lifted into
Zero-X
'
s undercarriage, Alan repairs the escape circuit under Brains' guidance. Seconds before impact, Alan completes his task and jumps out as the astronauts eject. The empty
Zero-X
crashes into Craigsville. Picked up by Penelope and Parker in FAB1, Alan is driven to the real Swinging Star where Penelope, joined by the Tracy family, Brains and
Tin-Tin
, toast Alan as a hero.
Production
[
edit
]
I tried to keep the stories believable, if only for that particular moment. Of all the planets, the only one that might possibly sustain life was Mars, so, with everybody in science fiction wanting to talk about aliens or another race, Mars was the only planet that made any sense. Right up until the Americans
landed the probe on Mars
, there was speculation that there might be life there.
— Gerry Anderson on the film's premise
[6]
When filming on Series One of
Thunderbirds
ended in late 1965,
Gerry Anderson
and his financial backer,
Lew Grade
, agreed that a feature film would be the next logical step in expanding the
Thunderbirds
franchise.
[4]
[9]
With
United Artists
contracted to distribute, a budget of £250,000 (about £6.11 million in 2023) was set and Anderson and his wife,
Sylvia
, began work on the script at their second home in Portugal.
[4]
[5]
[6]
[10]
[11]
The couple decided to base the film on the American-Soviet "
Space Race
" ? in particular the race to land astronauts on the
Moon
? but adapt this premise for the futuristic world of
Thunderbirds
by switching the location to Mars.
[5]
[10]
During the
pre-production
of their next puppet series,
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
, they would write in a second appearance of the
Zero-X
as a link to
Thunderbirds
.
[12]
Like
Thunderbirds Are Go
,
Captain Scarlet
depicts hostile
life on Mars
, though the
Mysterons
of the TV series pose a greater threat than the "Rock Snakes" of the film in that they strike at Earth itself.
[10]
The rescue of
Zero-X
is similar to that of
Fireflash
in the
Thunderbirds
episode "
Operation Crash-Dive
".
[10]
Frustrated with the limitations of the puppets and concerned that the TV series would not transfer well to the big screen,
Alan Pattillo
declined to direct the film.
[4]
[13]
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]
The role was instead given to 24-year-old
David Lane
, who had directed several of the TV episodes.
[4]
[13]
[14]
[15]
This made Lane the UK's youngest film director at the time.
[13]
The
dream sequence
set at The Swinging Star was spearheaded by Sylvia, who expanded it by scripting a musical interlude performed by puppet versions of
Cliff Richard
and
The Shadows
.
[9]
[18]
Richard and Shadows band member
Bruce Welch
both owned homes in Portugal near the Andersons, and it was there that the two agreed to "appear" in the film as Supermarionation puppets.
[11]
[20]
[21]
Having also agreed to contribute to the film's score, Richard and The Shadows recorded a song titled "Shooting Star" and an
instrumental
titled "Lady Penelope".
[9]
[18]
Sylvia acknowledged that the dream sequence does not advance the plot, noting in her autobiography that it was "sheer indulgence that would not have been possible on our television budget."
[22]
Stephen La Riviere
, author of
Supermarionation: A History of the Future
, regards the sequence as the strangest ever created for an Anderson production.
[21]
Voice cast
[
edit
]
Voice actor
|
Characters voiced
|
Peter Dyneley
|
Jeff Tracy
|
Shane Rimmer
|
Scott Tracy
|
Jeremy Wilkin
|
Virgil Tracy
, Space Colonel Harris, Washington Control
|
Matt Zimmerman
|
Alan Tracy
, Messenger
|
David Graham
|
Gordon Tracy
,
Brains
,
Parker
, Glenn Field Police Officer
|
Ray Barrett
|
John Tracy
, The
Hood
, Commander Casey
|
Sylvia Anderson
|
Lady Penelope
, Goldstone Tracking Station
|
Christine Finn
|
Tin-Tin Kyrano
|
Paul Maxwell
|
Captain Travers
|
Alexander Davion
|
Space Captain Martin
|
Bob Monkhouse
|
Space Navigator Newman, Swinging Star Announcer
|
Neil McCallum
|
Dr Pierce
|
Charles Tingwell
|
Dr Grant, PR Officer, Board Member, Woomera Tracking Station
|
Cliff Richard
|
Cliff Richard Jr
|
The Shadows
|
Themselves
|
The Tracys, the other inhabitants of
Tracy Island
,
Lady Penelope
,
Parker
and the
Hood
are voiced, with one exception, by the actors who voiced them in Series One of
Thunderbirds
. Voice actors introduced in
Thunderbirds Are Go
are:
- Jeremy Wilkin
as
Virgil Tracy
.
David Holliday
, the original voice of Virgil, had returned to the United States following the completion of
Thunderbirds
Series One.
[9]
[11]
[23]
[24]
For the films and Series Two, the character was voiced by Wilkin.
[11]
[23]
Wilkin would continue his association with the Andersons for several years, going on to voice supporting characters in
Captain Scarlet
,
Joe 90
and
The Secret Service
and appear in the live-action productions
Doppelganger
,
UFO
and
The Protectors
.
[23]
[25]
- Paul Maxwell
as Captain Paul Travers. Having previously voiced Steve Zodiac in
Fireball XL5
, Maxwell later provided uncredited guest character voices in
Thunderbirds
Series Two, portrayed Captain Grey in
Captain Scarlet
, and made an appearance on
UFO
.
[26]
- Alexander Davion
as Space Captain Greg Martin. Davion later appeared in an episode of
UFO
.
[27]
- Bob Monkhouse
as Space Navigator Brad Newman. Monkhouse would host the game show
The Golden Shot
from 1967 to 1972.
[26]
[27]
The role of Newman was first given to
Alfred Marks
, who then withdrew due to a fee dispute. Monkhouse originally approached Gerry Anderson to ask his permission to film a comedy sketch parodying
Stingray
but ended up agreeing to replace Marks.
[11]
[27]
[28]
Monkhouse recalled the conversation: "[Anderson] said, 'How much would you charge for the job?' I said, 'Gerry, I'd do it for nothing.' And that was the first time I ever heard the phrase, '
the price is right
'."
[27]
He adopted an American accent for the film.
[14]
- Neil McCallum
as Dr Ray Pierce. McCallum's later credits include appearances in
Captain Scarlet
,
UFO
and
The Protectors
.
[27]
- Charles Tingwell
as Dr Tony Grant. Known for his role as Alan Dawson in the medical drama
Emergency ? Ward 10
, Tingwell was approached by the Andersons on the recommendation of
Ray Barrett
.
[29]
Like Paul Maxwell, he provided uncredited guest character voices in
Thunderbirds
Series Two, as well as providing voices in
Captain Scarlet
and making a guest appearance in
UFO
.
[26]
- Cliff Richard
as Cliff Richard Jr. Cast in Portugal, where he owned a house "next-door-but-one" to the Andersons, Richard was "thrilled" to be involved in the film, in which he (with
The Shadows
) performs the song "Shooting Star" during a dream sequence.
[20]
[27]
He has fond memories of his Supermarionation puppet: "It was quite a hoot ... I was never really sure if I looked like my puppet or it looked like me."
[27]
[30]
Shadows members
Brian Bennett
,
Hank Marvin
,
John Rostill
and
Bruce Welch
are depicted in marionette form, but have no dialogue.
[30]
Filming
[
edit
]
The advantages were great. All members of the unit could now study the set-up and watch rehearsals without having to move the camera operator, saving a lot of his time because he could then concentrate on his job without continual interruption from the director,
continuity girl
, art director and other technicians wanting to look through the camera.
— Gerry Anderson on the benefits of Add-a-Vision
[31]
Pre-production
lasted three months and a 16-week
shooting schedule
was drawn up to coincide with the filming of
Thunderbirds
Series Two.
[4]
Principal photography
began on 3 March 1966 and ended in late June.
[6]
[13]
[32]
[33]
The staff at
AP Films
were divided into "A" and "B" units: A to shoot the film and B the TV episodes.
[4]
[34]
To accommodate its increased workload, APF bought two additional buildings near its site on the
Slough Trading Estate
, combining these with the pre-existing puppet workshop,
art department
building and publicity centre to form a production base of five buildings.
[4]
[5]
[35]
Converted by January 1966, one of these former factory units contained puppet stages while the other incorporated a single large
sound stage
on which all of the film's model and effects work would be completed.
[4]
[5]
Thunderbirds Are Go
was filmed in
Techniscope
with a
2.35:1
widescreen aspect ratio.
[13]
The possibility of using
anamorphic lenses
was rejected as
depth of field
problems made them unsuitable for effects shots.
[14]
[15]
Techniscope, on the other hand, used
spherical lenses
but still produced a cinematic "
letterbox
" image.
[14]
[15]
All APF productions up to this point had been filmed on
Arriflex
cameras, but for the film these were replaced with
Mitchells
.
[15]
The film was the first to be shot using a
video assist
technology called the Livingston Electronic Viewfinder Unit.
[9]
[13]
[31]
Also known as "Add-a-Vision", this system comprised a
viewfinder
that relayed images from the shooting camera to video monitors elsewhere in the studio.
[9]
[13]
[31]
This allowed the crew to examine newly filmed footage live on set and in better quality than before.
[9]
[13]
[15]
[31]
Add-a-Vision also helped the puppet operators, who were stationed on gantries several feet above the studio floor and could not easily monitor the puppets' movements.
[32]
[31]
In addition, the system incorporated a playback function for viewing
rushes
.
[9]
[13]
[15]
[31]
Based on German video assist technology, Add-A-Vision was developed by
Thunderbirds
director of photography
John Read
in collaboration with Prowest Electronics.
[15]
[31]
To improve the look of the puppets, director David Lane often kept tops of heads and control wires out of shot and incorporated
low-angle shots
for dramatic effect.
[14]
[36]
The background shots for Alan's rescue of the
Zero-X
crew were originally filmed
on location
in Portugal but were judged unsatisfactory and replaced with a painted backdrop created by
associate producer
Reg Hill
.
[20]
[21]
[31]
[8]
The location shoot also included filming a
point-of-view
"spiral shot" for the end of Alan's dream in which the character plunges back to Earth.
[20]
[21]
[31]
To achieve this, a helicopter carried the crew to a height of about 5,000 feet (1,500 m) above an island off the Portuguese coast, then the pilot allowed the aircraft to "autogyro" downwards while camera operator Alan Perry filmed the island looming up from below.
[20]
[31]
[37]
However, this shot was also deemed inadequate and replaced with footage of a model version built at APF Studios in Slough.
[31]
[37]
Puppets
[
edit
]
The puppets of
The Shadows
perform "Shooting Star" on top of
FAB 1
in space as part of Alan's dream.
Promising
Television Mail
that
Thunderbirds Are Go
would be "bigger and better than anything we have ever done before", Gerry Anderson realised that any design flaws that showed up on the big screen would not be forgiven as quickly as those on TV.
[4]
[13]
[34]
[38]
The puppets were therefore expertly revamped, with new paint, wigs and costumes.
[11]
[13]
Models and sets were re-built from scratch with greater attention to detail.
[13]
[38]
Over the course of the production, APF's puppet wardrobe was expanded to include more than 700 costumes, with 150 extra costumes made as spares.
[39]
Some of the established characters, including
Scott Tracy
, were re-sculpted from the original puppets, while guest characters, such as the
Zero-X
crew, were entirely new creations.
[38]
The guest character puppets of the TV series had had faces made of
Plasticine
that had been re-modelled for each appearance. This approach was largely abandoned for the film: as some of the puppets would be representing real-life celebrities, a decision was made to build most of the supporting characters in
fibreglass
to the same standards of workmanship as the main puppets.
[10]
[11]
[34]
[40]
[41]
As with Scott Tracy, the puppet playing Captain Travers was modelled on
Sean Connery
.
[13]
[42]
[43]
[44]
The film puppets had the same body proportions as their TV predecessors. As filming progressed, APF developed a new prototype puppet with an
animatronic
mouth to produce more realistic lip and jaw movement.
[45]
However, the results proved unsatisfactory and the idea was abandoned.
[45]
For its next TV series,
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
, APF would introduce a brand-new puppet design that used natural proportions, made possible by moving the internal
lip-sync
mechanism from the head to the chest.
[45]
The puppets of the sequel film
Thunderbird 6
were designed as a compromise between the two generations, with increased realism and less overt caricature.
[46]
[47]
Set design
[
edit
]
I had to insist on just tangerine and black, continually assuring [the art department] that it would look effective. As a producer, I was entitled to do it my way and, although I do not think Bob [Bell] ever really approved, I stuck to my concept. The result was quite a stunning sequence that stood out for its simplicity and economy of colour.
— Sylvia Anderson on the conference room design
[22]
The art department directors,
Bob Bell
and
Keith Wilson
, divided their efforts: Wilson worked on Series Two while Bell concentrated on the film. Sets that Bell made for the film included the Glenn Field Control Tower and news conference room, the Swinging Star interiors, and re-designed versions of various locations on
Tracy Island
.
[27]
The
set design
for the Space Exploration Center conference room was heavily influenced by producer Sylvia Anderson, who insisted on a tangerine and black colour scheme in vivid contrast with the blue of the SEC officials' uniforms.
[22]
[32]
[36]
Filming of the conference room scene involved the simultaneous operation of 20 puppets, a feat that APF could not have achieved on a TV budget.
[1]
Lane commented: "
Thunderbirds Are Go
was done like an episode but on a bigger scale. Whereas we would think that it might be nice to do a particular shot on the series but couldn't afford to, with
Thunderbirds Are Go
we just did it because we had the money."
[1]
In the Swinging Star scenes, background characters are represented by enlarged black-and-white photographs.
[36]
Anderson compared these scenes to a "
Busby Berkeley
sequence" due to their
surrealism
, aspects of which include a giant guitar and pink "space clouds" composed of
dry ice
.
[22]
[28]
She stated that the appearance of real-life celebrities in puppet form helped the film's promotion.
[28]
Special effects
[
edit
]
Derek Meddings
' seven-foot (2.1 m) model of
Zero-X
as seen in the launch sequence at the start of the film. Note the widescreen aspect ratio.
Derek Meddings
and his team of 28 technicians filmed the special effects shots in six months.
[48]
[49]
The main effects pieces were the
Zero-X
launch sequences, new
Thunderbird
launch sequences, the car chase involving
FAB 1
and the
Hood
, the Swinging Star scenes, the sequences set on the Martian surface, and the destruction of
Zero-X
.
[27]
Over 300 of the film's effects used
scale models
.
[37]
The crew took advantage of the considerable space inside the new effects building to experiment with
low-angle shots
and other, more inventive camera angles.
[36]
Building new models of the
Thunderbird
machines was especially problematic in the case of
Thunderbird 2
, as Meddings explained: "Unfortunately, its replacement was not only the wrong colour, it was a completely different shape. Although we had several more built in different scales, I never felt our model makers managed to re-capture the look of the original."
[34]
[50]
The
Zero-X
spacecraft, which was designed by Meddings, was built as a seven-foot-long (2.1 m), 50-pound (23 kg) fibreglass model at a cost of £2,500 (approximately £58,800 in 2023).
[11]
[20]
[36]
[51]
[52]
[53]
Although the model took months to build, all of its scenes, from launch to destruction, were completed in two days.
[20]
[31]
[52]
[54]
The cockpit was based on that of
Concorde
, a prototype of which was under construction at
Filton Airfield
in Bristol.
[14]
[21]
A
long shot
of the
Zero-X
lifting body exploding in Earth's atmosphere was the only effects work that was filmed outdoors; the shot was mounted on a gantry at a nearby power station against the actual sky, with
Cordtex
explosive strips, gunpowder,
naphtha
, magnesium and petroleum gel used to create a "fireball" effect.
[20]
[21]
[31]
[52]
The film's effects later became so well known in the industry that the crew of
James Cameron
's film
Aliens
(1986) used them for reference.
[37]
Editing
[
edit
]
In a deleted scene,
Alan
and
Brains
direct Jeff's televised speech.
Post-production
was completed in the autumn to allow the film to be released in time for Christmas.
[1]
The film was edited by Len Walter, who had previously worked on the TV series.
[1]
[55]
The
workprint
exceeded United Artists' maximum permitted running time by roughly 15 minutes, forcing Walter to cut a number of scenes that were inessential to the plot. Some of the
deleted scenes
concerned the SEC's attempts to persuade International Rescue to escort
Zero-X
. At the same time, the Hood telepathically contacts his half-brother
Kyrano
(voiced by
David Graham
), Jeff's retainer on Tracy Island, and forces him to disclose the Tracy family's intentions. With the removal of the latter scene, Kyrano was completely cut from the film. Other scenes saw Lady Penelope and Parker flying to Glenn Field aboard the
hypersonic
airliner
Fireflash
and Jeff Tracy making a speech to the world through the Trans American TV Network.
[8]
The deleted scenes are now considered lost, with only still photographs and brief footage surviving. One of the photographs, showing Brains and Alan standing behind a TV camera as Jeff prepares to make his speech, appeared as the cover of issue 35 of
FAB
magazine.
[56]
Another shows the Hood standing in his jungle temple with a
clapperboard
in front of him.
[57]
Footage from the Trans American TV Network sequence was later edited into the
Joe 90
episode "International Concerto".
[58]
Post-production
[
edit
]
With Walter's editing complete, composer
Barry Gray
recorded the score in six sessions between 9 and 11 October at
Anvil Studios
near Denham, Buckinghamshire.
[1]
[3]
[55]
The music was performed by a 70-piece orchestra supplemented by Gray's own
electronic
effects.
[2]
[3]
[59]
The
closing credits
are accompanied by footage of the
Royal Marines Band Service
performing the "Thunderbirds March"; this was filmed in a single morning at the Royal Marines School of Music in
Deal, Kent
, with the marines conducted by Lieutenant Colonel
Vivian Dunn
.
[2]
Three weeks were allotted for visual wrap-up work, minor animation, sound editing,
dubbing
and the creation of the opening titles.
[1]
[2]
The film was submitted to the
British Board of Film Censors
in November and given a
U certificate
.
[2]
[13]
The film's animated opening titles present the main puppet cast and are accompanied by the re-recorded version of the "Thunderbirds March". The closing credits include a number of
self-referential
acknowledgements to individuals and companies alleged to have contributed to the production, such as SEC chairman Space Colonel Harris, Glenn Field's Commander Casey and the Century 21 "Space Location Unit". The credits end with the humorous disclaimer: "None of the characters appearing in this photoplay intentionally resemble any persons living or dead ... since they do not yet exist!"
[8]
Release and reception
[
edit
]
It was a wonderful premiere and it was absolutely packed. Everybody cheered and I remember leaving the cinema and the manager said, "You get a picture like this and they start queuing up at four o'clock in the morning." We went back to the
Hilton
for a fabulous party, where they had made all the vehicles in ice. The head of
United Artists
said to me, "I don't know whether it's going to make more money than
Bond
or not, I can't decide" ... The next day, the
Dominion
at
Tottenham Court Road
had about ten people in it.
— Gerry Anderson on the premiere and initial public response
[60]
By December 1966, Lew Grade's attempts to sell
Thunderbirds
to American TV networks had failed. He instructed Gerry Anderson to cancel the production of
Thunderbirds
Series Two after only six episodes and begin preparations for
a new series
.
[9]
[61]
Around this time, APF was rebranded "
Century 21 Productions
"; this name was first carried by
Thunderbirds Are Go
to link the film to APF's tie-in comic
TV Century 21
.
[1]
[2]
The film was the first Anderson project to be promoted, in full, as a "Gerry Anderson Century 21 Production".
[2]
[3]
After a well-received test screening for United Artists executives,
Thunderbirds Are Go
premiered at the
London Pavilion
cinema on 12 December.
[1]
[2]
[3]
[16]
The premiere was held in aid of children's charity
Barnardo's
with the
Royal Marines Band Service
performing the "Thunderbirds March" both before and after the screening.
[37]
[60]
[62]
[63]
[64]
Critical response
[
edit
]
[Audiences] were watching a film that exuded the same inventive spark, witty flair and oddball scenarios as the series itself. Multiple plotting, a sprinkling of monsters and a pop fantasy sequence including
Cliff Richard
and
The Shadows
... were bolted on to the basic story of
Zero-X
, which would propel man to Mars for the very first time.
— John Marriott (1993)
[16]
The film's December 1966 release came amid what commentators dubbed the "
Thunderbirds
Christmas" ? a rush among retailers to sell
Thunderbirds
toys, games, books and other
tie-ins
.
[65]
An early review of the film in
Kine Weekly
described it as a "colourful extension" of the TV series, while the
News of the World
praised it for providing "breathtaking entertainment".
[66]
[67]
The
Sunday Express
was also positive, calling the concept of a Mars mission "awesome" and commending the film's visuals: "Of course, the cast are all puppets, the sets, models, and the story unabashed nonsense. But it's great all the same."
[3]
[68]
Elsewhere, the
Daily Mail
praised the puppets' big-screen transition: "So who needs people? These handsome, stiff-necked, shiny-faced
Thunderbirds
puppets have broken spectacularly out of black-and-white TV and on to the cinema screen."
[68]
Everything about
Thunderbirds Are Go
is visibly a technological progression from the TV programmes; the whole production looks more polished. The visual effects became more impressive ... The puppetry also developed. It became markedly more restrained ... now movement was more subtle and realistic, less puppet-like ... The set design had also matured ... all sets were now comparable with the slickest designs in live-action.
—
Stephen La Riviere
(2009)
[36]
The Andersons began a tour of the country to promote the film. Around this time, it became apparent that public interest was lukewarm and the box office revenue mediocre.
[3]
[60]
[62]
According to Gerry Anderson: "When we got off the plane at the first destination we were told that the film was in trouble. Cinemas were apparently half-full. When we got to the next big city we got more news that made us even more depressed ? box office figures were inexplicably low wherever we went."
[3]
He believed that
Thunderbirds
'
origins as a TV series weakened the film's chances of success: "The only thing we could think was that at that time the audience was not used to seeing a feature film version of a television show. So people would see
Thunderbirds
and think, 'We've seen it on television.'"
[66]
Sylvia Anderson had a similar explanation: "Although we still had our loyal television fans, they remained just that ? firmly seated in front of their television screens and not in the cinema."
[69]
Supermarionation historian Stephen La Riviere suggests that the film was also facing strong competition from an influx of family films including
Batman
and
Born Free
, as well as re-issues of
The Wizard Of Oz
(1939),
Mary Poppins
(1964) and
The Sound of Music
(1965).
[9]
[66]
Later reviews were less positive: while the
Slough Observer
described the film as "basically a
Technicolor
large-screen extension" of the TV series,
The Times
was critical, arguing that the TV-style storytelling and characterisation were too thin to sustain a feature film and that the frequent launch sequences were more for
padding
than visual appeal.
[66]
Alan
's subplot lends the film psychedelic colour and a welcome dose of human drama, but mostly,
Thunderbirds Are Go
is about the hardware ... [
Gerry
] Anderson and SFX designer Derek Meddings make the most of this cinema version's extra scope, filling the screen with bigger, shinier craft, while director [
David
] Lane has more time to linger on the intricate detailing of the phallic models before they're blown to smithereens in the film's explosive action sequences. For the techno-fetishist, it's positively hardcore.
—
Film4
review
[70]
Writer
John Peel
comments that
Thunderbirds Are Go
is "well-made" and fulfils its promise to deliver visual spectacle.
[71]
[72]
He considers it superior to its sequel,
Thunderbird 6
, but suggests that the plot is partly recycled from the TV episodes and describes the
dream sequence
as "painfully silly".
[71]
Both La Riviere and Peel believe that the
Thunderbird
machines
are underused.
[66]
[71]
La Riviere also suggests that the lengthy model shots and reduced role of the Tracy family may have disappointed the film's young target audience.
[66]
Jeff Stafford of
Turner Classic Movies
regards the film in its entirety as a "
pop culture
novelty as fascinating and endearing as a toy from one's childhood." He agrees that the effects sequences are protracted: "You'll feel yourself growing older as cranes and hydraulic lifts slowly ?
very
slowly ? prepare for a missile launch."
[73]
William Gallagher of
BBC Online
gives a positive review, calling
Thunderbirds Are Go
"every bit as good" as the TV series. However, he also suggests that
Thunderbirds
worked better on the small screen, writing of the film's content: "Certainly there's no greater profundity or universal theme to the film, it is just an extended episode." He rates
Thunderbirds Are Go
three stars out of five, as does the
Film4
website.
[70]
[74]
In 2024, the film had a 57% approval rating on
Rotten Tomatoes
.
[75]
Sequel
[
edit
]
Dismissing the film's critical and commercial failure as a stroke of bad luck,
United Artists
told Anderson to make a sequel:
Thunderbird 6
.
[9]
[13]
[60]
According to Anderson: "None of us ... could understand why the film hadn't succeeded, so it was decided we would make another one."
[76]
The Andersons deliberately wrote
Thunderbird 6
as a more light-hearted adventure.
[77]
However, the response to the second film was similarly lukewarm, spelling the end of
Thunderbirds
as a media franchise
[78]
[79]
until the release of the live-action film
Thunderbirds
nearly four decades later in 2004.
Other media
[
edit
]
Books and comics
[
edit
]
A novelisation by
Angus P. Allan
was released by
Armada Books
in 1966.
[42]
In addition,
TV Century 21
published a four-part "photographic picturisation" of the film narrating it from the perspective of the
Zero-X
crew.
[80]
After this, the publication printed
Zero-X
comic strips until 1969; these told the continuing adventures of the astronauts, once again led by Captain Travers, as they explored the rest of the Solar System and beyond aboard the
Zero-X
"Mark III".
[14]
[80]
[81]
A connection to
Captain Scarlet
was established in issues published between June and September 1967. In these issues, a follow-up expedition to Mars, led by
Captain Black
of the world security organisation Spectrum, ends in disaster when Black (as shown in the
first episode
of
Captain Scarlet
) falls under the control of the malevolent
Mysterons
.
Zero-X
returns to Earth and lands at Glenn Field, where the possessed Black avoids capture by the authorities.
[82]
[83]
Soundtrack and home video
[
edit
]
A re-recorded version of the score was released as a
vinyl record
by
United Artists
in 1967 and Silva Screen Records in 1987.
[42]
It was subsequently released on CD in 1990 with a re-release by
EMI
two years later.
[42]
[84]
In 2014, the original soundtrack recordings for
Thunderbirds are Go
and
Thunderbird 6
were released by La-La Land Records as a limited-edition CD.
[85]
Thunderbirds Are Go
was first released on DVD in 2001, in
Regions
2 and 4, by
MGM
.
[86]
[87]
In 2004, an "International Rescue Edition" was released; this was also available in Region 1 and was marketed both separately and as a
box set
with
Thunderbird 6
.
[88]
[89]
In 2014,
Twilight Time
(through its sub-licensing deal with MGM) released both films as a double feature
Blu-ray
set, limited to 3,000 copies and available only from the Screen Archives Entertainment website.
[90]
This set was re-released by
Kino Lorber
in 2017.
[91]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Though Jeff is shown to be reading a newspaper dated June
2066
, the Andersons intended this part of the film to be set in 2067 (Bentley 2008, p. 303).
- ^
Surviving the helicopter crash, the
Hood
returns in the sequel,
Thunderbird 6
, as the villainous Black Phantom (Bentley 2005, p. 98). In her
audio commentary
for the DVD release of
Thunderbird 6
,
Sylvia Anderson
said that Black Phantom is the Hood's son and is seeking to avenge his father's death.
- ^
Craigsville is located in Florida (Archer and Nicholls, p. 116; Archer and Hearn, p. 140) and background shots filmed in Portugal for the climax are intended to represent that area.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
Bentley 2005, p. 38.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
La Riviere, p. 142.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
Archer and Hearn, p. 144.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
Bentley 2005, p. 31.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
La Riviere, p. 131.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Archer and Hearn, p. 137.
- ^
a
b
Bentley 2005, p. 96.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Bentley 2008, p. 303.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
"Feature Film Productions"
.
fanderson.org.uk
.
Archived
from the original on 21 February 2008
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Archer and Nicholls, p. 115.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
Archer and Hearn, p. 138.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 59.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
n
o
Bentley 2008, p. 302.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
Archer and Hearn, p. 139.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
La Riviere, p. 133.
- ^
a
b
c
Supermarionation Classics
, p. 159.
- ^
Supermarionation Classics
, p. 180.
- ^
a
b
Anderson, p. 47.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
Archer and Nicholls, p. 116.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
La Riviere, p. 137.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Anderson, p. 67.
- ^
a
b
c
Bentley 2005, p. 33.
- ^
La Riviere, p. 139.
- ^
Bentley 2008, p. 307.
- ^
a
b
c
Bentley 2005, p. 34.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
Bentley 2005, p. 35.
- ^
a
b
c
La Riviere, p. 138.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 29.
- ^
a
b
FAB Facts: How Cliff Richard and the Shadows Came to be in Thunderbirds Are Go
. 11 December 2019 – via
YouTube
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
Archer and Hearn, p. 140.
- ^
a
b
c
Bentley 2005, p. 36.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 13.
- ^
a
b
c
d
La Riviere, p. 132.
- ^
Archer, p. 59.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
La Riviere, p. 135.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Archer and Nicholls, p. 117.
- ^
a
b
c
Bentley 2005, p. 32.
- ^
Anderson, p. 44.
- ^
Anderson, p. 25.
- ^
Anderson, p. 26.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Bentley 2005, p. 97.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 16.
- ^
Cull, Nicholas J.
(August 2006). "Was Captain Black Really Red? The TV Science Fiction of Gerry Anderson in its Cold War Context".
Media History
.
12
(2).
Routledge
: 206.
doi
:
10.1080/13688800600808005
.
ISSN
1368-8804
.
OCLC
364457089
.
S2CID
142878042
.
- ^
a
b
c
La Riviere, p. 151.
- ^
La Riviere, p. 168.
- ^
Bentley 2005, p. 40.
- ^
Anderson, p. 56.
- ^
Archer and Hearn, p. 141.
- ^
Meddings, p. 52.
- ^
La Riviere, p. 136.
- ^
a
b
c
Anderson, p. 59.
- ^
Archer, p. 28.
- ^
Archer, p. 29.
- ^
a
b
La Riviere, p. 141.
- ^
"Front cover".
FAB
. No. 35.
Fanderson
. p. 1.
- ^
Marriott, John (1992).
Thunderbirds Are Go!
. London, UK:
Boxtree
. p. 75.
ISBN
978-1-852831-64-6
.
- ^
Bentley, Chris (2003).
The Complete Gerry Anderson: The Authorised Episode Guide
. London, UK: Reynolds & Hearn. p. 122.
ISBN
978-1-903111-41-3
.
- ^
Anderson, p. 80.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Bentley 2005, p. 39.
- ^
Bentley 2005, p. 37.
- ^
a
b
Anderson, p. 103.
- ^
La Riviere, p. 143.
- ^
Archer and Hearn, p. 8.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 8.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
La Riviere, p. 144.
- ^
Archer, p. 88.
- ^
a
b
Archer and Nicholls, p. 118.
- ^
La Riviere, p. 176.
- ^
a
b
"Film4 Review"
.
film4.com
.
Archived
from the original on 21 July 2011
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
a
b
c
Peel, p. 244.
- ^
Peel, p. 242.
- ^
Stafford, Jeff.
"TCM Movie Database Review"
.
TCM Movie Database
. Archived from
the original
on 19 September 2012
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
Gallagher, William (8 September 2000).
"BBC Online Review"
.
BBC Online
.
Archived
from the original on 23 September 2004
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
"
Thunderbirds Are Go
"
.
Rotten Tomatoes
. Retrieved
24 February
2024
.
- ^
Archer and Hearn, p. 159.
- ^
Archer and Hearn, p. 160.
- ^
Bentley 2005, p. 41.
- ^
Archer and Hearn, p. 164.
- ^
a
b
"
Zero-X
:
TV Century 21
? 1967"
.
The Gerry Anderson Complete Comic History
. 1 September 2005. Archived from
the original
on 3 February 2008
. Retrieved
13 April
2010
.
- ^
"
Zero-X
:
TV21
? 1968"
.
The Gerry Anderson Complete Comic History
. 1 September 2005. Archived from
the original
on 4 February 2008
. Retrieved
13 April
2010
.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 101.
- ^
Bentley 2001, p. 102.
- ^
"
Thunderbirds Are Go
Soundtrack Listings"
.
soundtrackcollector.com
.
Archived
from the original on 25 June 2008
. Retrieved
13 April
2010
.
- ^
"La-La Land Records"
.
Thunderbirds Are Go/Thunderbird 6: Limited Edition Catalogue LLLCD 1306
.
Archived
from the original on 15 August 2014
. Retrieved
25 January
2015
.
- ^
"DVD.net DVD Review"
.
dvd.net.au
.
Archived
from the original on 1 August 2008
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
"Sci Fi Movie Page DVD Review"
.
scifimoviepage.com
.
Archived
from the original on 3 May 2008
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
"ReelFilm.com DVD Review"
.
reelfilm.com
. 23 July 2004.
Archived
from the original on 17 August 2007
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
"DVD Clinic DVD Review"
.
JoBlo.com
. Archived from
the original
on 27 January 2013
. Retrieved
10 April
2010
.
- ^
"DVDtalk.com BluRay Review"
.
DVD Talk
.
Archived
from the original on 18 August 2014
. Retrieved
25 January
2015
.
- ^
"
Thunderbirds Are Go
/
Thunderbird 6
Blu-ray"
.
Blu-ray.com
.
Archived
from the original on 5 October 2017
. Retrieved
8 June
2017
.
Works cited
[
edit
]
- Anderson, Sylvia
(2007).
Sylvia Anderson: My Fab Years!
. Neshannock, Pennsylvania:
Hermes Press
.
ISBN
978-1-932563-91-7
.
- Archer, Simon
(2004) [1993].
Gerry Anderson's FAB Facts: Behind the Scenes of TV's Famous Adventures in the 21st Century
. London, UK:
HarperCollins
.
ISBN
978-0-00-638247-8
.
- Archer, Simon; Hearn, Marcus (2002).
What Made Thunderbirds Go! The Authorised Biography of Gerry Anderson
. London, UK:
BBC Books
.
ISBN
978-0-563-53481-5
.
- Archer, Simon;
Nicholls, Stan
(1996).
Gerry Anderson: The Authorised Biography
. London, UK:
Legend Books
.
ISBN
978-0-09-922442-6
.
- Bentley, Chris (2001).
The Complete Book of Captain Scarlet
. London, UK:
Carlton Books
.
ISBN
978-1-84222-405-2
.
- Bentley, Chris (2005) [2000].
The Complete Book of Thunderbirds
(2nd ed.). London, UK: Carlton Books.
ISBN
978-1-84442-454-2
.
- Bentley, Chris (2008) [2001].
The Complete Gerry Anderson: The Authorised Episode Guide
(4th ed.). London, UK: Reynolds & Hearn.
ISBN
978-1-905287-74-1
.
- La Riviere, Stephen
(2009).
Filmed in Supermarionation: A History of the Future
. Neshannock, Pennsylvania: Hermes Press.
ISBN
978-1-932563-23-8
.
- Marriott, John (1993).
Supermarionation Classics: Stingray, Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
. Rogers, Dave; Drake, Chris; Bassett, Graeme. London, UK:
Boxtree
.
ISBN
978-1-85283-900-0
.
- Meddings, Derek
; Denham, Sam (1993).
21st Century Visions
. Surrey, UK:
Paper Tiger Books
.
ISBN
978-1-85028-243-3
.
- Peel, John
(1993).
Thunderbirds, Stingray, Captain Scarlet: The Authorised Programme Guide
. London, UK:
Virgin Books
.
ISBN
978-0-86369-728-9
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
|
Television series
| |
---|
Episodes co‑written
| |
---|
Television pilots
| |
---|
Feature films
| |
---|
Other projects
| |
---|
Family
| |
---|
Related media
| |
---|
‡ Credited as a
director
only.
(Credited as a
creator
or
producer
, sometimes in addition to other roles, on all later TV series.)
|
|
|
---|
Swashbucklers
(1954—1961)
| |
---|
Historical
(1957, 1978)
| |
---|
Contemporary crime/Spy-fi
(1958—1979)
| |
---|
Gerry Anderson productions
(1962—1975, 1980)
| |
---|
Films
(1971—1997)
| |
---|
Religious productions
(1976, 1977)
| |
---|
Jim Henson productions
(1976—1982)
| |
---|
Canadian co-productions
(1957—1965)
| |
---|
American co-productions
(1959—1971)
| |
---|