Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)

Despite being an acceptable age to have watched "Pee-wee's Playhouse" regularly in childhood, I never saw a complete episode. It didn't bother me; it just didn't draw me in much for whatever reason. By the time I knew about the innuendo catering to older viewers, it was long off the air. My main exposure to the character of Pee-wee Herman (as opposed to Paul Reubens in general) was Big Top Pee-wee, which, while panned, didn't bother me for one viewing either.

So why would I care enough to see another Pee-wee movie at this point? Well, an acquaintance called it Tim Burton's most underrated film (it was his first silver screen feature, so no wonder people rarely associate him with it), and I agreed with said acquaintance that Batman was his most overrated. Beyond that, people kept making reference to PwBA online, if only for one particular scene and a loose comparison to Bicycle Thieves. At 91 minutes, the last several of which I'd caught on TV once, it could serve as a pretty painless session in cultural education.

It is not much like "PwP" or BTPw. There are no living objects, talking animals, or magical plants. Very few moments push the premises from mere goofiness to outright fantasy. In fact, I realized that if Pee-wee almost never spoke in this picture (a change I wouldn't mind), he'd be an American Mr. Bean: a manchild in a gray suit and red tie, charismatic only in perkiness, bumbling thru a paper-thin episodic plot.

OK, one key difference is that Mr. Bean would always be the only clown in the room. Pee-wee meets many exaggerated characters along the way, whether in his hometown or far away on his quest to recover a stolen bike. The most memorable of these is Large Marge (no, size is not her most defining attribute), star of the one particular scene I mentioned earlier. She feels out of place, more chilling than funny, as if to hint at the kind of movie that Burton really wanted to make. The only other remotely scary parts are Pee-wee's nightmares, which do manage a little more absurdity than his waking hours.

Alas, I see why people rarely talk about any other scenes. Burton either had his hands too tied or was still finding himself. Only a couple lines have the slightest suggestive undercurrent that I noticed, so it really is more of a kiddie flick. And for all the silliness, the movie rarely takes anything far enough for my genuine amusement. A lot of elements suggest that there must have been more planned before cutting. For example, Pee-wee buys a boomerang bow tie but never uses it -- not even in a demo! Had I rented a disc rather than streaming, I'd check for extras.

Indeed, DVD is probably your best bet for making PwBA worth your time as an adult. As it is, I stopped as soon as I recognized familiar footage.