Viking Night: Pee-wee's Big Adventure
By Bruce Hall
September 28, 2016
BoxOfficeProphets.com

Ah, the man boy and his bike.
It’s not often that a film makes you feel like a kid again - without a shred of guilt.

Pee-wee’s Big Adventure is one of those films, and if you haven’t seen it before, you should. If you haven’t seen it in years, you definitely should. If you’ve seen it and didn’t like it, or were not affected by it in any way, then I’m sorry Mr. Putin. There’s nothing I can do for you.

Pee-wee Herman is based on the character created by comedian Paul Reubens back when we were sending C-list actors to the white house instead of megalomaniacal reality show hosts. Although you may or may not have heard of Reubens himself, you’ve undoubtedly heard of Pee-wee. I mentioned Reubens just last week at my day job and was met by blank stares until I uttered the words:

Pee-wee Herman?

Oh, that guy! Pee-wee is an amiable man-child, something like a cross between a ventriloquist’s dummy and your bratty nephew who’s lucky he’s only ten, otherwise someone might punch him in the face. Reubens hosted a popular stage act as the character, paving the way for an HBO special and eventually, a feature film. The idea was popular enough that several screen and television stars of the time agreed to appear in the film. The project would also mark the first collaboration of director Tim Burton and composer Danny Elfman.

Talk about everything falling into place. That’s better luck than being one of the guys who lent Bill Gates a couple thousand dollars to start that stupid computer company he was always babbling about. If that wasn’t enough, a direct result of this film’s success was Burton being allowed to make Beetlejuice, the success of which led to Batman, and an early legitimization of the superhero genre as a studio tentpole. That’s right. I’m saying that Pee-wee Herman invented the super-hero movie.

Or perhaps not, but I’m happy to toss that into the Internet rumor mill and watch it become someone’s reality.

Speaking of reality, you will find none of that in Pee-wee’s Big Adventure. The character himself was always a delicate mix of childlike wonder, to the extreme of a weird fetish. Pee-wee lives alone in a modest suburban home, lavishly appointed with all the trappings of pre-adolescence. He jumps on the bed when he wakes up, has Bambi carpet on the floor, and he talks to his adorable little dog in the way only a child can talk to an adorable little dog. He uses a Rube Goldberg machine to make his breakfast, which is both the first of many Burtonesque flourishes and something I’ve always wanted to do.

And yet, he takes almost Machiavellian glee in the high-tech security system he has installed to safeguard it all. There’s a duality to Pee-Wee; he’s filled with childlike wonder, but he has a fully developed sinister streak. Sure, he’s far too intellectually innocent to do anything truly mean with it; but it’s there, and it’s what makes the character as entertaining for adults as he is for children.

And of course, like every hero, he has one glaring weakness. His bike.

Pee-wee’s most prized possession is his bicycle. It’s a garish, bright red custom number that’s all swoops, streamers, blinking lights and hidden gadgets. If I were an 11-year-old trapped inside a 30-year-old, I would also have smiley face pancakes for breakfast every morning. I too would have a bike just like Pee-wee’s.

Yes, Pee-wee fawns over his bike like a jealous lover. Yes, he polishes it every morning and talks to it and locks it up with 30 feet of chain when he goes out. And yes, he’s so obsessed with it that he pretends not to notice the affections of Dottie (Elizabeth Daily), the girl who works at his favorite bike shop. What makes it amusing is the way Pee-wee seems to imply that while he is able to appreciate her in that way, having an actual girlfriend would totally clash with his vibe.

And you know what? I get that. I’m not sure what that makes me, but I think I get it. In any event, one fateful day, Pee-wee’s bike is stolen, and the third grade stream-of-consciousness that was his life comes to an end. The event causes some sort of anaphylactic response in Pee-wee. He immediately thinks he sees his bike everywhere, and he can’t stop obsessing over it. The police are powerless to help because to them, it’s just a damn bike.

But for Pee-wee, there’s no choice left but to go on a one man crusade to recover what his rightfully his. Wow. With a few minor alterations, this could be John Wick.

Or, it could be a weirdly pleasant, candy colored adventure into the world of a man so unashamedly self aware that you can’t help but love him. So let’s call it 99 percent of one and just a pinch of the other. It’s John Wick if John Wick was a spindly dork in a bowtie, and his best frenemy was a portly schlub named Francis (Mark Holton). And Francis lived in a mansion with his father, both of them mired in a similar state of arrested development.

Wow, now it sounds a little like some epic piece of Greek literature.

There’s probably a reason for that. Pee-wee’s Big Adventure is literally Pee-wee’s process of coming to terms with how it feels to lose something so important to you that your sense of loss turns you against the people you love. You know, the way a kid acts out when their favorite toy breaks. Except the kid is an adult who has no job, yet owns a house full of toys. More important, this is a star vehicle for Pee-wee/Reubens (in that order), with everyone else in a willing, but very crucial supporting role.

At first, Dottie and the other inhabitants of this proto-Burtonesque community rally around Pee-wee. Sure, he’s a little weird but he’s actually fun to be around when he’s happy. And apparently, this is the first time Pee-wee has ever had to deal with being unhappy. Over the course of the film, everyone learns a little something about Pee-wee. And he learns a little something about them.

But it’s between those two points where the story lies. Francis is suspect number one, but a quick visit to his estate reveals only that a Bond villain is their butler, and Francis is seemingly innocent of the crime. Pee-wee’s deteriorating emotional state leads him to visit a fortune teller, who tells him to go to Texas, because fortune tellers are liars, and Pee-wee is an idiot.

So begins Pee-wee’s Literal Big Adventure Across the Country.

Surprise, this is a road trip movie! And on his journey, Pee-wee meets a colorful cast of characters, including gun wielding maniacs, undead lady truck drivers, scumbag biker gangs, and insane toothless hoboes. The mystery of the bike becomes secondary for a while, as Pee-wee finds himself in a number of uncomfortable situations. But he gets through it all with his sense of charm, coupled with the fact that people treat you a certain way when you’re dressed like Forrest Gump.

There’s even one and a half musical numbers! A climactic (and somewhat low key) chase sequence! Sight gags! Twisted Sister vs. Godzilla! There’s literally a little bit of everything harmless going on in Pee-Wee’s world, but it’s the films wry sense of humor that might be the greatest gift of all (there was a snake, wearing a sweater). It’s just a fun, whimsical, story about a nice guy who learns how to grow up a little. Like the way you do between ages eight and nine. But hey, it’s progress.

Sooner or later we all have to learn there’s no basement at the Alamo.