Thunderbird 6: The Movie [1968]

Amazon.co.uk Review

Thunderbird 6 was the second feature spin-off from the hit Gerry Anderson puppet-animation TV series Thunderbirds, and revolved around a new addition to the line-up of International Rescue's five emergency craft. The plot sees Lady Penelope, Alan, Tin-Tin and Parker as the only passengers on the maiden, round-the-world flight of a futuristic airship, which is hijacked in a bid to capture Thunderbirds 1 and 2. From the moment Alan arrives on a Bond-style jetpack, the film veers away from the TV show into espionage adventure territory, and while the only people International Rescue rescue are their own members, they kill a fair number of baddies. The global tour means there are more locations than ever, and though the story takes a long time developing, the Die Hard-on-an-airship finale delivers the most explosive set piece of Gerry Anderson's career. As for Thunderbird 6, opinion remains divided as to whether it's an ingenious twist or a disappointing gimmick, but the movie's blend of model and live-action footage results in two superbly staged stunt sequences. Predecessor Thunderbirds Are Go (1968) is also available, and the Andersons would make one further feature film, Journey to the Far Side of the Sun (1969).

On the DVD: The anamorphically enhanced 2.35:1 ratio image is sharp, full of detail and boasting well-saturated colours, only the briefest moments of damage and some graininess revealing the age of the print. The film was shot in ultra-wide Techniscope, and there are moments were it is very obvious that parts of the original 2.74:1 picture have been cropped at the sides. The mono sound is powerful with no hint of distortion. Extras are the original trailer, galleries of behind the scenes photos and promotional artwork, though the highlight is the highly informative commentary by Sylvia Anderson and director David Lane where they note how they made this film and worked on Captain Scarlet simultaneously.--Gary S Dalkin

Customer Reviews:

thundering thunderbirds.......2004-08-02

I loved thunderbird six and I am glad the villain was the Hood. The thing I did not like was the creators making a normal plane a thunderbird. I liked the explosions though. I liked all the other thunderbird videos and I recommend this film to all thunderbirds viewers. I hope you found this review useful.

Thunderbird 6 tailed off.......2003-02-06

Oh dear this was a film too far for the Thunderbirds team...everything that made "Thunderbirds are Go" so great is missing here. This really does feel like an over-extended episode!

The biplane itself is not bad and the idea of a highly manoeuverable craft complementing the existing Thunderbirds squad was OK but the repetitious scenes of Brains having a great design only for Mr Tracy to reject it should have been non-starters.

The skyship on a round the world flight has all the hallmarks of previous episodes ( the Fireflash and the Monorail especially ) and the "anti-gravity" rotating rings appeared far too often to show anything other than a lack of imagination. Having said that the biplane landing and taking off from the stricken skyship was fun to watch.

Overall this is as passable as a long episode of Thunderbirds but if you want a great Thunderbirds film...go watch "Thunderbirds are Go"

More Supermarionation fun.......2002-10-01

Thunderbird 6: The Movie was another attempt by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, alongside tv mogul Lew Grade to cash in on the massive success Thunderbirds was enjoying on television.

Although the first film Thunderbirds Are Go didn't enjoy huge success, the producers went ahead and made another one...

Although this film captures some of the elements of the series, it doesnt really work as well. Its great to see a wide screen version of the programme, but the show lacks much of the excitement and humour of the show. Yes, there are loads of explosions and bits of sets flying towards the cameras, but this isn't enough to keep you interested. The great set pieces from the series eg the Thunderbird launch sequences do not feature as much, and this is the one thing that every Thunderbird fan never tires of seeing, so its a mistake not to include them

However, there is a great reason to buy the dvd. The commentary by the films producer Sylvia Anderson and the director David Lane provide a fascinating insight into how the picture was shot as well as many of the challenges they faced.

Your Thunderbird DVD collection is incomplete without it, so go ahead and buy!

Thunderbirds are.... not as good as I expected.......2001-06-16

I have been a fan of Thunderbirds ever since I watched it as a little child and had seen every episode plus the first movie. I had, however, never seen "Thunderbird 6". I found it on Amazon and ordered it and watched it as soon as it arrived. It was a disappointment. This film does not have the same "get on the edge of your seat and wonder what's going to happen" feel as some of the episodes and the plot is really far fetched and unbelievable. It seemed to me that most of the movie was taken up with scenes of a bi-plane flying around or landing. The bi-plane is a daft idea in itself. It is far fetched to show an ancient plane in a futuristic series. However, it was good to have seen all the Thunderbirds episodes although this final movie seems to have spoilt my view on Thunderbirds. It is just the rotten apple in an otherwise excellent series and first movie. I would recommend buying the first movie or some of the episodes.

F.A.B film.......2001-04-18

I loved this film from begining to end. It was an absolute treat. It was funny at the begining when Brains tells the president of the corporation that he wants to build an airship and they all laugh at him. I also liked the part of the story when the terroists get on board Skyship one and take over the ship. It was a good way of the terroists taking over and recording parts of Lady penelope's voice to send Thunderbirds 1 and 2 into a trap. It was also good of the filmakers to bring back the hood. Good villiain. I also liked it when Skyship one is one of the towers and falls to the missile base and blows up in one mighty explosion and i liked it when the missile base blew up as well. Some spectacular explosions and very good supense make this well worth the money alone. If you love Thunderbirds you will love this film.

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