THUNDERBIRD 6 (1968)
Sadly, this review will not spend a great deal of time considering the new extras or perks of this Blu-ray release because frankly, there aren’t any. It’s pretty much just like watching the DVD again. But for those who’ve not seen the film itself, read on…
What we found interesting about Thunderbird 6 is that it works as a dissection of the creative process. Take the first scene, in which a sweating Brains is about to begin his pitch for a new aircraft. When he presents his project they all laugh at him, prompting nightmarish close-ups of the faces of marionettes with rictus grins. There’s also the running gag of Brains losing his temper as his designs for a new Thunderbird 6 are rejected by an employer who has given him an open brief. Even the main plot figures into this reading, with the message of that being that you can’t plan for everything and sometimes you just have to improvise.
Where the previous film’s space-faring plot was a little out there, this one was more down to earth (inasmuch as Thunderbirds can be). The plot that the Hood comes up with was actually worthy of a spy thriller even if it doesn’t quite work out for him. Although we do have to give him shit for calling it ‘Operation Ambush’ (come on, what kind of Austin Powers-style name is that?).
Unfortunately, sometimes the finished film undermines what’s in the script. For instance, we burst out laughing when one of Barry Gray’s distinctive incidental tracks plays over a shot of the airship moving on a collision course towards a radio tower. This would be incredibly dramatic if the ship wasn’t moving at about -5mph. It might as well have been a still photograph.
There you have it, then; Thunderbird 6 is not a perfect film, but it does have lots of things going for it. Though this release doesn’t do it justice, it’s still a good film to put on during a gloomy Bank Holiday to let some vivid colour into the day.
INFO: CERT: U / DIRECTOR: DAVID LANE / SCREENPLAY: GERRY ANDERSON, SYLVIA ANDERSON / STARRING: SHANE RIMMER, PETER DYNELEY, JEREMY WILKIN, MATT ZIMMERMAN, DAVID GRAHAM / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
