Review: The Goonies (30th Anniversary Blu-ray)

The adventures of a group of children following a treasure map in a desperate attempt to save their home…

If you’ve not seen The Goonies before, then hurry out and get this special edition now – it’s one of the seminal films of the 1980s. It’s not the best in any particular category, just a well constructed, fun adventure story that puts kids at the heart of an Indiana Jones-esque tale, as you might expect when Chris Columbus, Steven Spielberg and Richard Donner put their creative heads together. For lots of families, it became one of those films that you could all watch together on a rainy afternoon that held up to repeated viewing.

The new edition isn’t quite as new as is being perhaps suggested – all of the content on the Blu-ray is on the edition that was released a few years ago (the fact that it’s still a 5.1 rather than 7.1 mix is a big clue), but that doesn’t mean that the extra content isn’t worth having. The commentary and the deleted scenes add to the experience; even if you have seen the film multiple times, there are elements you may have missed.

The new content for this edition comes in the form of the printed matter that accompanies the Blu-ray, with a reprint of the 1985 magazine special, as well as the Empire “Where are they now?” feature, alongside art cards. If you’re a real Goonies fanatic and already have the Blu-ray, you may consider this enough justification for the outlay, and certainly they make for fascinating reading.

Verdict: A strong edition for a fun film. 8/10

Paul Simpson

The Goonies 30th Anniversary Blu-ray is out from Warner Bros. on November 9