The Goonies Details

Before making it big directing Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone, Chris Columbus wrote the screenplay from a story by a certain Steven Spielberg for this good-natured romp, in which a gang of children tackles pirates while searching for a hoard of missing treasure. The tale rattles along like a juvenile Raiders of the Lost Ark and the young leads — including Martha Plimpton, Sean Astin and Corey Feldman — are a likeable bunch. There's also some nice hamming from villains Anne Ramsey, Joe Pantoliano and Robert Davi.

The bottomless pit of the Spielberg genre, a silly tale which takes forever to get going and is acted by children who have not studied elocution. The trick effects when they come are OK, but it's a long annoying haul to that point.