The Kid Who Flew A Space Ship

Walt Disney’s ‘Flight of the Navigator’ is an older movie, but still one of my favorites.

David Freeman (Joey Cramer) is an ordinary twelve year old boy. He has a father (Cliff De Young), a mother (Veronica Cartwright), an annoying younger eight year old brother Jeff (Albie Whitaker), and a dog. Today is the fourth of July and there’s celebrating all around. Jeff has gone to visit some friends, but promised to be back by nightfall so the family could go out on their boat and watch the fireworks on the lake. When Jeff doesn’t get back at the appointed time, his parents ask him to go and get him. He takes a shortcut through the woods. He comes across a ravine, where he thinks someone is hiding. He ends up falling into that ravine and hitting his head. When he wakes up, he returns home to find everything different! Another couple is living in his house and it’s all different inside! They call the police, who find a missing poster for him. Only the poster is eight years old and he doesn’t look a day older!

His parents look older and his brother Jeff is now sixteen (Matt Adler)! What is going on??? They take him to get some tests, but everything comes out normal. Except that his brain prints out a picture of a space ship that only a few people know about. Dr. Faraday (Howard Hesseman) from the NASA Research Center comes and talks to his parents about having him tested by their people to figure out why David has no memory and why he hasn’t aged. At the center he meets a helper, Carolyn McAdams (Sarah Jessica Parker) and her helper robot R.A.L.F. (Robotic Assistant Labor Facilitator).

David has had a voice in his head since he woke up. It calls to him to help the voice. Finally he hears the voice clearer when he’s at the research center and follows its instructions. He finds himself in front of a space ship. One who admits that he was the one who took him from his family for eight years. Now he has to help Max (voice of Paul Mall), the sentient machine who runs the ship, get what he needs to get back to his home world. And in return, Max has promised to take David back home.

Follow along as David tries to find his way, NASA people track him all over the world, and his family waits for him to come back to them. David even gets to pilot the ship himself! What kid wouldn’t love to be able to pilot a space ship! This is a great movie and its only PG. It comes on DVD and instant video.