Tim Burton’s debut feature feels a little bit like a filmmaker finding his footing. At the same time, it’s a trial by fire for Paul Reubens and Phil Hartman as they brought their creation, the capricious Pee-Wee Herman, to the big screen. It paid off, of course, cementing Pee-Wee as an icon of character comedy and a mainstay of American children’s programming. Depending on your history with the character, you could find in PEE-WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE a constant, dull, childish annoyance or a charming work of self-aware bliss.

“Things You Shouldn’t Understand, Things You Couldn’t Understand: A Love Letter to the Cast of Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” by Sohpie Durbin for Perisphere, the Trylon blog: https://www.perisphere.org/2024/01/07/things-you-shouldnt-understand-things-you-couldnt-understand-a-love-letter-to-the-cast-of-pee-wees-big-adventure/

“I Lived It: The Joy of Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” by Alex Kies for Perisphere, the Trylon blog: https://www.perisphere.org/2024/01/07/i-lived-it-the-joy-of-pee-wees-big-adventure/

“Pee-wee Herman- Unedited Interview (Big Adventure) 1985 [Reelin' In The Years Archives]”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4X4KbsLuzY

#OtherProgramming #35mm

This film was presented at the Trylon by the Cult Film Collective: https://cultfilmcollective.com/

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at trylovepodcast@gmail.com to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Closing audio: "Breakfast Machine" by Danny Elfman from the PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE soundtrack..

Timestamps

0:00 - Episode 261: PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE (1985)

3:35 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

5:11 - Our mileage with Pee-Wee

18:01 - Unpacking what the joke is

29:21 - When the nuance started to hit

42:23 - The disappearing “character” in comedy

45:30 - When the bits go on too long

49:51 - Our favorite bits

55:40 - The Junk Drawer

59:24 - Other Loves We’ve Tried: 1985

1:01:32 - Cody’s Noteys: IMDB’s Dig and Then Search (shared cast and crew trivia)

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Episode 261: PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE (1985)

The Trylon Cinema is a treasure of the Minneapolis arts landscape. Honestly, we just hope that hearing the four of us discuss the movies we've seen there makes you want to see a movie there, too. https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast

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Episode 261: PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE (1985)

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