Following a mysterious treasure map into a
spectacular underground realm of twisting passages, outrageous
booby-traps and a long-lost pirate ship full of golden dubloons, the
kids race to stay one step ahead of a family of bumbling bad guys... and
a mild-mannered monster with a face only a mother could love. Leonard
Maltin wasn't alone when he noticed similarities between Goonies and the
1934 Our Gang comedy Mama's Little Pirate. Adapted by Chris Columbus
from a story by Steven Spielberg, the film follows a group of misfit
kids (including such second-generation Hollywoodites as Josh Brolin and
Sean Astin) as they search for buried treasure in a subterranean cavern.
Here they cross the path of lady criminal Mama Fratelli (Anne Ramsey)
and her outlaw brood. Fortunately, the kids manage to befriend
Fratelli's hideously deformed (but soft-hearted) son (John Matuszak),
who comes to their rescue. The Spielberg influence is most pronounced in
the film's prologue and epilogue, when the viewer is advised that the
film's real villains are a group of "Evil Land Developers." The musical
score makes excellent use of Max Steiner's main theme from The
Adventures of Don Juan, not to mention contributions by the likes of
Richard Marx and Cyndi Lauper.