Does 1985’s Pee-wee’s Big Adventure deliver the funniest movie of all-time? If not, it's awfully close.

It's one of those rare comedies that gets better on repeated viewings and always offers new information. I've watched it at least 15 or 20 times and I don't get sick of it in the least.

Pee-wee Herman (Paul Reubens) lives an odd man-child existence and loves nothing more than his super-tricked-out bicycle. His spoiled and wealthy frenemy Francis (Mark Holton) covets the bike but Pee-wee won’t sell it at any price.

Imagine Pee-wee’s shock and dismay when someone steals the bike. He immediately suspects Francis – and correctly, too, as the brat paid a thug (Ralph Seymour) to lift the vehicle for him. With Pee-wee onto him, Francis crumbles under the pressure and demands that the thief unload the bike.

Of course, Pee-wee knows none of this, so he goes into overdrive to find his beloved two-wheeler. A psychic (Erica Yohn) tells him he can locate it in the basement of the Alamo. This sets Pee-wee on a cross-country journey to recover his most prized possession.

The appeal of Adventure is hard to define, but obviously comes from a combination of a well-written script and terrific performances. The movie almost completely lacks a plot and my synopsis makes it sound tighter than it is, as the film really just provides a bunch of episodes connected by the “on the road” theme.

In other reviews, I've slammed movies for failing to feature a coherent tale, so it may seem unfair or irrational that I will praise Adventure for that same choice. This happens because attempts to more strictly structure the picture would ruin the appeal of the project, as it stems from the film's gleeful embrace of an incredibly broad variety of genres and settings.

Of course, Pee-wee and his associates clearly don't live in a world that even remotely resembles ours or any other that ever existed. Actually, that may be a little extreme, because it's not like the thing takes place on Mars.

However, any locale in which an odd man-child like Pee-wee can be so fully accepted - and viewed as normal - doesn't appear anywhere in the US, and it never has. But that's part of the fun: Pee-wee behaves how he wants and no one blinks an eye.

Adventure stands as a classic due to two main issues: the performers and director Tim Burton. Back at the time, few had heard of Burton - this was his first feature film - and I know I just assumed that Adventure worked so well due to the genius of Reubens.

I discovered just how wrong that assumption was in 1988. That year we got the next part of the story, Big Top Pee-wee, directed - for reasons unknown, since he seemed unqualified for a wild comedy - by Grease and Blue Lagoon honcho Randal Kleiser. Around the same time, we also received Burton's next project, Beetlejuice.

While it didn't compare with Adventure, the latter entertained and remains a fine film. Big Top, on the other hand, was one of the most disappointing movies I've seen, as it was completely joyless and unfunny.

As such, I learned that maybe Adventure was as great as it was not just because of Reubens' persona. Obviously something else was needed, and Burton clearly provided the perverse style needed to make the project work.

I really think it's Burton's influence that keeps Adventure from being a “kids film”. Oh, it may be plenty entertaining for young 'uns, but without Burton, I think much of its appeal would have remained solely for that crowd.

This disc's audio commentary mentions that a "G"-rating had once seemed desirable. However, while there's little about Adventure that dictates its "PG"-rating - if there's any profanity, I can't recall it, and sex and real violence are also virtually absent - I simply cannot imagine it as a "G"-rated kids' movie.

In fact, I can't imagine Adventure as anything other than an adult-oriented film. Maybe I'm too close to the movie to judge - I love it too much - but it's always seemed like a very adult picture to me.

In fact, for years I thought it was "R"-rated, even though there's nothing that would even remotely justify such a mark. The movie just appeared too daring and wicked to just be "PG".

Maybe it's because Burton does bring a wittily sinister sense to the project that it got the "PG" rating. Objectively, it doesn't make sense, but subjectively, the film appears too bizarrely adult to be "G".

That’s Burton's gift here. His presence inspired what could have been an insipid children's piece to be one of the most visually-clever and fascinating movies ever made.

Of course, the performers deserve a lot of the credit. Reubens is on-screen for the vast majority of the film, and he never fails to entertain.

As Pee-wee, Reubens can make the most innocuous lines and make them hilarious. Tons of material in Adventure would have failed in the hands of other actors.

Reubens exists as the focus of the movie and just as Burton's direction makes the film work, Reubens' performance completes the picture. It also benefits from a pretty-uniformly excellent supporting cast.

Virtually without exception, every component of the other inhabitants of Pee-wee's world seem to fit. I tried to find a weak link and I couldn't, as all the actors fill their roles wonderfully.

Mark Holton gives Pee-wee the perfect foil as spoiled rich kid Francis. He also seems equal parts man and boy, though I wish they'd gone more for the "boy" look in his swimming pool scene, as something about the appearance of Holton's armpit hair in his otherwise hairless body distracts me.

I also love Judd Omen's wickedly menacing escaped convict Mickey and Carmen Filpi's Hobo Jack. Filpi especially makes the most of his limited screen time and offers some of the movie's best laughs with his renditions of old-time songs like "Skip to My Lou".

Is there anything about Adventure I don't like? Not much, though I've never cared for the film's two dream sequences.

The film itself seems odd enough that these scenes always seemed pointless and unentertaining, especially since they don't do anything to reinforce or move along the story. Of course, a lot of the rest is mainly fun for fun's sake, but the difference is that all those scenes are entertaining, whereas the dream sequences are not.

But other than that, I can't think of much I'd change about Pee-wee's Big Adventure. The movie keeps up a relentless pace of hilarious material that rarely lags, and it's a consistent treasure from start to finish.

I've loved this film for more than 40 years now, and it hasn't grown in the least bit tiresome during that time. Put simply, it's one of the greatest movies ever made.

Pee-wee’s Big Adventure appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-Ray Disc. The movie came with a pleasing presentation.

Some wider shots looked a little soft, but I thought those stemmed from the original photography. Overall clarity remained strong, so any distractions seemed minor.

I saw no issues with jagged edges or shimmering, and edge haloes were absent. Grain felt natural and the movie lacked print flaws.

Adventure features a lot of bold primary colors, and the Blu-ray did well with these. Throughout the movie, the hues looked vivid and full.

Black levels appeared nicely dark and deep, and shadows showed nice clarity. I felt really pretty pleased with this strong presentation.

I also liked the film's remixed DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack. The movie originally featured a Dolby Surround track, and while I can't say this one opened things up much, it still sounded nice for a 41-year-old low-budget film.

The forward soundstage tended to stick pretty close to the center, with only mild activity coming from the sides. Effects from the right and left meshed together fairly well, and we got some decent movement. The surrounds featured a few effects.

I might have noticed one or two from back there, but that's about it. Danny Elfman's terrific score showed nice stereo presence and was the best part of the track.

That also went for the quality of the audio. Elfman's score sounded bright and dynamic, so it came across with surprisingly clarity and boldness. As noted, the disc also featured the movie’s original DTS-HD MA 2.0 surround mix. To my surprise, it worked better than the 5.1 remix.

This meant a soundfield that opened up more in the front and brought more active movement and involvement. The back speakers became more active and we even got a little directional dialogue at times.

Both 2.0 and 5.1 mixes offered similar quality, but the 2.0 version turned into the more satisfying soundscape. I felt it merited a “B+”.

How did this Criterion Blu-Ray compare with those of the original BD from 2011? Both offered pretty similar visuals, though I thought the Criterion looked a smidgen tighter.

The two discs came with apparently identical 5.1 mixes but the inclusion of the original 2.0 gave the Criterion release the sonic edge. Because the Warner BD already worked well, the Criterion didn’t turn into a big upgrade, but it nonetheless turned into the superior of the two.

The Criterion set mixes old and new extras, and taped for the original 2000 DVD, we get an audio commentary with director Tim Burton and actor/co-writer Paul Reubens. Both sit together for a running, screen-specific look at the origins and development of Pee-wee and the movie, character/story topics, cast and performances, locations, set and visual design, music and effects, and a few other production topics.

Objectively, I can’t call this a great commentary. It sags a bit too much and lacks much energy. However, as a major fan of the film, I think it’s a treat.

Reubens and Burton don’t exactly sizzle with chatty chemistry, but they give us plenty of good notes about the movie and do so with reasonable humor. I find a lot to enjoy in this informative piece.

More commentary can be found from composer Danny Elfman during a track that combines his remarks with the movie's score. The music is presented in full 5.1 glory, and Elfman's statements appear during the parts that offer no score.

Since Adventure is a very music-heavy movie, this means that we don't get to hear a whole lot from Elfman, but what he says is pretty interesting. He discusses Adventure itself to a degree but spends more time musing about his career and relating the various processes through which he goes to write his scores.

Actually, it's probably a good thing that Elfman's time is limited since even with that restriction he pretty much runs out of material before the end. The guy even admits he has nothing to say at one point! In any case, it's a nice little extra.

Four Deleted Scenes run a total of 11 minutes, six seconds. These include “Amazing Larry”, “Boone the Bear”, “Hospital Visitors” and “Extended Studio Chase”. Three of the scenes have no relation to anything in the movie, whereas the final one shows parts of the climactic studio chase that were excised.

Although I was insanely happy to see these, I have to agree that they deserved to get the boot. Of the four, the first - which introduces us to Amazing Larry, who we briefly see during Pee-wee's meeting in his basement – is probably the only one that really could have stayed in the film, but it lacks much purpose and takes the focus off Pee-wee for too long. It's a neat little gag but not strong enough on its own to warrant inclusion.

As I already mentioned, I found the movie's two dream sequences to be the worst parts of Adventure, so I'm awfully happy that a third didn't make the cut. “Boone” is no better or worse than the other two, but if I didn't like those, there's no reason for me to enjoy this one.

“Visitors” shows Pee-wee in the hospital after he crashes his borrowed motorcycle. There we briefly meet his doctor - who makes a mutated appearance in Pee-wee's second dream sequence - and he receives a visit from the biker gang. The scene isn't terrible but it seems pointless and not too funny because as with the Amazing Larry bit, it focuses too much on the gang and not enough on Pee-wee.

Some scenes get away with this - such as the great Alamo tour piece - but at least those gave us some good Pee-wee as well, as his exasperated reactions to Jan Hooks' inane tour guide comments make the scene hilarious. Nothing like that happens in the hospital scene, so it was a logical omission.

“Chase” borders on being too long in the film’s final cut. While some of these parts are fun - we finally get to see the payoff for the "boomerang bowtie" gag set up early in the film - they add little and they really would have slowed down the pace.

Granted, I'd guess that they could have been tightened up with some minor editing - what we see doesn't match the manic pace of the finished product - but it still would have been overkill to include all this stuff. Nonetheless, I'm overjoyed that we get to see it plus the other three scenes.

New to the Criterion release, we get a chat between director Tim Burton and actor/filmmaker Richard Ayoade that goes for 28 minutes, nine seconds and examines how Burton came to the project, influences, aspects of the shoot and his approach to the material, music, other production notes and general thoughts on filmmaking. Ayoade does a good job of bringing out the often less-than-informative Burton in this engaging chat.

I Meant to Do That goes for 37 minutes, 38 seconds. Led by LA Times critic Mark Olsen, this brings a discussion with producer Richard Abramson, production designer David L. Snyder, co-writer Michael Varhol and editor Billy Weber.

The program looks at the development of the film, how various folks came to it, working with Burton, aspects of the production, and the movie's legacy. We get a nice collection of memories and insights.

From 2005, an Interview with Actor Paul Reubens spans 36 minutes, 10 seconds. Reubens sits with filmmaker Gordon Meyer.

Reubens discusses the creation and evolution of the Pee-wee character, working with Burton and how the director got the gig, influences, and aspects of the film's formation and production. Some of this repeats from the commentary but Reubens nonetheless offers enough good info to make the program enjoyable.

Shot in 2025, we get a Reunion of various cast and crew members. Hosted by comedian Dana Gould, it spans 24 minutes, 25 seconds and includes Abramson,Varhol, Weber, Snyder, animated effects artists Stephen, Charles and Edward Chiodo and actors EG Daily, Diane Salinger, and Mark Holton.

Across this live panel, we hear about the project's development and how various participants came to it, the screenplay, effects, characters and performances, working with Burton, and editing. We get a fun conversation here, even if it doesn't last very long.

In addition to the film’s trailer, the set concludes with a booklet that includes art, credits and an essay from culture critic Jesse Thorn. It concludes the package on a positive note.

Pee-wee's Big Adventure unquestionably exists as one of my top ten films of all-time, and it arguably brings us the funniest movie ever made. The picture remains just as entertaining now as it was 41 years ago, and I don't think that will ever change. The Blu-ray offers very good picture and audio along with useful supplements. I love this flick and this turns into a good release.