Childhood Rejects
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pirate film operated on many levels for youths caught in troubled times. Finally,
while Cindy Lauper was well known to the Gen X audience, the film’s pintsized actors were not, but several of them-Sean Astin as Mikey, Josh Brolin as
Brandon, and Corey Feldman as Mouth-became recognizable talents, making it
fun for viewers to go back to their early work as intractable kids on their quest
for hidden treasure.
In the case of The Goonies, not only did the original Generation X
moviegoers embrace the film, but they passed it on to others. According to one
college-age male, “I learned about Goonies from my older brother. All of us
kids did. The older guys said we had to watch it” (Lindsay). Another says, “My
mom bought it for me. I Bv2