Jay Jay the Jet Plane: The Movie (2020)

Jay Jay the Jet Plane: The Movie is a 2020 American live-action/CGI animated musical adventure comedy film based on the children's television series Jay Jay the Jet Plane. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by William Goldman and produced by Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall. In the film, when Tarrytown Airport is in danger of being closed down, it's up to Jay Jay and his friends to save it. Along the way, they must stop a group of criminals from stealing a valuable painting.

Plot
When Tarrytown Airport is in danger of being closed down, it's up to Jay Jay and his friends to save it. Along the way, they must stop a group of criminals from stealing a valuable painting.

Distributed
Universal Pictures (United States), Warner Bros. (International)

Soundtrack
1. "Jay Jay the Jet Plane Theme Song" - Parachute Express

2. "I Can Fly" - R. Kelly

3. "The Power of Flight" - John Williams (composer)

4. "Flying High" - The Beach Boys

5. "(Take Me Higher) To the Sky!"- Celine Dion

6."Up, Up and Away"- The 5th Dimension

7."Soarin'"- Michael Giacchino (composer)

8."Catch That Wave"- Big Country

9."Reach for the Sky "- Joe Walsh 10.

"Higher Ground "- Red Hot Chili Peppers

Animation
The film was animated by Industrial Light & Magic using the performance capture technique.

Trailers
The first trailer for Jay Jay the Jet Plane: The Movie was released on December 21st, 2019.

The second trailer for Jay Jay the Jet Plane: The Movie was released on May 22nd, 2020.

Production
The film was first announced in February 2019, when Robert Zemeckis signed on to direct and William Goldman was hired to write the script. In May 2019, it was revealed that Steven Spielberg would produce the film alongside Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall.

In June 2019, it was reported that Jay Baruchel had been cast as the voice of Jay Jay. The following month, Don Rickles (in his final role before his death in April 2020) and Cloris Leachman were cast as Snuffy's parents Mr. & Mrs. Snuffleupagus respectively; while Amy Poehler joined the cast as Tanya Plane-Counterfeiters Leader/Jay Jay's Mother Savannah Voice Double.

Release
Theatrical release: On July 1st weekend of 2020 by Paramount Pictures worldwide except for North America where Universal Pictures distributed instead due to ViacomCBS selling its stake in DreamWorks Animation back to Comcast which owns NBCUniversal who now has full control over DWA including its distribution arm Universal Studios Home Entertainment thus making this movie a co-production between Amblin Partners (Dreamworks' production company), ImageMovers Digital (Zemeckis' studio at Disney until 2011) & Warner Bros.' newly revived Hanna-Barbera Productions (as ImageMovers Digital was a Hanna-Barbera studio from 2009 until its closure in 2011).

Home media
The film was released on Blu-ray, DVD and digital download by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on October 27th 2020.

Reception
Box office: The film grossed $340 million worldwide against its $135 million budget, making it a box office bomb.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 22% based on reviews from 140 critics with an average score of 4.5/10. The site's consensus reads "While Jay Jay the Jet Plane may please very young viewers, older kids and adults are likely to find this big-screen outing dull and uninspired." On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the film has a score of 41 out of 100 based on 31 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade A–on scale of A to F.

Accolades
The film was nominated for five Golden Raspberry Awards, including Worst Picture and won three; Worst Director for Zemeckis, Worst Supporting Actor for Rickles and Leachman as a tie, and worst Screenplay which Goldman also won the Razzie Redeemer Award 20 years later in 2020 (as he previously won an Oscar) making him the first person ever to win both awards. It was also nominated at the Stinkers Bad Movie Awards but didn't win any.

Legacy
The film is considered to be one of the worst films ever made.