This movie had the misfortune of opening the same month, February, 1988, as John Waters "Hairspray." I suspect critics who compared it to "Hairspray" were probably unkind. If it had opened a month or two earlier, it may have been more successful.
The movie seems derivative of a lot of other 1970's and 1980's teenager movies: "Risky Business," "Footloose," "Grease," and even "American Graffiti." It doesn't come off well in a comparison with any of them. The little known Arthur Penn classic, "Four Friends" also is much better.
Yet, the movie does have a number of charming and sweet moments and often manages to find its own style. The references to Natalie Wood, for example are a nice touch. One forgets that Natalie Wood was a great influence on teenagers of the early 60's with movies like "Splendor in the Grass," "Gypsy" and "This Property is Condemned." I don't think many teenage girls related to the blatant casual sexuality of Marilyn Monroe or the deeply repressed sexuality of Doris Day, but Natalie Wood slowly explored and embraced her sexuality in a way that teenagers could relate to.
Donovan Leitch, Jennifer Runyon and Joe Pantoliano are all enthusiastic and fine in the leads. Also watch Scott Plank's nice performance as Dugan. Plank died tragically at 42 in a car accident after a successful career mostly on television.
Anyways, the lead actors are good, the music is good, and the dancing is good. The biggest problem is perhaps the script that doesn't create much tension or deep involvement.
It is unfortunate for this film that so many great films have been made about Rock and Roll of the early 60's. This film suffers by comparison only because it is not great, but as I noted before, individual moments make it worth watching.
The movie seems derivative of a lot of other 1970's and 1980's teenager movies: "Risky Business," "Footloose," "Grease," and even "American Graffiti." It doesn't come off well in a comparison with any of them. The little known Arthur Penn classic, "Four Friends" also is much better.
Yet, the movie does have a number of charming and sweet moments and often manages to find its own style. The references to Natalie Wood, for example are a nice touch. One forgets that Natalie Wood was a great influence on teenagers of the early 60's with movies like "Splendor in the Grass," "Gypsy" and "This Property is Condemned." I don't think many teenage girls related to the blatant casual sexuality of Marilyn Monroe or the deeply repressed sexuality of Doris Day, but Natalie Wood slowly explored and embraced her sexuality in a way that teenagers could relate to.
Donovan Leitch, Jennifer Runyon and Joe Pantoliano are all enthusiastic and fine in the leads. Also watch Scott Plank's nice performance as Dugan. Plank died tragically at 42 in a car accident after a successful career mostly on television.
Anyways, the lead actors are good, the music is good, and the dancing is good. The biggest problem is perhaps the script that doesn't create much tension or deep involvement.
It is unfortunate for this film that so many great films have been made about Rock and Roll of the early 60's. This film suffers by comparison only because it is not great, but as I noted before, individual moments make it worth watching.