Streets of Fire
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Movie Reviews of Streets of Fire
Movie Review: soldier boy saves queen of the hop from leader of the pack
Summary: 5 Stars
"streets of fire",ive gathered was intended to be part of a trilogy by director walter hill[director of 'the warriors'],but poor box office sales,nixed that idea.i saw the movie at a local cinema in my hometown in 1984 and less than two weeks later it was gone replaced by some'john hughes' schmaltz or someother dreck of that kind of 'teen 80's' ilk.
i thought 'streets of fire' was fantastic,an utterly compelling 'juvinile delinquint film noir western',complete with ravaging biker gangs,sultry rock'n'roll singers,surly hot rod gangs,poutng tuff chicks,glowering bad boys,swithblade knives,black leather jackets,tuff words in tense situations,street brawls with sledge hammers,chopped lowered hotrods,do-wop groups,sexy fishnet wearing strippers,sax honking rock'a'billy bands,burning motorcycles,gun totin' bad ass dames,you name it...this movie has it all.
amid flashing neon,wet city streets,screaming subways,foggy back alleys,menacing bikers,pseudo-tuff punk hotrodders,rough guys with big guns; the story unfolds with a local female rock'n'roll singing legand,ellen aim,played by diane lane,being kidnapped by raven shaddock,played by willem dafoe and his motorcycle gang'the bombers',and of course her ex-boyfriend is none other than tom cody,played by michael pare,local ex-bad boy turned sodier,who comes home thanks to his sister vera,played by deborah van valkenberg,and takes up the task of rescuing ellen aim from 'the bombers' clutches,with the help of a tuff chick mechanic played by amy madigan.
the movie has great sets,has a time period that may be the 50's and it may be the future and it may be another place all together,some of the sets look like chicago,while others look like brooklyn new york,it has a great dirty biker bar named 'torchie's',where 'the blasters' play rousing classics like 'one bad stud',while dancer marin jahin[jennifer beals body double in 'flashdance']shakes her stuff on the stage in front of the band.
the movie was lost in its original run in the theatres,but did well on cable later in the decade and has finally garnered quite a cult following and its rightly deserved; this movie is great fun,as well as a visually stunning masterpiece.
any fan of 'walter hill' or 'the warriors' or stylized 50's like biker hotrod delinquint badboy/bad girl movies or even anyone who just like a little rock'n'roll with there fables,should like this great flick.
so,to all you greasers out there,enjoy this true original ode to a great genre of film making.
plus,the soundtrack is really cool as well,two blasters songs,,two jim stienem songs,a great ry cooder score,diane lane lipsynching in tight dresses to meatloaf sounding songs...its all
pretty cool.
so,i hope you dig it,i know i did,i own 2 copies of the video,2 copies of the soundtrack and i cant wait to get the dvd.
Movie Review: A True Guilty Pleasure
Summary: 5 Stars
I first saw "Streets of Fire" at the end of it's run in theaters. A bolt of lightning had knocked out the electricity in my apartment, and there was nothing to do but go to a movie. I guess you could say that my discovery of this film resulted from an act of divine intervention. If you step back from it and really see it for what it is, "Streets of Fire" is a pretty hokey movie. The leader of a motorcycle gang gets a big, hot thing for a beautiful rock singer and carries her off. Then her old boyfriend returns home and rescues her. Boy rescues girl. Boy gets girl. Boy walks out on girl. Big deal! Nothing new here. So, why have I watched it about 30 or 40 times over the years, enjoying it so much that I recently bought it on DVD. I even own the soundtrack album, and on vinyl to boot.
I really can't explain it. Maybe it's the juxtaposition of styles and eras. It seems to throw characters and props from seemingly different times and places together. Maybe it's the way Amy Madigan, playing a part originally written for a man, steals the movie. Maybe, it's getting to watch Michael Paré play the fearless hero and wondering why he never really made it in Hollywood or seeing a young Willem Dafoe, on the verge of a career that would keep him working right up to the present, as the villainous Raven. (Raven. What a great name for a villain.) Maybe it's really about being able to spend 90 minutes with the exquisite Diane Lane, who a few years earlier reportedly had Francis Ford Coppola suffering from puppy love on the set of "The Outsiders". Maybe, it's Rick Moranis, a good but not great Rock score, the knowledge that the outdoor settings were actually filmed entirely on a sound stage, or the sight of "Flash Dance" body double, Marine Jahan, dancing once again. Maybe it's just everything combined.
If you haven't seen this film, do yourself a favor. Rent, buy, or steal it. (Somehow the last choice seems appropriate.) Throw some Orville in the microwave, and then crank up the volume on your TV or, even better, Surround Sound if you have it. Then say goodbye to reality, and let the movie take you to "Another Time and Another Place". And, if you have seen it, it's probably time to see it again.
Now that I think about it, tonight might be a good time to watch it again.
Movie Review: Unique and Exceptional
Summary: 5 Stars
Not sure when this movie hit the Theater. I spent the vast majority of my adult life in the military so I'm sure I missed more movies than most people. Some years ago (I think late `80's) I was wandering through a Video Store to find something to waste away the evening. For some reason "Streets of Fire" caught my eye and if memory serves me correctly I think I had recently watched "Eddie and The Cruisers" and thought maybe another Michael Paré movie was in order. At first I was confused with the time dilation but after I got over myself I fell in love with the movie. Of course the best part of the movie was the sound track (which I also have). If you don't like "Little Shop of Horrors", "The Rock Opera Tommy" or you though the music in "A Knights Tale" was a horrible mismatch for the movie then you might want to pass on this movie. If you want a movie for its educational value don't buy this movie, if you're after a movie that makes total sense then look elsewhere. If you are after a movie that entertains, has great music and leaves a lasting impression then this movie is calling your name. I'll not take the time to explain the plot of the movie, other reviews have already done that. I'll just tell you not only did I buy the VCR Tape of this movie I wore out the VCR Tape and replaced it with a DVD. Fact is I'm here now to purchase another one because someone borrowed it and never brought it back. What can I say, I love this movie. The acting is odd but I think that adds to the uniqueness of this movie and even adds to the flavor. Michael Paré, Diane Lane, Rick Moranis, Amy Madigan, William Dafoe (a very spooky William Dafoe) along with some familiar bit part players made this movie work. If you listen closely you will hear Stevie Nicks doing some background singing on the song she wrote.Movie Review: Weird, unique, thrilling, rock opera adventure.
Summary: 5 Stars
This film bombed with reviewers and at the box office when it came out -- but I loved it! And its soundtrack remains one of my favorite lps/CDs.It's a weird tale of a biker gang leader (William DaFoe) who kidnaps a rock singer (Diane Lane). Her nebbish manager (Rick Moranis) hires her ex-soldier/ex-boyfired (Michael Pare) to rescue her. He hires a sidekick, ex-soldier Amy Madigan.
What makes this film so weird is -- you wonder WHEN it's taking place. It's full of anachronisms. The art direction looks 1950s (the malt shop, some of the costumes, the old police squad cars, the teletype). Yet you have female soldiers, and an integrated police force. And the biker gang leader looks like he's dressed for an S&M leather party, in a black leather farmer's overall bid. Very strange.
The dialog is also strange. Very stylized -- to the point of parody. Women are "skirts." Everyone's sarcastic, snarling zingers at each other. Even the bit players. The film feels like everyone in town, from street punks to cops to young girls, is a badass with a bad attitude. And half the zingers seem to end in fights. Very very strange.
The subtitle is: A Rock & Roll Fable -- whatever that means. Don't try to understand this film. Just let it wash over you. You're in a strange netherworld. Accept it, and you'll enjoy the ride. Especially if you like the music...
Some of the music written by Jim Steinman -- if you thrill to the bombastic sounds of Bonnie Tyler and Meat Love, you'll love this soundtrack. There's also a song written by Stevie Nicks, sung by Marylin Martin -- who sounds exactly like Stevie Nicks.
The sort of bizarre film where many will gawk and wonder: What were they thinking? Others will emrace it with the love that cult films attract. I did.
Movie Review: One of my favorite movies of all time
Summary: 5 Stars
And it's a very personal choice. I can totally understand the reviewers who said "Huh?" because it's just that kind of a movie. You either get it or you don't, as the one featured reviewer pointed out (a reviewer whose review I was quite amused to see, as I agree with every word of it, and that probably will never happen again). Yes, the acting is overdone (or "stylized," if you're one of the people enamored of this film). The plot is implausible and absurd (or "fantasy-like and surreal"). The musical choices are a bizarre hodge-podge (or "brilliantly eclectic"). About the only thing there could be no argument about is Ms Lane: you know how good she looks now? Imagine what she looked like in 1984 in a red and black leather mini-dress. I think my feelings are best summed up by the monologue of Raven in this 1984 box-office bomb that I've seen more times than any other film besides Escape from New York: "You're making this harder than it has to be. You and me fall in love for a week or two. I let you go. No one gets hurt." That's what you do with this film for 90 minutes. And with DVD technology, able to skip the slow parts, you can get this down to about 45 minutes of nearly rapturous bliss.