Rating: 
Summary: Nostalgic ~ A Viewer from USA 7/1/99 Says It All
Review: This movie will always remind me of my teenage days in the 70's. I could not have done a better review than "A Viewer from USA 7/1/99" has. It is "all that" if you were a teenager at that time and the soundtrack is great. Buy it, don't rent it!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: without the bushy tails
Review: This was made by director Adrian Lyne before his breakthrough with Flashdance, and features the same dreamy soft-porn lighting he would use in Fatal Attraction, Indecent Proposal and 9 1/2 Weeks. However whilst Lyne's later titles had ideas that captured the public imagination, with themes of crime and punishment circa Cecil B DeMille, this first film suffers from a screenplay that goes nowhere, and interminable pacing. This take on teenagers in LA having a superior moral code to their parents is highlighted by Sally Kellerman describing her daughter Jodie Foster and her friends as "short 40 year olds, who look like kids but don't act like 'em". The tale centres on Foster's friendship with 3 other schoolgirls and their efforts to create a "family" since their parents are either divorced, abusive or uncast. The group focuses on the drug-taking habits of the most put-upon, whose fate is practically predetermined by the TV movie standards of the narrative. As the natural leader of the group, presumably because she has more acting experience, this is one of Foster's last child roles before she temporarily abandoned Hollywood for Yale and John Hinkley. It's indicative of Lyne's seeming indifference to his performers that he can even make Jodie Foster look bad, though she does yell back well at Kellerman. Kellerman herself is one of the mean adult figures, possibly given even worse material than a thuggish policeman father, and it's a miracle that Lois Smith as another parent manages to invest some character in her brief appearance. The idea of casting Jodie Foster and Sally Kellerman as mother and daughter is probably Lyne's most provocative contribution. Lyne came to work in the USA with a group of British directors who all graduated into film making via advertising, and he does present some early amusing observations of Hollywood oddball streetlife. This is about the only time the screenplay comes up with anything approaching wit - with the girls referring to a woman they see as weird - Mary Weirdo - then sing the Merry Widow waltz; and one line about a pimp "He could hypnotise you like a cobra and the next thing you're out on the boulevard dressed like the Pointer Sisters". This film introduced the Janis Ian/Giorgio Moroder classic song "Fly Too High" but Lyne barely uses it, which considering the lyrics are apt to the theme, tells you how clueless Lyne is.
Rating:
Summary: Was it ever good? I think not.
Review: Trials and tribulations of Jodie Foster and her 3 twenty-something year old high school friends...Jodie gives a fair performance, but the others were substantially less than average. Sally Kellerman as Jodie's mom was pretty good. Laura Dern ("Jurassic Park") was interesting in her small scenes. Randy Quaid as one girl's boyfriend was mediocre (see "The Last Detail" for his excellent role in a good movie.) Due to music and cultural references, plus the clothes and hair styles, the movie is pretty dated, but that is not a contributing factor to its badness. False dialogue and some typical cliches are factors, however. The partying scenes are also unconvincing, as everyone smokes joints like cigarettes, drinks a lot, and never appears intoxicated. Director Adrian Lyne has made some good movies ("Jacob's Ladder", "Lolita"). Unfortunately, this is not one of them. Scott Baio escapes bullies on his skateboard. Need I say more?
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