Michael_Elliott
Streets of Fire (1984) *** (out of 4)Pop Queen Ellen Aim (Diane Lane) returns to her crap hometown to perform a benefit concert even though her manager Billy Fish (Rick Moranis) didn't want her to. Before long she is kidnapped by Raven Shaddock (Willem Dafoe), the leader of a motorcycle gang. The police can't do anything so Ellen's ex-boyfriend Tom Cody (Michael Pare) agrees to try and save her.Walter Hill's string of hits came to a crashing halt with STREETS OF FIRE but thankfully home video was right around the corner and the film eventually found it audiences and turned into a cult favorite. The film starts off with a title card call this a rock and roll fable set sometime during the future. What you've basically got here are elements of THE WARRIORS with a pinch of THE SEARCHERS thrown in but of course it's surrounded by a 50's rock and roll vibe.STREETS OF FIRE might not be the director's best film but it's certainly a good one and one with many fun elements to it. I think a lot of credit has to go to Hill and his eye as he certainly knows how to build up an atmosphere and make you feel the locations that you're in. As with THE WARRIORS, both films were set in an unknown future but the films don't look like science fiction movies or the type of futures that they offer. Instead the director creates his own little world and he does a wonderful job at it. The costume design and set design are wonderful and add to the entertainment as well.Another major plus are the performances including some future stars. Pare is wonderful in the lead role of the mercenary who agrees to take on this gang to get his former woman back. I really loved the laid back approach that Pare brought to the film and his comic timing, when needed, was also quite good. Lane is good in her role and Moranis adds some nice comic touches as well. Amy Madigan, Dafoe, Richard Lawson, Bill Paxton, Robert Townsend and Mykeltii Williamson are also good in their supporting parts.The film also benefits from a good rock and roll soundtrack that once again helps add to the film's look and style. There are certainly some flaws with the picture but for the most part Hill has created a very fun and entertaining mix of action, music and comedy.
gavin6942
A mercenary (Michael Pare) is hired to rescue his ex-girlfriend (Diane Lane), a singer who has been kidnapped by a motorcycle gang.This film has the word "cult" stamped all over it. Set in "another time, another place"... which is basically the 1980s mixed with the 1950s, with stranger outfits and hair. I mean, really, what is going on with Willem Dafoe's wardrobe -- he looks like a fisherman who got a makeover at a gay bar.The film excels in many ways, with good music and many stars at the beginning of their career, including Dafoe and Bill Paxton. Michael Pare was probably peaking around this time, with all due respect to him. And then Rick Moranis... he probably gets more screen time here than anywhere outside of the "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" franchise.
zardoz-13
"Extreme Prejudice" director Walter Hill's "Streets of Fire," with Michael Paré, Diane Lane, and Willem Dafoe, ranks as one of those obscure urban adventure epics that nobody appreciated when it was released in 1984. Most critics hated it, and the film coined only about half of its reported $14.5 million budget. Admittedly, it seems like a goulash of genres, ranging from musicals to actioneers to neo-noir thrillers, and comedy, that flies all over the place like buckshot without wearing out its welcome. Happily, Will and co-scenarist Larry Gross swirl these elements so that they all come together beautifully in a neat little actioneer. The bloodless action takes place in what appears to be the 1950s in an anonymous city that resembles Chicago considering that the skyline is dominated by elevated railways. The characters dress as if they are from the 1950s, and the cars look like they hail from the same era. Composer Ry Cooder's soundtrack and the various top-40 songs used in it are ideal for the action. The concert scenes are incredibly charismatic, and Diane Lane behaves like a genuine rock star. The beautifully lensed action follows the formula of a myth about heroes who embark on a journey of hardship to a faraway destination to save an imprisoned damsel-in-distress from a slimy, pugnacious villain. What sets this movie apart from most is its reluctance to wallow in bloodshed and death. If you watch closely nobody bites the dust, and there isn't a lot of gritty action. The climactic, close-quarters combat scene between Mind you, the settings and the heroes and villains all look rugged and dirty, but "Streets of Fire" doesn't turn into a high-octane opus. Raven Shaddock (Willem Dafoe of "Platoon") and his gang of obnoxious motorcycle maniacs nick-named 'the Bombers' kidnap popular singer Ellen Aim (Diane Lane of "Unfaithful") during a concert and haul her off to a remote location where Shaddock wants to play house with her. Reva Cody (Deborah Van Valkenburgh of "The Warriors") watches the gang drag Ellen off stage during a concert, and she contacts her brother Tom Cody (Michael Paré of "Eddie and the Cruisers") who used to date her and asks him to rescue her. "Look, Tom, you were always real close with Ellen," Reva reminds him. "She wasn't like all those tramps you used to run around with." Meantime, Aim's manager/boyfriend Billy Fish (Rick Moranis of "Ghostbusters") reluctantly agrees to hire Tom for $10-thousand. As it happens, Tom decides to bring along a gruff Army mechanic McCoy (Amy Madigan of "Field of Dreams") to act as his back-up. He met her during a brief bar fight when she slugged the barkeep from trying to run her off. McCoy is a tough looking gal who knows how to handle firearms. "I need the job. I'm plenty good enough and I ain't gonna let you down," she assures Tom. No sooner do all three meet than brusque Billy Fish looks with utter contempt at her, and she whittles him down to size with sarcasm. "You know, it's hard to figure out what's more pathetic, the way you talk or the way you dress." Neither of them back off throughout this tightly forged rock'n roll fable. Cody, Fish, and McCoy enter a murky place called 'The Battery' where low-lifers and perverts hang out, guzzle liquor, and raise hell. They learn from a shadowy denizen of the area, Ben Gunn (Ed Begley Jr. of "Cat People"), where Raven has holed up with Ellen. Cody starts blasting away at bikers as they careen around the Battery while McCoy keeps several of them distracted long enough for Cody to snatch Ellen. Raven confronts Cody as Ellen and he are about to depart. "Looks like I finally ran into someone that likes to play as rough as I do," Raven observes and then vows to come after Cody. "I'll be coming for her, and I'll be coming for you too." Tom is terribly impressed with Raven's threat. Says Tom, "Sure, you will, and I'll be waiting." Unable to use the convertible that Cody had commandeered earlier from a bunch of snotty-nosed kids at Reva's dinner, they appropriate a bus belonging to an African-American singing group the Sorels. Eventually, Raven and Cody square off in a daylight brawl wielding fireman axes. Predictably, Tom defeat Raven. Ellen is pleased that Tom rescued her, but these two—no matter how much they loved each other before—cannot walk off hand-in-hand. Tom explains, "Look, I know you're gonna be going places with your singing and stuff, but then I'm not the kind of guy to be carrying your guitars around for you. But if you ever need me for something, I'll be there." They walk away from each in a bittersweet finale.Reportedly, Hill had planned to develop a franchise from "Streets of Fire," but the box office failure of the film sealed its doom. Nevertheless, I love this film, have seen it many times, and think the soundtrack is fabulous. The dialogue is very hop, too. Nobody gives a bad performance. Michael Paré is ideal as the wandering soldier, and Diane Lane looks like a real heartbreaker. Amy Madigan is superb as the gun-toting mechanic. Of course, Willem Dafoe makes a terrific villain. "Streets of Fire" is an incendiary actioneer with loads of atmosphere and catchy dialogue.
