RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Check out the new RT Community
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Great Balls of Fire
Great Balls of Fire

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Great Balls of Fire (1989)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
65 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:23

Fresh:15

Rotten:8

Average Rating:6/10

Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Film biography of rock 'n' roll hellraiser Jerry Lee Lewis, concentrating on the years 1956 to 1959, when Lewis rose to stardom. It was also during this period that Lewis married his third wife... Film biography of rock 'n' roll hellraiser Jerry Lee Lewis, concentrating on the years 1956 to 1959, when Lewis rose to stardom. It was also during this period that Lewis married his third wife Myra, who not only was his second cousin, but only 13 years of age at the time. This action nearly killed Lewis's career, and the uproar and controversy created by the wedding while they were in England forced Lewis to cancel his tour. Other aspects of Lewis's life are examined, including: his relationship with his brother, evangelist Jimmy Swaggart; his competition with Elvis Presley; and how his "devil music" was inspired by what he saw and heard at black dance halls. The score contains many of Lewis's songs, among them "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On", "Real Wild Child", and a rather fiery rendition of the title tune. [More]

Starring: Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, Alec Baldwin, Lisa Blount

Starring: Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, Alec Baldwin, Lisa Blount, Lisa Jane Persky

Director: Jim McBride

Director: Jim McBride

[See More Credits]

Get This Movie

Rent DVD
 
 

Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.

 
 
Buy DVD
 
 
Release:

Jun 4, 2002

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Great Balls of Fire

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Dennis Quaid actually manages to make Jerry Lee Lewis likeable.

comment Comment
06/17/05
Kevin Carr
Kevin Carr
7M Pictures

No review available.

comment Comment
11/04/03
Rebecca Murray
Rebecca Murray
About.com

Surely contains some quality components, but the movie as a whole may leave an unpleasant taste in your mouth.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
07/25/02
Scott Weinberg
Scott Weinberg
Apollo Guide

No review available.

comment Comment
07/30/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

No review available.

comment Comment
12/06/02
Brian J. Arthurs
Brian J. Arthurs
Beach Reporter (Southern California)

Fire is a fascinating, often terribly compelling failure. Much like Lewis's life, I suppose.

Full Review Source: BrianOrndorf.com | comment Comment
08/26/09
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
BrianOrndorf.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Quaid is surprisingly good and has plenty of fun in this musical biopic.

comment Comment
11/15/05
James Plath
James Plath
DVDTown.com

No review available.

comment Comment
06/19/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
08/04/05
Jake Euker
Jake Euker
F5 (Wichita, KS)

An outrageous bio-pic with Quaid over the top as Jerry Lee Lewis

comment Comment
06/20/03
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

Average biopic.

comment Comment
09/21/05
Alex Sandell
Alex Sandell
Juicy Cerebellum

Not a total success, but it does have a sense of style

comment Comment
01/12/03
James Sanford
James Sanford
Kalamazoo Gazette

No review available.

comment Comment
11/18/05
Jon Niccum
Jon Niccum
Lawrence Journal-World

Ryder and Quaid seem to be in two different movies, but Baldwin is brilliant.

comment Comment
06/26/03
Nell Minow
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

Dennis Quaid is amazing, this could be the film of his career

comment Comment
09/17/02
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Moviehole

Quaid nails it. Just nails it.

comment Comment
04/15/04
Widgett Walls
Widgett Walls
Needcoffee.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
08/30/04
Caryn James
Caryn James
New York Times

No review available.

comment Comment
02/20/03
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
all

Latest News for Great Balls of Fire

December 29, 2006: Kasdan, Apatow & John C. Reilly to Introduce "Dewey Cox"
How many musician-centric biopics do you have to sit through before you start clamoring for a nice juicy parody of the sub-genre? Well, one's on it's way, courtesy of director... More...

December 08, 2006: The Weekly Ketchup: "Spider-Man 3" Teasers, "Pirates 3" Pics And Rumors, "Transformers" Images, And More!
In this week's Ketchup, we just can't get enough of those tidbits from the upcoming third installments of "Spider-Man" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" and the... More...

See All

More DVDs

Close
Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
78% 78% The Hangover
88% 88% Inglourious Basterds
66% 66% Public Enemies
24% 24% G-Force
44% 44% Night at the Museum: B…

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
90% 90% District 9
86% 86% 500 Days of Summer
63% 63% Extract
06% 06% All About Steve
78% 78% It Might Get Loud

More New Releases…

See All

RT On Current TV

The Rotten Tomatoes Show on Current TV

DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196 | More...

Learn how you can be part of the show

More...

What’s Hot On RT

Best of the Decade

Best of the Decade

Find out what movies made our list!

Iron Man 2

Iron Man 2

Watch the brand new trailer now!

Clash of the Titans

Clash of the Titans

Prepare to Clash with Titans in this trailer!

Total Recall

Total Recall

RT looks back on Jude Law's best movies!

Other News

Close
  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • New Toy Story 3 Clip, Photos Posted Source: Slashfilm
10
  • Danny Trejo Talks Machete, Possible Sequels Source: Collider.com
14
  • It's Official: Jackass 3-D Coming in 2010 Source: Collider.com
16
  • Bryan Singer Returning to X-Men for First Class Source: Superhero Hype
102
  • Mark Strong Talks Kick-Ass, John Carter, and Robin Hood Source: Collider.com
1
  • How Avatar Happened: The Path to Innovation Source: CinemaBlend.com
19
  • Rob Marshall Says Pirates 4 Is Still a Maybe Source: ComingSoon.net
32
  • ET Teases Iron Man 2 Teaser Source: Collider.com
28
  • Tobey Maguire Refutes Hobbit Rumors Source: Hollywood Reporter
9
  • Prince of Persia Featurette Posted Source: Yahoo! Movies
4
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: Avatar Soars to #1 Spot
261
  • Brittany Murphy: 1977-2009
115
  • RT's Best of the Decade!
113
  • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
66
  • Total Recall: Jude Law's Best Movies
48
  • Weekly Ketchup: Bryan Singer Teaches X-Men: First Class
44
  • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: District 9 and (500) Days of Summer
32
  • Critics Consensus: Sherlock Holmes Is Worth Investigating
25
  • Friday Harvest: Alice in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, and more!
14
  • What We're Watching on Blu-ray from Disney!
8
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
66
  • Robert Downey Jr. talks Sherlock Holmes & Iron Man 2 - RT Interview
21
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
2
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
12
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
24
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
16
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
24
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Great Balls of Fire at Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh Links

Featured
Best Dozen of the Decade
Best Dozen of the Decade External Link

Last week, MSN gave us their top 09 films. Now see what their favorites of the decade are!

Top 50 of 2009
Top 50 of 2009 External Link

Here's a list of the 50 best movies of 2009, according to the good people over at Moviefone.

Santa's Naughty List
Santa's Naughty List External Link

Hollywood.com takes a stab at determining who in movies will be on Santa's naughty list in 2009.

Top 10 Movies of 2009
Top 10 Movies of 2009 External Link

TIME chimes in with their own list of the best films released this year.

Top 20 of the Decade
Top 20 of the Decade External Link

Click through to see which movies BuzzSugar placed in their Best-of-Decade list!

Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Follow RT on Twitter External Link

Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Games| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo
About Us | Advertise | Contact Us | Press | Careers
IGN | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | Direct2Drive | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Game Sites | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | GIGA.DE | What They Play | Battlefield Heroes
By continuing past this page, and by your continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. | Support | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! RSS Feeds
IGN’s enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA.
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.