Pump Up the Volume

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Pump Up the Volume

R

1990

1h 41m

Drama

Musical

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

81%

Tomatometer

42 Reviews

85%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

In Arizona, an introverted and insightful teenager, Mark Hunter (Christian Slater), finds an outlet for his viewpoints through a shortwave radio. Broadcasting as Hard Harry, Hunter uses his pirate radio show to rant against the injustices and hypocrisies taking place in the area, and in society in general. Hunter conceals his off-air identity, but a determined student (Samantha Mathis) discovers the truth, while Principal Crestwood (Annie Ross) seeks to shut down Hunter once and for all.

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Critics Consensus

Pump Up the Volume can be a bit overbearing, but this is one teen drama with the courage of its convictions -- and a killer soundtrack.

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Michael Wilmington

Los Angeles Times

Jul 16, 2025

Trying to find a middle ground between Oliver Stone and John Hughes, it misses both.

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Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

May 12, 2022

4/4

The fact that it does this simply and unabashedly gives the critic little to work with; it's all there, right on the surface, with nothing to decode–just a dream, and a dream of an idea, that it asks us to share and celebrate. And better yet, emulate.

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Jason Bailey

Flavorwire

May 27, 2016

As a movie, 'Pump Up the Volume' is a lot like a teenager: at times unbearably self-important and pretentious (Nora's poems, good lord), yet undeniably, and admirably, earnest.

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Kat Halstead

Common Sense Media

Jul 17, 2026

4/5

This 1990 coming-of-age movie pulsates with the energy of disenfranchised youth that's finally found somewhere to channel their spirit.

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Aug 29, 2025

3/4

...a solid teen drama that benefits from its trenchant dialogue and first-class performances...

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Ian Thomas Malone

ianthomasmalone.com

Aug 5, 2025

Despite a lackluster screenplay, Pump Up The Volume stands out from its contemporaries through its earnest sincerity. Disaffected youth don’t want to hear that it gets better. Slater found a way to reach them anyway.

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Todd F

@Tiddlows Oct 19, 2026

Pump Up the Volume is a teenage rebellion with a microphone, a pirate radio signal, and a generation of kids who are sick of being told to sit down and shut up. Christian Slater plays Mark Hunter, a shy high school student who becomes the voice of a town's buried frustrations. By day, he's an outsider who can barely speak his mind. By night, he's Happy Harry Hard-On, a radio renegade who gives his classmates permission to question authority, challenge hypocrisy, and admit they're not okay. Slater brings the perfect mix of sarcasm, anger, and wounded idealism to a character who discovers that finding your voice can be both a liberation and a dangerous responsibility.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 21, 2026

Pump Up The Volume = a 4.5 star Movie!

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Mark C.

@mrpiggy1992 Jan 27, 2026

This is one of Christian Slaters most underappreciated performances ever of 1990s

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Sara S

@RT51971136 Jul 7, 2025

Fresh score. The perfectly cast Slater effectively propels the film, his intensity and dry delivery giving it a definite edge, as does a soundtrack which includes Ice T, Concrete Blonde and the Cowboy Junkies.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Jun 30, 2025

Funny in 1.75 hours.

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K W

@KdubR Jun 25, 2025

Call it Rebel With a Cause, and listen good, because it's the most frank, startling and radically opinionated movie ever made for young viewers.

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Allan Moyle

Director

Christian Slater

Mark Hunter (Hard Harry)

Samantha Mathis

Nora Diniro

Ellen Greene

Jan Emerson

Scott Paulin

Brian Hunter

Cheryl Pollak

Paige Woodward

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Synopsis

In Arizona, an introverted and insightful teenager, Mark Hunter (Christian Slater), finds an outlet for his viewpoints through a shortwave radio. Broadcasting as Hard Harry, Hunter uses his pirate radio show to rant against the injustices and hypocrisies taking place in the area, and in society in general. Hunter conceals his off-air identity, but a determined student (Samantha Mathis) discovers the truth, while Principal Crestwood (Annie Ross) seeks to shut down Hunter once and for all.

Director: Allan Moyle
Producer: Sandy Stern, Rupert Harvey
Screenwriter: Allan Moyle
Distributor: New Line Cinema
Production Co: New Line Cinema, SC Entertainment
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Musical, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 22, 1990, Wide
Release Date (DVD): Aug 15, 2000
Box Office (Gross USA): $11.5M
Runtime: 1h 41m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby

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