Sexy rock & roll singer Ellen Aim (Diane Lane) is kidnapped by a blood thirsty gang of bikers, the Bombers (led by Willem Dafoe). Her ex-boyfriend, tough guy Tom Cody (Michael Pare of "Eddie & The Cruisers") is summoned to rescue her and, by extension, the nameless retro 50s-meets-80s city being torn apart by the
Bombers. Tom's only help - Billy Fish (Rick Moranis), Ellen's mean spirited jerk of a manager/current boyfriend, and a mouthy ex-soldier named McCoy (Amy Madigan).
With its title inspired by a Bruce Springsteen song, "Streets of Fire" was meant to be the first in a trilogy of films based around the character of Tom Cody, whom director Walter Hill had apparently hoped to mold into the Man With No Name for the 1980s. Unfortunately, released in the same year that saw such blockbuster hits as Beverly Hills Cop, Indiana Jones & The Temple of Doom, and Ghostbusters, "Streets of Fire" received very little attention from audiences, and was apparently not well liked by critics either, and did poorly at the box office. In the long run, Diane Lane eventually rebounded and has been especially popular in more recent years, while pretty much all the supporting cast members (including Bill Paxton) continued to work steadily over the years. Sadly, the film's leading man, Michael Pare, never rebounded and spent most of his career making low grade B-pictures. A tragic waste of a fine actor who could have been a star.
As for the film itself, it's very entertaining in a style over substance sort of way. The plot is paper thin and so are pretty much all the characters (Tom Cody definitely doesn't have the same compelling aura around him that mystery man Eddie Wilson, Pare's character of "Eddie & The Cruisers" had; presumably he would evolved as a character had there been sequels, but that of course did not happen), but the stylish atmosphere, engaging action scenes and pulsating soundtrack are the real stars of the film,
March 24, 2011
