Great Balls of Fire!

1989, Music/Biography, 1h 48m

25 Reviews 25,000+ Ratings

What to know

critics consensus

Great Balls of Fire romanticizes the more disturbing elements of Jerry Lee Lewis' controversial life story, but Dennis Quaid's crackerjack performance and a soundtrack stuffed with classic songs gives this flawed biopic some smolder. Read critic reviews

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Great Balls of Fire! Photos

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Movie Info

Upstart rock 'n' roll singer Jerry Lee Lewis (Dennis Quaid) has just cut a record at Sun Studio. Jerry's cousin, pastor Jimmy Swaggart (Alec Baldwin), tries to steer him away from a depraved life in the music business, but Jerry was born to play the so-called "devil's music." With rock 'n' roll king Elvis Presley busy with military service, Jerry sees his chance to claim the throne of popular music. But, his unabashed love of his 13-year-old cousin, Myra (Winona Ryder), may ruin his chances.
  • Rating:
    PG-13
  • Genre:
    Music, Biography, Drama
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Jim McBride
  • Producer:
    Adam Fields
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $13.4M
  • Runtime:
  • Sound Mix:
    Surround

Cast & Crew

Dennis Quaid
Jerry Lee Lewis
Winona Ryder
Myra Gale Brown
John Doe
J.W. Brown
Stephen Tobolowsky
Jud Phillips
Trey Wilson
Sam Phillips
Alec Baldwin
Jimmy Swaggart
Steve Allen
Self
Lisa Blount
Lois Brown
Joe Bob Briggs
Dewey "Daddy-O" Phillips
Joshua Sheffield
Rusty Brown
Mojo Nixon
James Van Eaton
Jimmie Vaughn
Roland Janes
Jim McBride
Director
Adam Fields
Producer
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Critic Reviews for Great Balls of Fire!

All Critics (25) | Top Critics (3) | Fresh (15) | Rotten (10)
Full Review… Nell Minow Movie Mom Full Review… Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times Full Review… Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Full Review… Jas Keimig The Stranger (Seattle, WA) Full Review… Brian Orndorf BrianOrndorf.com Full Review… Steve Crum Video-Reviewmaster.com Full Review… Jon Niccum Lawrence Journal-World Full Review… James Plath Movie Metropolis Full Review… Alex Sandell Juicy Cerebellum Full Review… Jake Euker F5 (Wichita, KS) Full Review… Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Full Review… Kevin Carr 7M Pictures
View All Critic Reviews (25)

Audience Reviews for Great Balls of Fire!

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