*Spoiler Alert*
Lucas is the story of an odd, but gifted pre-pubescent youth who happens to be attending high school at an early age. He falls for the pretty new girl in town who happens to be a few years older. She, on the other hand, has the hots for hunky Charlie Sheen, and Lucas is relegated to "friend status". (As if he ever had a chance with her in the first place.)
Lucas is played by to perfection by Corey Haim. In fact this is most likely his best film role. (It sure beats the heck out of Blown Away!). Kerri Green (I wonder what she's doing today) plays the new girl in town.They along with the rest of the cast is top drawer. Many of the main characters are well-known celebs today. Look for Winona Ryder in her screen debut as a nerdy girl who has a crush on Lucas. The lovely Courtney Thorne-Smith plays Sheen's hottie girlfriend before he dumps her for Green.
As the action unfolds, we see Lucas try everything to win Green's affection to no avail. At one point he even tries out for the football team and proceeds to get clobbered by the bigger upper-classmen. We as the viewer feel for the kid, because we all know the deck is stacked against him.
This film is truly special. It packs a real emotional punch at a time when most movies dealing with teens were pretty shallow. We can all relate to Lucas to some degree. We have all pretty much had strong feelings for someone we knew we could never have. This film captures the pain involved with crushes better than any other I have seen. In some ways it can be tougher to just be friends with a girl you like than if she never talked to you at all.
Another thing that is really great about the film is the ending. It isn't simply your run-of-the-mill happy ending where the hero gets the girl. Lucas fails to win her over, but at least he wins the respect of the guys who have been tormenting him.
If you haven't seen this one, SEE IT! If you have, SEE IT AGAIN!
4&1/2 of 5 stars
So sayeth the Hound.
Lucas is the story of an odd, but gifted pre-pubescent youth who happens to be attending high school at an early age. He falls for the pretty new girl in town who happens to be a few years older. She, on the other hand, has the hots for hunky Charlie Sheen, and Lucas is relegated to "friend status". (As if he ever had a chance with her in the first place.)
Lucas is played by to perfection by Corey Haim. In fact this is most likely his best film role. (It sure beats the heck out of Blown Away!). Kerri Green (I wonder what she's doing today) plays the new girl in town.They along with the rest of the cast is top drawer. Many of the main characters are well-known celebs today. Look for Winona Ryder in her screen debut as a nerdy girl who has a crush on Lucas. The lovely Courtney Thorne-Smith plays Sheen's hottie girlfriend before he dumps her for Green.
As the action unfolds, we see Lucas try everything to win Green's affection to no avail. At one point he even tries out for the football team and proceeds to get clobbered by the bigger upper-classmen. We as the viewer feel for the kid, because we all know the deck is stacked against him.
This film is truly special. It packs a real emotional punch at a time when most movies dealing with teens were pretty shallow. We can all relate to Lucas to some degree. We have all pretty much had strong feelings for someone we knew we could never have. This film captures the pain involved with crushes better than any other I have seen. In some ways it can be tougher to just be friends with a girl you like than if she never talked to you at all.
Another thing that is really great about the film is the ending. It isn't simply your run-of-the-mill happy ending where the hero gets the girl. Lucas fails to win her over, but at least he wins the respect of the guys who have been tormenting him.
If you haven't seen this one, SEE IT! If you have, SEE IT AGAIN!
4&1/2 of 5 stars
So sayeth the Hound.