High school senior Tim Pearson (C. Thomas Howell) isn't sure what he wants to do with his life. The night of his prom he meets Michelle "Mike" Cody (Jamie Lee Curtis), the owner of a demolition derby, and becomes smitten with her. This complicates his life as Tim's father (Ramon Bieri) is a city commissioner intent on shutting the track down for his own benefit.
Not sure how this comedy-drama escaped me for so many years. It checks off all the "coming of age" and "life struggles" tropes, but I was still quite entertained by it even if it switches in tone quite a bit. There are several emotional moments and director Randal Kleiser handles them well. Unfortunately, there are also two out of place musical numbers (daydreams for Howell's character) that instantly date the movie. Filmed in Pontiac, Illinois, it is the kind of film that they don't seem to make anymore (or at least big studios don't make anymore) about blue collar struggles. If it was made today, the only thing for certain is there would be one million think pieces about the relationship between the Howell and Curtis characters. There is a stellar supporting cast including Patrick Swayze as demolition driver and Cody's other love interest, Jennifer Jason Leigh as his cheating wife, Troy Donahue as her lover, William Windom as Cody's uncle, and John Philbin as a mentally slow track hand. Also look for small roles by John Cusack, Joan Cusack, M. Emmett Walsh, and Michael Winslow as the track MC doing his thing.
Not sure how this comedy-drama escaped me for so many years. It checks off all the "coming of age" and "life struggles" tropes, but I was still quite entertained by it even if it switches in tone quite a bit. There are several emotional moments and director Randal Kleiser handles them well. Unfortunately, there are also two out of place musical numbers (daydreams for Howell's character) that instantly date the movie. Filmed in Pontiac, Illinois, it is the kind of film that they don't seem to make anymore (or at least big studios don't make anymore) about blue collar struggles. If it was made today, the only thing for certain is there would be one million think pieces about the relationship between the Howell and Curtis characters. There is a stellar supporting cast including Patrick Swayze as demolition driver and Cody's other love interest, Jennifer Jason Leigh as his cheating wife, Troy Donahue as her lover, William Windom as Cody's uncle, and John Philbin as a mentally slow track hand. Also look for small roles by John Cusack, Joan Cusack, M. Emmett Walsh, and Michael Winslow as the track MC doing his thing.