Johnny Be Good

Life lessons are not always the most prevalent in coming of age genre films. Sometimes they're real obvious, while others are more obscure and look to have their viewers find the deeper meaning themselves. It's also hard to say how significant a coming of age film can be when it is a Rated R comedy. Some have worked brilliantly - The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005) is one. This on the other hand is a strange mix of elements that plays its cards right in some respects, while at other moments it's questionable to what the crew was thinking here. This is the story of Johnny Walker (Anthony Michael Hall), a high school athlete who has quite a fan club. After winning the last football game of the season (by cheating no less), Walker is approached by recruiter upon recruiter to play for their college team.

There are also other people who want Johnny to go with their opinion. Wayne Hisler (Paul Gleason), the high school coach wants him to attend a college of his choice so he can acquire special benefits and he'll do anything to make sure it happens. Johnny's mom and grandpa want him to get an education more than a sports scholarship and his girlfriend Georgia (Uma Thurman) wants him to attend State with her. So many opinions, which one will he choose?! Well, Johnny ends up attending mostly all of their open houses. This ends up having him being bribed with things that seem almost unrealistic or things that have nothing to do with getting an education or playing football. Of course fame grants several of these things but at a high school level? The kid and his team didn't even play fairly winning the last game so how does that even qualify? Are the refs that blind?

Plus, what's even more shocking is to how this production was able to gather now famous actors when they were starting off and the chemistry feels almost nonexistent. And, the screenplay was completed by three writers, all of which worked on Revenge of the Nerds (1984). How is that barely any charm are given to these characters? There are only a couple of moments that Johnny goes through that actually develop him as a character. Other than that he's placed in silly events that should trigger his conscience saying he shouldn't be there. The best parts of the film are when Johnny's family is on screen. Somehow they seem to have the best lines and character arcs. My favorite family member was the grandfather (George Hall). Such a nice old man.

Uma Thurman's character has a very typical character arc, loves her boyfriend - finds him as a jerk briefly - then resorts back to him. Possibly the strangest of all is Robert Downey Jr.'s character. Either he tries too hard to be funny or his jokes don't make any sense. It's baffling, I guess Downey Jr. didn't realize how much funnier he is when he says his lines deadpan than actually trying to be comical. Fans might also get a kick out of actor Marshal Bell's performance as Uma Thurman's dad, also the chief of police. He has some funny one liners at times too. All right enough of the characters. Jay Ferguson's music to the film is appropriately set but doesn't have anything to remember about it. Was it a comedy that had laughs galore? Not so much. Does it feel like a coming of age movie? Not really.

The cast contains famous actors of today in their youth and has a moral somewhere in its story but its delivery is overshadowed by hit and miss comedy. Much of the events that take place feel impossible too, decreasing its believability.

This film has two main things going for it - nostalgia and the ability to fantasize about having Uma Thurmann as your girlfriend in 1988. There are many fantastic shots of her in all measure of garb, including a wonderful body-length pajamas. Lots of nice white tops and jeans. Phew and Rowrrrrr.....

Anthony Michael Hall is an actor I decided I liked after all in his later career when he played Bill Gates in Pirates of Silicon Valley. He's got a measured confidence mixed with some menace underneath that all-american blonde facade. Despite what some might some might say about Hall's depth, he is about the only thing saving this movie from absolute disaster.

I actually found Robert Downey Jr to be mostly insufferable in this film, and its very early for him, but he isn't given a lot to work with. He does have a few good lines, though.

Structurally, this movie has a lot of problems. The plot is insanely thin, and it sort of purports to a certain amount of morality, but then it does not a lot to support that assumption. It lays out Hall's character compromise of his character in such an extreme, laughable manner, it's pretty hard to take it seriously. It's a movie that is sort of making fun of itself, or maybe the director and actors are mocking the script. It's got that feel of not being taken super seriously, something that happened quite a bit in the 80s and made for some charming fare, but also made for some not cogent films. The production values and soundtrack are good, however. The music is period, and well curated, but featuring lesser known tracks, not all well-known hits. I also always like seeing the uncluttered life of the 1980s, no cel phones, still a certain amount of neon, nice 1970s and 1980s cars, and the general party atmosphere of the time.

As I said, however, the number one reason to watch this is for Uma Thurmann. The one realistic thing about this movie is that in real life, this guy probably would be stupid enough to lose Uma Thurmann. Of course in real life, he never would have been dating her in the first place.

Not the best movie I've ever seen but a good coming of age comedy. Repeat comedy. Some people might not like this movie but I thought it was good. If you like movies in general and can deal or like the 1980's and early 1990's era movies you'll enjoy this.

If you like the Breakfast Club or any of the Brat Pack era movies you'll like this. It also has some good football scenes but only a few short ones so those that hate football can manage through them.

Basically this movie is about college recruiting of a star high school football quarterback. He struggles with the moral question of does he go to the flashy money schools or the one where he might get an education. In the mean time his family, coach and friends all fall victim to college recruiters.

Not a good movie for young children due to sexual overtones, drinking, etc. Men and women should both enjoy this movie.

My favorite scene is early in the movie with Johnny in his room playing the drums with the TV and stereo going. I could really relate to this scene from my high school years. I measure movies by the question of, would I be disappointed if I had paid $10 to see it at the movie theater. This one exceeds the grade. Enjoy.

There is one good scene in this movie, and it's pretty good. Anthony Michael Hall has just been on a recruitment tour of private colleges who want to give him football scholarships and he has come back to his hometown to negotiate a deal with the athletic director of a public university. The interplay between the two, especially the unspoken lines, is done beautifully.

Other than that, this is a pretty standard (sub-standard) teen flick posing as a cautionary tale. I think this movie wanted to be a comedic version of "All the Right Moves", but didn't have the guts to tell a real story.

Just a run of the mill 80's try hard comedy, a few funny scenes...nothing to get excited about (one and done)