RUMBLE FISH

DISCOVERY:
I saw this one when it was released, at an art movie house.

PLOT:
Rusty James is ex-gang leader, Motorcycle Boy's younger brother.  In the Motorcycle Boy's absence, Rusty James wants to form a gang, just like his big brother's.  There is a fight. Motorcycle Boy returns. Rusty James has to answer to him for his deeds.

Their mother is away, where is unclear to Rusty James. Their father (Dennis Hopper) is an alcoholic and a ghost of a man. Diane Lane plays a hooker strung out on heroine. She too is a ghost.

The plot is sparse compared to the rich characters and character interaction. Rumble Fish is more a day in the life of bored urban youths who are on the verge of adulthood.

CINEMATIC SIMILARITIES:
The works of independent directors Wim Wenders, Jim Jarmusch, Jon Jost, Rick Schmidt, and Hal Hartley come to mind. The loneliness and heavy-handiness.

OVER-ALL ANALYSIS:
The dialog is believable, the characters real. This is the seamier side of life and it ain't pretty. Basically a Guy Flick.

Do the characters grow? I think not.

A DETAIL:
The film is entirely black and white except the rumble fish and one other item.

FINALE: 
There is a splash of color in the end scene.

Glenn Withrow? , Vincent Spano, Matt Dillon, Chris Penn

Credits: 94:00 min.  1983  USA  English  B&W and Color

 Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola 

Written by: S.E.Hinton

Credits complements of IMDb

"Notable Quote"

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z  Numerical

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