Featured Audience Ratings

• Mark W

  
  Released back-to-back with his previous 'teen-novel' adaptation "The Outsiders", Francis Ford Coppola attempted another of S.E. Hinton's books. Like his previous release, he assembled a brilliant cast but approached it in a different style. This time, the… More
  Released back-to-back with his previous 'teen-novel' adaptation "The Outsiders", Francis Ford Coppola attempted another of S.E. Hinton's books. Like his previous release, he assembled a brilliant cast but approached it in a different style. This time, the results were far more impressive. Rusty James (Matt Dillon) is a troubled young man from a broken background. His mother left him years ago and his father (Dennis Hopper) has turned to alcohol. He's the leader of a small gang in a time where gang fights are dying out and most people of his generation still idolise his absent older brother 'The Motorcycle Boy' (Mickey Rourke). Rusty James refuses to accept and believes he can make as much a name for himself as his legendary sibling. When his brother returns to town, the life that Rusty James envisioned begins to change. Admittedly, I never got around to reading the book on this one and given Coppola's sumptuous visual take on it, I'm sure it would have made for an interesting comparison. Much like "The Outsiders", this also has a feeling of a teenage audience at heart but is executed with much more darkness and depth. Coppola's use of monochrome - with momentary flashes of vibrant technicolor - is simply astounding and quite beautiful to observe. Several scenes throughout the film border on surreal and dreamlike and the intense performances add to this; Matt Dillon is on great form as the tearaway teenager who can't stay out of trouble and as his brother, Mickey Rourke delivers a character of quiet, tortured intensity. The rest of the cast are great also with Dennis Hopper playing the alcoholic father and Laurence Fishburne, Chris Penn and Nicolas Cage making up the rest of Rusty James' crew. Added to which, there is a welcome cameo appearance by Tom Waits, mumbling his way through a short but memorable character. Coppola once described this film as "an art-film for teenagers" and coming from the man himself, there is no better description. It might have been experimental or ambitious for him at this time but it still stands as one of his most visually refined pieces of work. Special mention must also go to Stephen H. Burum for his ethereally stunning cinematography and Stewart Copeland (from the band "The Police"), for his unsettling and impressionistic score. This makes a perfectly dark companion piece to the lighter side of "The Outsiders". They couldn't have been shot any more different and if viewed together, would make a great double bill.

• Anthony L

  
  I remember when The Outsiders came out, I watched it and enjoyed it but what I remember most is my sister and her friends going mad over it, more precisely, its cast. Rumble Fish passed me by, probably because of its higher rating but until now I have to admit I never knew of the… More
  I remember when The Outsiders came out, I watched it and enjoyed it but what I remember most is my sister and her friends going mad over it, more precisely, its cast. Rumble Fish passed me by, probably because of its higher rating but until now I have to admit I never knew of the connection between the two. It's a little bit like a mainstream Jim Jarmusch film, an '80s doing the 50's' Rock n' Roll noir, complete with ultra cool characters, striking black and white film (with occasional splashes of colour) and a certain disjointed charm. It feels like there is something not quite right about it though, but in turn, that might be what I really liked about it - it didn't quite work but if it had been this ultra-glossy tidy production, it would have been laughable. Definitely of its time and great to look back on, the cast is pretty unbeatable. The Outsiders for the Girls and Rumble Fish for the Boys? Matt Dillon's 'out of body experience' scene is fantastic!

• Melvin W

  
  The Motorcycle Boy: If you're going to lead people, you have to have somewhere to go.  "No leader can survive becoming a legend." Since first watching Rumble Fish, it has grown and grown on me. Initially I liked it, but thought it was lesser Coppola, not nearly as bad… More
  The Motorcycle Boy: If you're going to lead people, you have to have somewhere to go.  "No leader can survive becoming a legend." Since first watching Rumble Fish, it has grown and grown on me. Initially I liked it, but thought it was lesser Coppola, not nearly as bad as Jack, but not even as good as one of his more average movies, Tetro. The more I have thought about it, the more I have really started to like the film. I love these brother movies, where the younger brother tries to be the older brother, but can't. There is so much truth in them and this one one is extremely well done. The movie opens with Rusty James being told that another street punk wants to kill him and challenged him to fight. We then learn through conversations with his friends that Rusty's brother has been gone for awhile. His brother is a legend on the streets; he is The Motorcycle Boy. When Rusty James and his gang go to the fight, The Motorcycle Boy shows up too and the two brothers start hanging out again. From there, there isn't too much plot. It is all about the brothers and what it means to be a leader and shit like that. The Motorcycle Boy is such an awesome character. He is played by Mickey Rourke and I don't think there was an actor better suited to play him. The character is like James Dean's from Rebel Without a Cause reincarnated. The guy is tough, but he is also soft spoken. He is color blind and doesn't hear all that well. He looks old for his age, probably from all the partying and fighting. The Motorcycle Boy is a leader and a smart, philosophical brother to  Rusty James and all Rusty wants his to be like his brother when he grows up.  Maybe it isn't The Godfather or Apocalypse Now, but I still think this shows off just how good Coppola is. It shows how flexible he is as a filmmaker and further proves his immense talent. There is only one thing that hurt the movie and that was knowing the ending way too early. Not that we were told of it, but that it was too obvious. It was the only way it could end. Still a beautiful film from Francis Ford Coppola.

• Mark H

  
  Francis Ford Coppola's follow up to <I>The Outsiders</I> was a critical and commercial flop when originally released in 1983. Panned for being over-stylized and lacking a clear narrative, audiences shunned the film. Yet it is those artistic touches that set the film… More
  Francis Ford Coppola's follow up to <I>The Outsiders</I> was a critical and commercial flop when originally released in 1983. Panned for being over-stylized and lacking a clear narrative, audiences shunned the film. Yet it is those artistic touches that set the film apart. Black and white cinematography, which recalls French New Wave cinema and German Expressionism, never looked so beautiful. In fact, this surreal film more resembles life in the mid-50s, despite being set in the modern day. Stellar cast adds to this visually arresting teen drama about streets gangs and sibling relationships.

• Pierluigi P

  
  Mickey Rourke's laid-back charismatic attitude and Stephen H. Burum's hypnotic photography are the key elements of this striking surreal moral tale.

• Mike T

  
  This visionary burst of artistic expression is one of the strongest installments in Coppola's directorial canon. Rumble Fish is one of his most unique and compelling works, a film that pulsates with crazy energy and bold ideas. Beautifully shot.

• Marcus W

  
  In the hands of some European wannabe director this would be a dull black and white noir. In Coppola's hands it's a mesmerising film with possibly the greatest use of black and white cinematography, plus a great score that keeps the film energised and stops drag. It's… More
  In the hands of some European wannabe director this would be a dull black and white noir. In Coppola's hands it's a mesmerising film with possibly the greatest use of black and white cinematography, plus a great score that keeps the film energised and stops drag. It's also the best I've seen Rourke. A must-see for film lovers. A deserved classic.

• Adam M

  
  Arty, noir-ish drama with Matt Dillon and Mickey Rourke about 2 brothers, one a cool as fuck biker who nearly everyone in town worships and the other, a thug and dreamer who tries to live up to his brothers reputation. Their boredom at the town they live in has forced to make up… More
  Arty, noir-ish drama with Matt Dillon and Mickey Rourke about 2 brothers, one a cool as fuck biker who nearly everyone in town worships and the other, a thug and dreamer who tries to live up to his brothers reputation. Their boredom at the town they live in has forced to make up stories about the old days and gang fights but the reality is they come from a shitty little town and are desperate to leave like everyone else. This looks really good in black and white and has good performances from Rourke and Dillon as well as appearances from Dennis Hopper, who's brilliant as the dad, Diane Lane as Dillon fit girlfriend and Nicolas Cage as a friend of the brothers. This is a well made film by Francis Ford Coppola, visually stunning and well acted.

• Lee K

  
  Pretty good adaptation of the susie hinton novel, that has a very very cool matt dillon and a cool backing cast.

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