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Well.. here's the grand finale of my music oriented "movie-a-day" week.... I decided to do 2 for the price of 1... An encore presentation..curtain-call as you will.... I must thank Amazon.com again for their contribution:
Perhaps best known for its faux Springsteen soundtrack, the 1983 Eddie and the Cruisers is a rock lover's fantasy run wild. The story finds a reporter (Ellen Barkin) tracking down rumors of an unreleased album by a band whose charismatic leader (Michael Paré) allegedly died years before. As she approaches surviving members--who have since gone on to other things--she gets different points of view on Eddie's life and artistic drive, and the mystery about that album deepens. The trouble with the film is simple: it's impossible to accept. Michael Paré is far from suitable to play a Jersey shore rocker with thematic pretensions toward Rimbaud that go back to the '60s, and the soundtrack by John Cafferty sounds like a hack's rendition of E Street Band magic. An all-around embarrassment. --Tom Keogh
This is the last Rock film of the 1980's that still had a core of profoundly deep purity and grit combined with the tragically under-rated Soundtrack (especially in this sequel) by the genius, John Cafferty and The Beaver Brown Band. Cafferty both wrote and performed all of the music to the original film and this one. The latter stands on its own even if you know nothing about Eddie and the Cruisers. But the film is a Masterpiece. No tech gadgets, real talk between people, great screenplay, incredibly good story, realistic drama about how a Rock band actually comes into being! The acting by Micahel Pare is also his best work. Bon Jovi assisted in making the film as realistic as possible to the point where you never for one second think that it is not Michael Pare playing & singing along with every member of the band. Ms. Orsini is terrific as "Eddie's" girlfriend but she won't take any you-know-what from a guy that still has a lot of 'lovable' male superiority stuff to work through. All I can say is this. I don't understand why this film is not available - why it has been so hard to get even on VHS for years. There isn't a soul anywhere (even in other countries) who don't want both films on DVD as well as the Audio CDs (available on Amazon.com thank goodness) for the music and the great drama. Come on...someone out there must want the same thing...?
Personal Note:
I really disagree with the editorials review of the 1st film.... True.. the band really did emulate the E-Street Band, however, it allowed those with a deep appreciation of music along with a vivid imagination to let their mind wander without any limitations.... The idea that this legend who develops a cult-following is deceased and to discover what had materialized over the years was very mystical..... To see Eddie's first band gain prominence and subsequently witness how he assembled his band in the sequel is very compelling.....
I've seen both of these movies over and over again, but must one day watch them both back-2-back which would add another dimension to it....
Also.. the soundtrack is a classic... "On the Darkside" will forever remain one of the best classic hits from the 80s..... There was even enough for them to consider filming a 3rd edition, however, it's been several years since the last that now it would be very impractical.....
True, some of the scenarios are rather drastic/absurd to some, but to those who have music in their veins..you're definitely willing to overlook it....
