Great Balls of Fire! ou la Légende vivante du rock and roll

You don't have to be an old rocker to enjoy this movie which tells the story of the legendary rock pianist Jerry Lee Lewis. Dennis Quaid captures the excitement, oddities and mannerisms of this rock legend (almost an impersonation)

Quaid's performance is truly fantastic...........

The music is exciting - shaking your nerves and rattling your soul! I rate this movie 8.5 out of 10.

This movie defines what Jerry Lee Lewis is all about:An enigma in all sense of the word. Dennis Quaid gives his finest performance,in this reviewer's humble opinion,as the Killer himself. The hair,the clothes,the accent are strike an uncanny resemblance. Winnona Ryder is absolutely marvelous as Myra. This movie depicts Lewis's life from his first hit,"Crazy Arms",to the scandal that almost shot his career down the toliet quicker than Elvis could eat a cheeseburger. What really makes this movie go is the soundtrack,including new performances by the Killer. It has humor,tons of drama,and some really revealing glimpses into the man,the myth,the legend that is Jerry Lee Lewis. I give this movie a 9 out of 10. It is with great sadness that I report that this movie is out of print and I pray to God that it will be re-released at the time of this writing. Get it if you can, because,WOOOOOOOOOOO,this movie's got the bull by the horns!!!!!!!

An excellent job by director Jim McBride of putting Myra Lewis's book about the life of legendary rock and roll star Jerry Lee Lewis (her husband) on film.

Dennis Quaid gives an over the top performance (sometimes a bit too over the top; but, then again, this is Jerry Lee Lewis) as Lewis, arrogant and child-like, trying to deal with sudden fame, having to deal with the consequences of having married his thirteen year old cousin (Myra, who authored the book). Quaid was truly excellent in this role. Yes, the lip-synching was perhaps a bit too obvious at times, but for the sake of hearing some great music performed by the real Jerry Lee Lewis, that was an irritant I could easily put up with. The relationship between Lewis and Myra (Winona Ryder) is developed sensitively and tastefully by McBride. Humour is added by exploring the complex love-hate relationship between Lewis and his cousin, the evangelist Jimmy Swaggart (Alec Baldwin). There is also great irony, given what ultimately happened to Swaggart, as we listen to him lecturing Lewis about the dangers of taking the "gold-paved streets of rock and roll."

I really enjoyed this movie. Perhaps it was guilty of portraying everyone in it as a bit of a caricature, but it still seemed to offer an entirely believable story of Lewis's life. Well worth the watching.

9/10

Dennis Quaid struts around like a rooster in "Great Balls of Fire," a 1989 biopic about Jerry Lee Lewis, one of the great entertainers.

Discovered by Sam Phillips, the man who discovered Elvis and Johnny Cash, Lewis came up the ranks quickly and was poised to become the King of Rock 'n' Roll when Elvis went into the Army.

But the scandal that broke when it was revealed he was married to his 13-year-old cousin Myra (Winona Ryder) and was in fact a bigamist - which today would be shrugged off - just about ruined his career. Soon he was prone to violence on and off stage and imbibing in alcohol.

I have always loved Jerry Lee Lewis' music, but the only thing I knew about him was that he married his cousin - so that will show you where all the publicity was focused. I had no idea that Jimmy Swaggert (played here by Alec Baldwin) was also his cousin.

I was struck by the qualities he had in common with Elvis - they both were highly-charged performers with so much energy a stage couldn't hold them, both completely original, natural talents inspired by music they heard in their communities, and both were discovered by Sam Phillips.

What each one was most of all was just like one of the kids that he sang to, who could pulsate, dance and let their hormones run wild with the music. Lewis remains today an electrifying performer with an unmistakable sound. His high gear "Great Balls of Fire," "Breathless," "High School Confidential," and of course, "Whole Lotta Shaking' Going' On" are unmatched.

Now, how accurate was this film? Jerry Lee himself claims he never acted the way Dennis Quaid portrayed him in his life, though others say Quaid was right on. It's a little like Scottish people hearing a Scottish burr on an actor and saying, we don't talk like that when they do.

I will quibble with the depiction of Sam Phillips as a snake oil salesman who, according to this script, "lost Elvis." Phillips didn't lose Elvis - his record company was too small to promote Elvis as he needed to be promoted, and Phillips badly needed the money Elvis' contract would bring.

Elvis, Vernon and Gladys Presley thought they had it good - no one dreamed Elvis could accomplish what he did - so Sam Phillips could have kept Elvis with Sun for a longer period of time, but rather than stifling Presley's career, he let him go.

Quaid does an excellent job as a thrilling performer who perhaps isn't the most likable person off stage - in fact, might be a little sleazy - and Ryder captures the teenage silliness beautifully. Baldwin doesn't get to do much but proselytize.

The most interesting thing about "Great Balls of Fire" is its relevance today. Rock 'n' Roll was perceived as the way to complete degradation for teenagers and the performers were servants of the devil. Rap music is viewed the same way today.

With rock 'n' roll, the road to degradation was a sexual one - swinging those hips and getting all charged up could only mean trouble. Today, with rap, it's the message of violence against women and attitudes towards them, the use of violence and foul language.

In between, we had the schools ruling that no one could have a Beatles haircut. Maybe someday it will occur to somebody that many things can destroy a generation - war and drugs being two - but music doesn't seem to be one of them.

Personally I disagree with the other user's comments as I saw this movie on TV a while ago and really enjoyed it. What makes it so interesting is the fact that someone would actually go ahead and marry their cousin who was only 13 years old.

This movie is pretty accurate and the acting and music is great.

Dennis Quaid's portrayal of the Killer is definitely one to watch.

His accent and facial expressions are priceless and Winona Ryder's Myra is sweet and believable. This movie offers a great insight into the personal life, music and career of J.L.L. A really enjoyable film I would highly recommend :-D