Pump Up the Volume

I'm 28 now, but this film is still very important to me. PUTV is the best teen drama out there (though there aren't many to compete with it), it really grasps how so alone some teenagers can feel and how rejectedby the system they so often are. The film has dated some what, but if there ever was an early warning sign of the problems that face American schools today (columbine esque) this is it. You can only push teenagers so far before they lose the plot, end up killing themselves or other people, PUTV is about those feelings. Slater is the bomb in this film, he is truly awesome and Mathis plays a great sidekick. The fact she shows a bit of flesh makes the movie highly genuine, yes girls do get naked with boys whilst at high school. PUTV does now suffer with its meaning to the modern era, but modern kids still do get dejected and rejected and this film is a great message in saying.... You Are Not Alone! 10/10 Then.... 8/10 Now.

What a film!!, this is a film that very accurately represents how it feels to be unpopular, or the new kid in high school. Slater gained much respect from me for his terrific performance is Hard Harry, a new kid at a school where the staff don't seem to care about the students, Harry runs a pirate radio station as an anonymous student at the high school, and shares his feelings about the school, he gains a large following of students who feel the same way he does, but then trouble starts. This is a truly great film, with great performances, this is probably the "Rebel Without A Cause", for our generation. ***1/2 out of ****.

This movie really captured not only the disillusionment and pain of adolescence but also the general malaise of our postmodern society. Also brought out the tension between media "for the people" and free speech vs. media polluting the people and issues of censorship. While the film clearly made the latter out to be the "bad guy," a mature person might look beyond the pointed message and see the important issues on both sides --> Does media come from culture and speak truth, having the responsibility to honestly represent "reality," or does media influence culture and thus should it responsibly rise above mediocrity, challenging people to something higher in life? Tough issues in media studies. How to bring the two concerns together is the challenge, in a completely corporate-driven media culture that really stands for neither.

ummmm.... Christian Slater was also great in the lead performance.

This is a good movie let down by uneven direction and 1-dimensional characters (besides the 2 leads). I would probably love this movie a lot, had I seen it when it came out in 1990. Now, the teenage angst (Slater's rants) thing is getting tiresome and whiny to me. Nevertheless, I want to point out how wonderful the scenes between Slater and Mathis are, in particular the scene where they kind of tangoed around each other and the scene where they had their first kiss. These scenes are full of playfulness, seduction, anticipation and uneasy charms. I hope there are more good movie roles to come for both of them.

Lastly, I think the DVD release could really use some special features, like audio commentary by the director, Slater and Mathis. Since this is Slater's personal favorite, it'd be great to hear his perspective.

Christian Slater plays Mark Hunter, a disaffected teen that secretly runs a pirate radio station, which in the early nineties was a big deal. He does this for mostly therapeutic reasons, but soon gains a rabid fan base among his fellow high school students. Soon he begins to realize that his words are having an impact and when one student calls in for help and finding none takes their own life, things become very real for Mark. Nora Diniro, played by the underrated Samantha Mathis, figures out Mark is the voice behind the radio persona, and helps Mark as he tries to elude the FCC and get a final message out.

This movie came out my senior year in high school, and I connected with it. A lot of the themes this film touched upon were very close to me, so it has long been a favorite of mine. For any teen going through the growing pains associated with that age, I urge them to watch this movie.