I ragazzi della 56ª strada

A terrific tweener for kids of any era. Serious but sweet, and refreshingly free of cynicism.

Godfather Coppola has a real way with family, go figure. But here he keeps the themes and emotions simple. One of the reasons for this story's lasting power is that it was written by a teenager, and so accurately reflects kids' perspective. It would have been very tempting to try and infuse an adaptation with "layers," to comment on the action and show yourself superior, but Coppola exercises great restraint and appropriate respect for the material. He knows it isn't profound stuff, but he understands that it *feels* profound to kids who identify with it. In walking this tightrope, he creates a rare thing: a movie that's for kids but neither talks down to or indulges them.

Lowe, Dillon, Estevez, Howell, Macchio, Garrett, Swayze. Only Cruise and Lane (and Sofia!) seem bigger now than they are here. That, and the 20-some years since, makes The Outsiders all the more poignant.

This movie feels very dated in terms of the way the drama is presented, but it is saved by standout performances from a laundry list of great actors cutting their teeth with the material. This is also worth watching in the present day for its portrayal of social class, and the universal theme of friends helping one another to learn, grow and survive. I also really loved that the small Midwest town isn't portrayed as a glamorous 1960s utopia, the housing is run down, businesses are shown struggling, and the feeling of growing up in a working class neighborhood is so real you can taste it. Ultimately, these things make The Outsiders worth a watch even if youre unfamiliar with source mayerial.

I loved this book as a kid, and I work with troubled kids who still love the book. I've seen this film a number of times over the years, and am still disappointed that, with such a FABULOUS cast, that it misses the grit and passion of the story.

Ya know what did it? The score. I understand that FFCoppola wants to make his films a family affair, but did he actually LISTEN to what his dad wrote? Sappy strings and a STEVIE WONDER BALLAD???? (ok, that part isn't her fault - what was FFC thinking???). What about some of the early rock songs of the time? I know that's been done a lot, and maybe they didn't want to "date" the film, but the fashion and language and cars and dress date it already; honestly, I've never heard a musical score that was so badly matched to a story. Heh, might as well get Danny Elfman (great score composer, btw) to write the scores for Star Wars.

Now, if you want to hear a terrific score that actually becomes a character of a story, see "The Shawshank Redemption"... the music in that amazing film, to me, is Andy's voice... listen for it, it expresses what's going on inside of Andy, and occasionally the other characters. THAT is what a film score is supposed to do.

I might not get the highest possible rating for my comments on this movie but I'm going to be totally honest. First, I read the book and then shortly afterward saw the movie. In my opinion the movie did a good job of getting the whole story from book to screen. A lot of the scenes caught the mood I felt when I read the book, or even shed some light on them for me. C. Thomas Howell played his part very well and showed acting skill, but he just seemed too nice, too sensitive to enjoy fighting for its own sake the way his brothers did. I could believe Darry and Soda looking forward to a fight with the Socs but I just did not get the feeling from PonyBoy that he was a fighter. Even Johnny Cade seemed more on edge, more 'ready to fight' than PonyBoy, who played all his scenes really well - he just didn't convince me he was someone who enjoyed a fight.

Of all the actors cast for the film, and really all were done well, I think Ralph Macchio as Johnny Cade was the most perfectly cast based on how I perceived him to be from reading the book.

To be honest, when reading the book I could tell it was written by a woman. I enjoyed it very much, and would say if you have a few hours, the book is not too long to read and I'd recommend it even more highly than the film.

The Outsiders is a very good film in any case and worth watching.

With this adaptation of S. E. Hinton's debut novel "The Outsiders", Francis Ford Coppola introduced a whole new generation of actors, who would go on to become some of Hollywood's biggest stars over the course of the next few years and decades. The story is a coming-off-age tale set in an unspecified American town during the early 1960s, where the dividing line between the north and south side of town, between the working-class "greasers" and the upper-class "socs", defined the upbringing, youth years and prospects for the future for all the characters we get to meet. Focusing on the greasers - and more on the ties and comradery between them than on the greaser culture as such - The Outsiders is a tenderhearted, unobtrusive film full of semi-obvious observations and character-developments. As such, it feels like the school essay that the novel more or less started out as. Still, the film has a perception and understanding for these kids, their time and their surroundings that makes it resonant and believable. Artistically, this is by no means Coppola's best work, and all of these actors would go on to deliver better work later on in their careers, but their characters and their performances have stood the test of time quite well. Look for Coppola's pal Tom Waits in a cameo as a bouncer in a bar. C. Thomas Howell won the Young Artist Award for Best Young Motion Picture Actor for his performance as Ponyboy Curtis.