Le temps du rock'n'roll

I first saw this movie on HBO in 1981. At that time HBO only showed box office flops. The supposedly really good ones would not get on HBO for 3 or 4 years.

I just saw it again tonight, after 23 years, and I still enjoyed it. The music is great, the acting is great, and the plot is great.

What is there not to like about it? I tried watching Chicago in 2002, the academy award winner, and it was a piece of crap. It was a combination Alfred Hitchcock/Showboat/Singing in the Rain movie, that was a total flop in my opinion. I much more enjoyed this movie.

There are a few slow points in the movie, but they don't last for long. There is such energy and vivacity in this movie that it holds your attention as it builds up continually to the next "Idol."

The songs stick in your mind (at least in mine), but they are always "in the wings" of the Ray Sharkey character. For example, the first idol he made, Sharkey is shown off stage mimicking the singer's moves.

Anyway, it is a fun movie to watch, and one of a kind for its time, so I highly recommend it!

This movie is one of my all time favorites. Ray Sharkey and Peter Gallagher were amazing. The songs were great, in fact I use to own the sound track. To this day I know the words to every song. It was clear from the first time I saw the movie that Peter would go on to have longevity. I wish I knew what happened to Paul Land. He made a really good Tommy Dee. I saw the movie the other day and I still find myself having as much fun as I did when I saw it on Cable in 1981. Oh yeah Joe Pantiliano (Bad Boys, Sopranos) made a lasting impression as well. Great acting, fun for all. It is a must see for anyone with a dream. ( smile)

A lot of postings indicate that this movie could do well in even today's competitive film market. And it could indeed. The late Ray Sharkey gives a very strong award-calbre performance as a repressed performer in the guise of a songwriter/manager for a couple of 1950s style teen idols. A very young Peter Gallagher showed signs that he might have a bigger career than he has apparently had. It's funny how an actor can look so "exotic" and really not actually BE exotic. It's this kind of irony that carries IDOLMAKER to the heights of classic filmaking.

I remember going to see this movie when it first came out. It's sort of a formula picture with the struggle to get to the top, the fame/power corrupting, the fall, then the redemption. Two things made this work, first the musical numbers were very good. This is a very difficult thing, making a movie about hit records and having to write original music that sounds like a hit. The movie shows how much work goes into the preparation and planning required to make it. This aspect was surprisingly good.

The main thing that holds your attention though is Ray Sharkey. I just saw it again on Encore. I knew Sharkey was good in the part but looking back now I can see he is very good. It almost seems that Bruce Willis copied Sharkey's style from this movie in several of his own. I could see Sharkey in the "Die Hard" movies. He brings so much energy to the part and is totally believable as wise guy with a quick temper.

When I first saw this movie I thought Sharkey was going to have a great career. I don't know if it was the drugs, a poor choice of parts or both but he really had talent and charisma. If he hadn't gotten hooked on drugs and contracted AIDS he could have been a Joe Pesci if not a Jr Robert DeNiro. If you think I am making this up get a copy of this movie and take a look. He did show flashes of what he could do in some television work but just couldn't keep it together for any length of time.

If you have any interest in the pop music of the late fifties early sixties or just want to watch what a talented actor can do with a formula picture take a look at this.

It was fall of 1980 and I was listening to NBC Radio ( A.M. ). At the time, that station played great music of the day. I remember calling up a radio contest which said that you could win tickets to the premiere of a new movie called " The Idolmaker " at Radio City Music Hall in New York City ( Manhatten ). I could not believe that I actually got thru and when I did was told that I had won. They wanted my name, address and phone number and told me that I would be receiving tickets to the premiere of the movie. What made matters even more great was the fact that my ex-husband worked for Rockefeller Center, not NBC otherwise we wouldn't have been eligible for winning these tickets. What luck! The premiere of this movie was amazing!!! I loved the acting, and the singing was to die for. After the movie ended, the stars of the show got up on the Radio City stage and spoke a few words thanking everyone who attended. I was privileged to have been seated in the 5th row from front. Peter Gallagher was so handsome in person as was Paul Land. Ray Sharkey ( may he rest in peace ) was at his finest hour. Even though this movie received a bad review and it didn't do too well in the theaters, I believe that many people were not given the opportunity to see what a fine movie this really was. Prince and Michael Jackson are big fans of this movie and for good reason. " You can be anything you want to be " , and that is the motto of this movie. Singer, songwriter, artist-you can make it!