RECKLESS. Directed by James Foley; written by Chris Columbus; produced by Edgar J. Scherick and Scott Rudin for MGM/UA. Starring Aidan Quinn and Daryl Hannah. Rated R (language, nudity, fairly graphic sex)
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Reckless begins with a very creative act of littering.
Johnny (Quinn) carefully places his empty beer can a few feet from the edge of a scenic overlook platform. Then he revs up his motorcycle and heads for it. He spins out neatly, just knocking the can over the cliff, but not following it himself. The whole movie is a lot like this opening sequence—original, engrossing, and a little crazy.
The "scenery" you get from Johnny's overlook is a dismal townscape, dominated by a gargantuan steel mill. That tells you something about this movie's tone. It looks like it was filmed in the same depressing place as All the Right Moves. (Actually, Reckless was shot in Ohio, Moves in Pennsylvania.)
There is no Tom Cruise in Reckless, though, with his comfortable good looks. But there is Quinn, who is inarticulate, not at all cute, and very, very interesting.
Johnny is a high school senior from the wrong side of the tracks. He's "gotten weird" only recently (we learn his mother has left his boozy father). But he has managed to become a complete outcast.
He and Tracey (Hannah) develop a reluctant, then passionate attraction for each other. But Tracey is a "good girl," with all the monetary and emotional advantages Johnny lacks. She can't admit to herself or anyone else that she's attracted by his wildness.
Reckless is better than this simple plot description sounds, although it's not flawless by any means. The explicitness of the sex scenes might offend some viewers. And the ending, satisfying at first, seems pretty simplistic upon reflection.
But there are a lot of little touches that make "interesting" the best word to describe Reckless. The relationship between Johnny and his father (Kenneth McMillan) is painful to watch, but it becomes surprisingly affecting. And Johnny and Tracey's defiant "courtship" in the deserted school is quite exciting.
Reckless will be popular with kids Johnny's age. His situation and behavior are extreme compared to most teenagers' experiences. But his problems are those which plague all adolescents—insecurity, rebelliousness, feelings out of control.
Their elders shouldn't just dismiss the movie, though. Take the soundtrack as an example. Most of the songs are well-chosen New Wave rock and roll. But middle-aged Bob Seger provides the final curtain. One final interesting twist.
February 8, 1984