Great Balls of Fire! (1989)

I wanted to but couldn't!

Absolutely Brilliant!

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Shame on anybody who is trying to defend this absolute waste of studio money. Dennis Quaid - what happened, man? This movie sucks...real, real hard. The writing, the acting, the crappy lip-synching. I mean, is the story of Jerry Lee Lewis really worth telling? Ultra-fanatical bible belt redneck pianist marries his child cousin. Great - can I see a movie about someone interesting now? So sad that this is one of Trey Wilson's last acting jobs. That John Doe guy as Myra's dad was alright, though.

As a child in rural Louisiana, Jerry Lee Lewis is entranced by black music. In 1956 Memphis, Jerry (Dennis Quaid) moves in with his cousin Rusty Brown's family including his daughter Myra Gale Brown (Winona Ryder). Sam Phillips of Sun Records, who signed Elvis, signs Jerry. His cousin Jimmy Swaggart (Alec Baldwin) tries to get him to serve God. He marries 13-year-old Myra after already married twice. It becomes a scandal during a 1958 British tour.This is a fun light rock-and-roll movie with a great manic performance by Dennis Quaid. The drama is backloaded with the scandal well into the second half. This has great music. A more dramatic story could be done concentrating not on his music but on his personal life and marriages. This is nevertheless a fun rock biopic and a memorable performance.

It's hard to believe that this film at the time had Jerry Lee's blessing. (Although he later said he hated it.) He helped Quaid to learn his "pumping" piano style and Jerry Lee did the real singing much like Ray Charles did for "Ray". Quaid's performance is the worst of his career. He's nothing like Jerry Lee. Also Ryder looks too old to be his 13 y/o cousin. I think she was maybe 17 at the time. Now Waylon Payne in "Walk the Line" doing his own singing on "Lewis Boogie" coupled with his wonderful rant in the car about how they're all going to hell... That captured more of the real Jerry Lee Lewis spirit then this whole film. They should get Payne and do a new Jerry Lee movie.

Great Balls Of Fire is the title song of the greatest hit by legendary rock and roller Jerry Lee Lewis who couldn't quite handle the sudden fame and wealth thrust into his hands. It serves as a singularly appropriate title for a film about his life.Jerry Lee is played by Dennis Quaid and the role is quite a stretch for him. I'm used to seeing an older and more mature Quaid in films like Swimmer and The Express. Still he does do very well capturing the essence of Lewis as I remember him as a lad.The key to understanding Jerry Lee Lewis is in remembering that what he did in marrying those child brides was quite normal behavior from where he came from. Young girls in the more rural sections of the south frequently got married at 13 to 15 and the success rate wasn't any better or worse than in the more sophisticated parts of the country. I do well remember the scandalous stories back in the late Fifties that put a halt to Lewis's meteoric career. Lewis came back and of course never got quite the same success, but music trends change in any event. He's still doing well on the nostalgic circuit, playing more for the love of it than the need for money. Playing that honky tonk piano and singing meant more to him than the trappings of success.Winona Ryder got a big break in her career playing Lewis's notorious child bride Myra. Interestingly enough at the same time Lewis's stories were in the news, Errol Flynn at 48 escorting young adolescent Beverly Aadland was also making headlines. And Flynn was still married to Patrice Wymore.Great Balls Of Fire is a good film, but really without an ending because Jerry Lee is still making music. May he continue to make it.