I caught Reckless on TCM the other night and it turned out to be a pleasant surprise. In the beginning it seemed like the all-too-familiar small town college romance thing with the quarterback, the cheerleader and the outcast but as the story developed I found myself more and more intrigued. And the reason for this was the inspired acting by Aidan Quinn (his first movie ever!) and Darryl Hannah. The chemistry between them was exceptional and as their relationship unfolded the movie really came alive. Credits must be given to the then first-time director James Foley for directing their scenes in a down-to-earth, natural way. Maybe the script is not too original and we've probably seen these characters before, nevertheless the film manages to grasp the relative pointlessness and hopelessness of the industry town milieu really well. Although our two protagonists come from different family backgrounds whichunder normal circumstanceswould produce totally divergent ways of life, they still find each other and share the common desire to escape from the lives that are laid out for them in order to step on a road less traveled. The top-notch performances and the unmistakable 80s atmosphere make it well worth looking out for this film.
Review of Reckless
