Obscure Films For Saturated Times: Pump Up the Volume (1990)

This next review is a film that holds a special place in my heart that reminds me of my youth and the beginning of my high school years: Allan Moyle's 90s dramedy, Pump Up the Volume.

Christian Slater plays Mark Hunter, a teenager who has just moved with his family from New York to Paradise Hills, Arizona. Like every teenager thrown into a new environment, Mark naturally hates it. Mark also has a very unique and bleak outlook on life which he voices through his pirate radio station anonymously under the moniker, Happy Harry Hard-On. As Harry, Mark is an outgoing, outspoken persona, commenting on everything from high school, parents, homosexuality, embarrassment, loneliness, masturbation, and what is wrong with American society, however, during the day he is a shy, timid loner.

When a fellow student, Malcom Kaiser calls the show saying he is going to commit suicide, Mark berates him but later identifies with Malcom, who hangs up and is confirmed dead the next day. After Malcom's suicide, Mark decides to stop broadcasting but quickly decides against it and goes back on to talk about how suicide is a stupid, selfish act. He then goes on to say that nobody is perfect and making everyone believe that you're crazy is a lot better than going crazy internally, possibly leading to suicide. The teenage listeners riled up and more and more of them believe in Harry, while teachers, parents and the media start paying attention to the show. A free-spirited and rebellious fellow student, Nora (Samantha Mathis) finds out that Mark is Harry and she inspires him to keep up the good fight and to "Talk Hard".

Now as usual, my loyal readers, I will not go into the rest of the plot because that would take the fun out of actually watching the film although I will say that there is a slightly contrived sub-plot regarding corruption at the high school. What is most interesting is Mark's monologue radio rants and his overall persona he displays to the world as Happy Harry Hard-On. Mark acknowledges that he can't talk to his parents, girls or anyone else for that matter, but when he is on the air, seemingly speaking to no one, his true personality comes out and we see that he is smart, outgoing and opinionated. I identified with Mark because, in a similar way, I acted completely different at school than at home, didn't have many friends and spent my lunches alone. After Mark's show goes viral, an interesting thing happens and all of the students, including the jocks, the achievers, the outcasts, and everyone in-between (including some parents) believe in him and his message.

The dream of the 90s may be alive in Portland but it's also very alive in Pump Up the Volume. If you were alive in the 1990s you may recognize the neon, the permed hair, the gigantic boom box radios and that not one of the students walking around the high school have their heads buried in a cell phone. This film seems dated, even to those who weren't alive or conscious of their surroundings during that time but what works the best in Pump Up the Volume is its universal message about the perils of being a teenager and how speaking your mind, believing in yourself and standing up for what you believe in is all that matters. It also speaks to a generation of teenagers who felt that there was nothing new to do in a society that had seemingly reached its zenith by the late 1980s.

Christian Slater turns in an awesome performance, which may not have been Oscar worthy but definitely should have been acknowledged by more critics. Even though he was 21 at the time this film was made, Christian Slater does a great job at making us believe he is a troubled teenager. A lot of the film's laughs come from Slater's on-air persona and the off-the-wall things he says. Samantha Mathis also shows some talent here in her first major film role. Mathis delivers a few lines here and there which might make some chuckle but overall she handles herself well as a rebellious teen, in love with Mark's message of "Talking Hard" - "The idea that a voice can just go somewhere uninvited and just kind of hang out like a dirty thought in a nice clean mind." This would be the first in a series of three films in which Slater and Mathis star in together: The other two are the 1992 animated film, Ferngully: The Last Rainforest and the 1996 John Woo action extraordinaire, Broken Arrow.

What I like the best about Pump Up the Volume lies in it's overall sense of not taking itself seriously, while effectively getting across a message. It may seem like a serious film but what makes it work is its heart and humor, mainly thanks to Christian Slater. Don't get me wrong, this is nowhere near being a perfect film, in fact it has many flaws, especially in terms of editing, dubbing, continuity and some hammy acting by some of the supporting cast. If you're able to look past these flaws, and just have fun with it, Pump Up the Volume is a great watch that will make you think about the struggles of being a teenager, and possibly make you feel nostalgic if you are an adult.

TALK HARD!

4 Microphones (Out of 5)