Pump Up the Volume (1990)

“Feeling screwed up at a screwed up time in a screwed up place does not necessarily make you screwed up.” – Mark Hunter

Number of Times Seen – at least 5 times (Theater in ’90, cable and 7 May 2019)

Brief Synopsis – A teenager running a pirate radio station out of his basement preaches to the teens of his town how they need to rise up and take control of their lives.

My Take on it – This is a film that I recall seeing in the theater as a 16 year old and I have always had a lot of fun revisiting it over the years because it remains timeless in it’s story and message.

Christian Slater is perfectly cast in the lead role of this film and he is able to make us believe his character throughout.

is delivery of the very crisp and rapid fire dialogue is superbly done and also helps make things feel more plausible.

The film takes the issues of teenagers and tries to show why teens and adults are always at odds.

The fact that many teenagers are able to be both introverts and extroverts at the same time is quite fascinating especially since much of it has to do with their particular surroundings and the different ways that they express themselves via various outlets.

Many of the themes dealt with in this movie are still relevant today and it once again proves how little progress there has been in these matters over that period of time.

Some of the scenes presented here take things a bit too far to the extreme yet they still manage to keep things interesting from start to finish.

Bottom Line – Slater is perfectly cast in the lead role of this film. He is able to deliver the crisp and daring dialogue really well and makes us believe that this could possibly happen. The movie does a great job showing the way that teenagers can be both extroverts and introverts at the same time depending on their surroundings and their different outlets to express themselves. They deal with lots of subjects that affect teens both 3 decades ago and today which is actually a bit discerning since it shows that there really hasn’t been any progress in these areas. The film takes a few things to the extreme, yet stll keep it interesting throughout. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – During production, Christian Slater had his driver’s license suspended for the second time in two years over DUIs, and writer-director Allan Moyle had to retool the script accordingly. Lead character Mark Hunter doesn’t drive, tells his listeners he has “no car, no license,” and goes everywhere on foot. In the climactic scene, his girlfriend Nora, played by Samantha Mathis, drives the Jeep while Mark does his last “Hard Harry” broadcast from the passenger seat. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (8/10)