This film may not be a work of genius, but it touched me deeply in 1987 and it still does. Joan Jett and Michael J. Fox touch a chord literally and figuratively as polar opposite siblings who share a passion for music. Gena Rowlands is absolutely brilliant as the desperately ill mother who clings to her faith for solace and dominates her children out of fear for them. The soundtrack is jam-packed with old-fashioned style rock n' roll. An instrumental piece (titled Elegy) underscores the leaden sadness throughout the film and is ethereal and beautiful. For anyone who has struggled with family strife, there will be familiar territory here. This film is, in my opinion, underrated and worth a second (or a first!) look.
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conorsmommy20001 March 2006
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claudio_carvalho17 December 2003Joe (Michael J. Fox) and Patti (Joan Jetti) play in the band `The Barbusters'. They use to play in bars in the suburbs. Patti is the singer of the band and a single mother, has a beautiful son and is very rejected by her mother Jeanette (Gena Rowlands). They do not accept and understand each other. The father of Patti's son is unknown by her family. Patti wants to follow the career of musician, but her brother uses the band indeed as an alternative for the lack of job. Joe is the link between Patti and Jeanette, trying to resolve and absorb their problems. A terminal cancer in Jeanette changes the relationship among the family and cruel revelations are presented in the end, with a final redemption of the characters. The melodramatic screenplay of this movie looks like a Mexican soap opera, but the soundtrack is great. There is a minor participation of Jimmie Vaughn, as the singer of another band (`The Fabulous Thunderbirds'). This movie is not a masterpiece, but entertains, especially if the viewer watches it without any expectation, just for killing time. My vote is five.
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mepeak13 December 2003I enjoyed the movie because it reminded me of growing up in Cleveland and going to bars and listening to some AWSOME bar bands that no one has ever heard of. Joan Jett does a fine job acting and the soundtrack is great.
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Melakward19 December 2001*May contain Spoilers* I thought this film was awesome! Joan Jett was fine and very convincing as far as her character was concerned. Michael J Fox was phenomenal as usual, although if a person would rather see him in a comedic role, I wouldn't stick this film at the top of the list. It seems odd to me that some people would find his bad-ass-rocker role a hard one to believe. After all, he was in a couple of garage bands, and he does really play the guitar (will his talents ever cease?).
The movie showed how one person can be exposed to two very different worlds, and not have to reject one to be a part of the other. Joe (Fox) did this well, where as Patti (Jett) came around at the end. Going from jam-packed, smoke filled bars to the very plain, stereotypically 80's parents house isn't always an easy transaction, but the actors pulled it off beautifully.
The dying scene with Patti and her mother was touching, as well as the closeness of the two siblings. Neither one did seem to be able to hold a grudge against anyone. Everyone was very level headed and forgetful of the past.
Over all, I'd say that people should definitely read into the fact that it's a DRAMA, and I'd almost have to say that this movie could be labeled under "chick flick", and not very many "chicks " are into this kind of movie. This is why (I'm guessing!!) this movie isn't all to popular. I LOVED IT! -
Michael J. Fox and Joan Jett are an unlikely sibling twosome, living in Cleveland with Jett's illegitimate kid and hoping to get their rock-and-roll band off the ground (Fox struggles with an underwritten character, at once rebellious and responsible, while Jett talks with a thick, streetwise drawl suggesting she's from the opposite side of town). This downbeat movie has none of the spirit of Joan Jett's rock videos from the 1980s; a few of the camera set-ups are good, but the locations aren't especially well-captured and the music--integral to the story--isn't strong enough to provide the necessary uplift the soapy plot desperately needs. Fox has a solid scene fighting with his sister over her boy, although a whole sequence with him quitting the band over a shoplifting incident doesn't wash. Gena Rowlands is admirable as their mother (with a medical condition!), but there's too much of her and this plot-thread fails to build momentum. "Back to the Future" fans passed on this, and who can blame them? Despite being a personal project from writer-director Paul Schrader, his handling is pedestrian, sometimes awkward or unsure, and his dialogue doesn't have the canny ring of truth--it's all a blue-collar cliché. ** from ****
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SnoopyStyle13 June 2021The Rasnicks are a family from the Cleveland area. Patti (Joan Jett) is a single mom obsessed with her rock and roll dreams. Joe (Michael J. Fox) is her easy-going brother. Her religious mother Jeanette (Gena Rowlands) berates her for her life choices. Bu Montgomery (Michael McKean) is a fellow bandmate with Patti and Joe.
The music is half the battle. The good news is that Joan is here. I don't know if Michael is Rock and Roll but at least, he's going all in with his hair. He can't sell me on being Rock and Roll but that's somewhat fine for the role. The narrative needs a better drive to have higher tension. Maybe Patti could forget to pick up the kid from school. Her house needs to be a mess. The cops can be called. Her motherhood skill is put into question and she could be threatened with legal action. The story needs a steadier ramp up. That's why the fight seems to come out of nowhere. I really don't believe in the physical fight. The movie is saved by Joan Jett's rock intensity. Her whole body exudes rock and roll. Gena Rowlands is a powerhouse. Fox is being Fox. It's Joan, Born in the U. S. A. -
I just have to get that out of the way, since it's the only reason I'm bothering to comment about this movie. No, he is not blonde. He is the guy playing a KEYBOARD (surprise, surprise) for "The Problems". He clearly has dark hair. He is not the guy singing (although he does sing) who has the closest shot, who has lighter hair. *spoilers ahead* Having said that, this movie is pretty crappy. A prime slice of 80s cheese. Joan Jett CAN act, decently, but the script is lame and her character thinly conceived. Gena Rowlands is great in her part as the mother, ditto the Exorcist priest guy as the father. Includes many painful scenes, most of which involve Michael J. Fox (with mullet) and a little kid (Jett's son). The dad from My So-Called Life is the preacher who fooled around with Jett (the kid's dad?).
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damianphelps9 February 2021This was another attempt by MJF to step away from Family Ties (the other at the same time frame was Bright Lights Big City).
Bright Lights is probably a slightly better movie but this is a better character for Fox. He is helped considerably by his seriously convincing (lol) co start Joan Jett playing a musician (not much of a stretch I know!)
That co star helps Fox be convincing enough.
It has its cheesy moments but they are over come by the 2 stars :) -
johnk-416 February 1999Not quite bad enough to be funny. Simply a grueling grind for the first 45 minutes. After that, I could take no more.
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ranja27 February 2003Although the movie may be disappointing, the soundtrack sure is not! It contains unique songs of Joan Jett, like the titletrack or the heavy rocker 'Rabbit's got the gun'. Even Michael J feels like singing a song (but if that was such a great idea...) Anyway, for all that like Joan as a musician the soundtrack is a must-have.
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GrantCAGE25 April 2001I don't know how I managed to sit through all of this movie. It's so boring from the start to the end! I never thought Joan Jett could sing and this proves i'm right! Her shouting, hard voice clashing over the other musicians parts makes the film so irritating. The band that sister and brother Pattie (Jett) and Joe (Fox) have called the Barbusters have some terribly cliched songs. 'This Means War'-shouting bad voice, 'It's All Coming Down Tonight'- rubbish head-banger! and all the other so-called 'songs' that feature. The screenplay throughout the movie is so slow and depressing and Joan Jett's acting can't really get any worse from the first 20mins! Even Michael J Fox was not his usual standard in this tripe. Gena Rowlands plays their mother who comes down with cancer and dies (cliche!) and surprise surprise Pattie never got along with her mother, but it turns out okay because she goes back to the club with the Barbusters and Churns out dumb power chord heavy rock'n'roll music to play the film out! This movie is so badly done and cliched that it's pretty unbareable to see through! It's a depressing and dull drama that will not grow on you! Steer clear of this cheaply-made tosh that tries to pass itself off as a so-called 'drama'!!!
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jimj4094 December 2006Back when I was 21, I went with a few friends to see another film (I forget which, now) that had sold out, leaving us with this film as an option that we took.
I was so pleasantly surprised that a film I would otherwise never have bothered with turned out to be so resonant with me.
I expected a teenybopper rock'n'roll picture. This film is nothing close to that. This is a gritty, hard-edged slice of life. It is full of realistic human emotion and genuine observation of actual "rock'n'roll" lifestyle, which for the vast majority of rockers means nightly sharing of a van and a motel room and splitting up a few hundred bucks five or six ways before expenses. The scene in "Motel Hell" where Fox doles out the money (after enumerating the expenses including "forty-five dollars for that tire, and eighteen for the Chinese feast") just struck such a ringingly true chord with me.
The secondary drama, which plays out as you understand that the primary drama (will the band make it?) is already moot (Fox knows that the Barbusters have no chance; Jett continues to chase the dream regardless) commences with the discovery of their mother's illness.
The interplay between Jett and her mother in the hospital as the mother lays dying and they reconcile their long-hardened differences is surprisingly well-played, especially on Joan Jett's part. I expected great acting from the superb Gena Rowlands; I expected zero from Jett and was blown away instead. I'm surprised she never got any other real roles; I found her to be extremely easy on the eyes and quite a lovely and talented actress. Whatever.
The film has a terrific ending. No, they don't make it to the big-time, but you never expect that to happen anyway. It is simply a satisfying ending that matches the size and scope of this terrific film, which was never intended to be anything more than a look at a Cleveland family who has two members who happen to play in a road band.
Catch it once in your lifetime. -
Motorskallen12 September 2005OK ... The soundtrack is awesome (since I just LOVE The Blackhearts), and the plot is a good idea. But I'm afraid the didn't use that idea too well. About a girl, who is a bit "lost", and who only care about her ambition to the rock band she's playing in. She's got a child, but who cares? This is rock and roll it's all about ... That's the most remarkable thing in the movie, when she cares less and less about her baby, and more about the band. Finally the kid calls her uncle "dad" ...
So even if you love rock and roll (like I do), don't stay on drugs, don't mess your life up, don't give it all up for the music; dream big, live the life, but keep the family thing as the most important thing in your life. -
nathanschubach24 February 2012As a huge Nine Inch Nails/Trent Reznor fan, I was going to see this movie at some point in time, and after seeing it, I thought it was pretty good. Joat Jett gives a pretty awesome performance throughout, and Michael J. Fox is solid but seems a little meek for this kind of role, to me. Michael McKean was a nice surprise in the band as well (for fans of Spinal Tap and his work on Christopher Guest's movies).
This movie is all about the ambition of their "bar band" and trying to make your dreams happen, but there's not a lot to say about the plot of the movie. It's typical "my children don't believe in Jesus and are horrible to me" drama with an added twist that doesn't really make you sway one way or the other towards any of the characters. If you're a music fan, you'll appreciate the tale of how bands try and make their dream happen, but otherwise, it's kind of long for such a simple story and lacks the intrigue to keep watching after a certain point. -
swedensm26 May 2003I never enjoyed the cutesy characters they always have Fox portray. Here he does a great job as a "regular", decent guy who is loyal to his family and just wants to know what his dream is. I think that Joan Jett did a fantastic job -- not too many musicians can cross over so well into movies. Fox and Jett are believable as brother and sister and Gena Rowlands is always incredible.
I think this movie was panned because people expect Mr. Fox to be silly and boyish (two things that he wasn't in this movie.) Good for you, Michael. -
jacobsuggs26 January 2006Paul Schrader is one of the most bold and daring writers in film history, and Light Of Day was probably just a chance to get to make a movie and who could blame him for wanting that? He did the best he could with it. The biggest flaw is the decision to go with MICHAEL J. FOX and JOAN JETT as the leads, neither of them have the weight to make it believable.
FOX acting like a tough guy is just laughable and there's too much focus on the actual music they play which really just sucks.
Not SCHRADERS best work, but an admirable effort considering.
The film probably would of worked well with a more edgy and darker story and maybe with someone like SEAN PENN in the lead role and an actual actress in the lead.
If SCHRADER was able to put his full signature on this film it could of been great -
Indeed the surprise here is Joan Jett playing the rock obsessed sister of Michael J. Fox, constantly at odds with parents Gena Rowlands and Jason Miller, and anxious to break into the music business in spite of a hanger on boyfriend and illegitimate baby. The writers easily could have made Jett's character rather one dimensional, but it's easy to see all of the shading in her very unhappy character, stuffing meat into the coat jacket of the toddler and literally getting away with shoplifting. She definitely wants to get out of blue collar Cleveland, but there's not much hope so she ends up working in Cleveland dive clubs as big brother Fox looks on, hoping that he can somehow reconcile her with their dying mother.
Very slice of life, even if those slices are slightly tainted, and it's a unique part for Fox as well who obviously wanted to get past his clean cut Alex Keaton "Family Ties" reputation. Rowlands and Miller are exceptional as the very religious, strictly by the book no nonsense parents, although Rowlands does back down from the constant preaching as she realizes how it has estranged her from her daughter. Definitely a product of the 80's, and Jett definitely showed more promise as an actress than Madonna or Cyndi Lauper. The rock atmosphere is subtle and never overpowering, and that adds dimension to Jett who gets to walk away with the movie because she seems a natural. No one expected that which must have lit her day with the critics, and it's glorious to see how Jett's character manages to turn everything around because of a family bond even she didn't expect to find. -
BlackBalloon27 August 2003did not "score" Natural Born Killers, he merely assembled and produced the soundtrack album. He also contributed a new song to that film and soundtrack (as NIN). Trent Reznor solo contributed two instrumentals to the Lost Highway score/soundtrack... And he also played piano in some of the music for World Traveler... But he has yet to score a film a la Billy Corgan for Stigmata.
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gcd7015 August 2007"Light of Day", written and directed by Paul Schrader, is a very lame attempt at a meaningful and 'cool' rock and roll drama. Schrader tries to make his audience 'roll with the punches and rock with your heart' but fails to do either. The drama is both badly handled - by cast and crew alike - and uninteresting.
The movie starred the then hugely popular Michael J. Fox and rocker Joan Jett as brother and sister. Gena Rowlands played their mom. The music, written by Bruce Springsteen surprisingly, is quite average.
I had to force myself to sit through this, which only left me with a feeling of boredom.
Thursday, November 21, 1991 - Video -
It has been a while since I sat through this movie that I saw at the theatre because Michael J. Fox was in it and his movies can be pretty good. He should stick to comedy where he shines. The two things I remember about this movie is i) one of the few movies I have gone to with my mother and ii) there is one scene where there is supposed to be high drama and a very serious line is said. The theatre burst into laughter for a variety of reasons including the character spoke words that were obvious to anyone watching, the acting was so bad, and everyone was thinking "enough already." So my mom did not particularly like the film but she was confused because laughing usually implies a comedy and she could not see anything funny in this movie.
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therectangle13 September 2005This movie is not a "rock" movie. It is a "people" movie. The performances turned in by the cast were complete, realistic and believable. I say this from the standpoint of someone (a female) who hammered it out in a working rock band for 20 years... The characters had unfortunate crappy jobs, they DID have problems with their parents and each other, as life on the road is HARD. In fact, out of all the "rock-n-roll" movies I have ever seen, this played out to touch home better than anything else. The person who wrote the scathing review ~ I'd bet my Gibson he was never in a bar band, scraping dimes together, stealing food. And I'd bet my SM57 that he never had to play the cheesy Holiday Inn Lounge. Anyone who thinks being in a working band is fun, easy, nothing but a good time, check out Light Of Day. It will open your eyes. The side-plot of an illness that strikes the family is more than touching and also true to life, as I had the same thing happened to me. The dialogue in the movie is so realistic that I can't watch it without cringing. This movie is the real deal, not some drummed up rock-n-roll fantasy compiled for "wanna be's" or wishful thinkers.
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juella9022 June 2006Light of Day is one of my favourite Rock n' Roll films. Not the most popular choice, I'll grant you. A lot of people might question that, but let me explain my point of view. Most rock films deal with the rock star lifestyle. You know all the clichés: sex, drugs, booze, limos, groupies, hotel room demolition and general decadence (not that there's anything wrong with that; Spinal Tap is another favourite of mine!). In other words they deal with what is essentially UNREALITY for the vast majority of rockers out there. Instead they deal with a fantasy or an ideal, with what all us rockers would like to think is waiting for us just around the corner. Light of Day, on the other hand, deals with real life, and what Rock n' Roll means to several ordinary people. Several ordinary people dealing with ordinary, everyday problems; work, relationships, family, estrangement, disillusionment. Music is their refuge. As Patti Rasnick (played by Joan Jett) says "Music is all that matters. One hour on stage makes up for the other 23", and that is essentially the theme of the movie; No matter what life throws at us, we'll get through it as long as we have music. A theme that is reinforced by the final musical performance of the movie (I wont give too much away, don't worry).
There is absolutely no glamour to be found in this movie whatsoever; and that's one of the things I love about it! Its pure, unglamorous REALITY. Travelling in a van, playing dives, boosting food to survive another day on the road and doing it all for the love of Rock n' Roll, and knowing that the alternative is just too f**king odious to seriously contemplate... Okay sorry, I'm getting a bit heavy handed with my review here, but anyway, in conclusion: forget Family Ties (I haven't even seen an episode of that show in about 15 years, who gives a damn?), Michael J. Fox does an awesome and realistic job in Light of Day (all the members of The Barbusters played live in the performance scenes), the plot has a subtlety and realism missing in practically every other rock film I've seen, and the songs are great! Yes, I recommend this film to anybody who's ever played in a travelling band, or just loves Rock n' Roll.
BTW, in case my American friends are wondering: "favourite", "glamour" and "travelling" are not spelling mistakes. ;-) -
Piazza-231 July 1999This film is notable for two reasons: The excellent writing, and the amazing acting performances of Joan Jett (surprise - this woman can ACT!), and Michael J. Fox.
Mature, heart-wrentching emotional drama centered on the trials of a dysfunctional family headed by matriarch Gena Rowlands - who also gives a stellar performance. Jett should have been nominated for an Oscar for her performance - particularly the scenes with her dying mother. An insightful, brutally honest script coupled with exceptional acting produces a film of unusual emotional power. Very moving and thought-provoking. A must-see, and definitely one of the best films of the 1980s. -
DeathByTelevision30 December 2002This movie has really received undue negative ratings. With rocker Joan Jett in the cast, I'm sure most people were expecting a fun rock and roll movie. Instead we got a somber movie about forgiveness and reconciling with the people you love. Jett may not be perfect, but she certainly isn't the hack of an actress that this film's detractors make her out to be. I thought she brought a blue collar sensibility and realism to the part. Also, Jett and Michael J. Fox were portraying members of a bar band. If you expected them to sound polished and professional, you really missed the point. The story may have moved slowly at times, but I found it to be quite original. Although the mother died, I don't see what's so cliche about it. The tension between Gena Rowlands and Jett was quite believable. I liked that is wasn't sugar-coated. If this movie had been sugar-coated a bit, I'm sure the ratings would have been higher and I'm sure it would have made more money. However, I don't think it would have been as good of a film. Give it another chance.
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lizzieloo2124 July 2002I thought this film had an original story and a great script. Michael J. Fox puts forth a wonderful attempt to make us believe he is Joe Rasnick, aspiring rock performer, and, as always his acting is on the level and heartfelt. Joan Jett, while trying really hard to play the wild and sometimes estranged sister Patti, just can't seem to find the emotion needed to make her role believable (her musical performance doesn't disappoint, though). Gena Rowlands, as usual, is superb in her attempt to make us buy her as Joan Jett's righteous and disapproving mother. All in all entertaining, yet not quite believable.