"Wild in the Streets" is a film about the youth of American rising up to take political power via a reduction in the voting age. It was released in the 60s and reflects some of the issues of its time.
Today, the messages of the youthful upstarts might be seen as similar to the confused political fledglings referred to now as millennials. But the film is a parody of the counterculture--those who wanted more than change, they wanted revolution. In the 60s, many objected to the fact that 18-year-olds could be drafted but could not vote. Christopher Jones plays the role of Max Frost, a megalomaniacal rock star who energizes American youth--and some older members of the establishment who want to benefit from younger voters--to push for a younger voting age--somewhere between fourteen or eighteen.
The film imagines what might happen if such a movement took hold and gained power. It shows Frost as a near-dictator whose power corrupts him. He is without a conscience and he indulges his every whim. Frost also is immature (surprise!). And as a member of the counterculture, he endorses the use of hallucinatory drugs and the disbandment of all institutions of authority.
Though the film offers some moments of sharp insight, it mostly feels like it was written by a writer who himself was under the influence. And in the end, it is no more relevant regarding youth culture and politics than "Bye Bye Birdie".
The ending is anticlimactic and ham-handed--hoping to deliver a pithy insight that it undercuts by final scenes that are amateurish.
Today, the messages of the youthful upstarts might be seen as similar to the confused political fledglings referred to now as millennials. But the film is a parody of the counterculture--those who wanted more than change, they wanted revolution. In the 60s, many objected to the fact that 18-year-olds could be drafted but could not vote. Christopher Jones plays the role of Max Frost, a megalomaniacal rock star who energizes American youth--and some older members of the establishment who want to benefit from younger voters--to push for a younger voting age--somewhere between fourteen or eighteen.
The film imagines what might happen if such a movement took hold and gained power. It shows Frost as a near-dictator whose power corrupts him. He is without a conscience and he indulges his every whim. Frost also is immature (surprise!). And as a member of the counterculture, he endorses the use of hallucinatory drugs and the disbandment of all institutions of authority.
Though the film offers some moments of sharp insight, it mostly feels like it was written by a writer who himself was under the influence. And in the end, it is no more relevant regarding youth culture and politics than "Bye Bye Birdie".
The ending is anticlimactic and ham-handed--hoping to deliver a pithy insight that it undercuts by final scenes that are amateurish.