Amazon.com Essentials:
Director Francis Coppola's adaptation of the popular
S.E. Hinton novel about the
price of rebellious youth is notable chiefly for the stunning cast of
young actors who went on to rich and varied careers. In supporting
roles, the film features the likes of Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze,
Diane Lane, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, and Tom Waits, among others. The
story centers on two rival gangs in the early 1960s Midwest, and the
violent turf wars that escalate and tragically claim young
lives. C. Thomas Howell plays the central character who yearns to
prove himself and be accepted by his older brothers' gang, while at
the same time finding his first love and dreaming of a life beyond his
dead end existence. Geared toward the teenage crowd, the film
nonetheless features some fine direction from Coppola in a story that
evokes memories of the classic coming-of-age films of the
1950s. --Robert Lane
