Themes: Musician's Life, Age Disparity Romance, Scandals and Cover-Ups
Main Cast: Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, Alec Baldwin, John Doe, Stephen Tobolowsky, Trey Wilson
Release Year: 1989
Country: US
Run Time: 108 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
Until its last 10 minutes or so, this filmed biography of controversial recording star Jerry Lee Lewis plays like a live-action cartoon. As played by Dennis Quaid, "the killer" is a very mixed-up individual: a saintly sinner, a world-wise naif, a skilled performer with zero sense of discipline, a loving husband who uses his wife for a punching bag. The story takes place during the years 1956 through 1958, as Lewis rises to the top of the charts with such hits as "Crazy Arms," "A Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," and the title tune. Along the way, he falls in love with his second cousin Myra (Winona Ryder), eventually marrying the girl. When it is revealed that Myra is only 13 years old, Lewis is condemned as a molester and pervert by the public (his disastrous tour of England during this crisis is depicted in hilarious Tex Avery fashion). After establishing a brisk, satirical tone through most of the proceedings, the film plummets into heavy dramatics in its final portions, jarring disastrously with all that has gone before. Otherwise, Quaid is terrific as Lewis (expertly lip-synching to the original records,) and Ryder is equally good as the long-suffering Myra. Featured in the cast are Alec Baldwin as Jerry's cousin Jimmy Swaggart (the same!), Michael St. Gerard as Lewis' great rival Elvis, and Steve Allen as himself. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
An underrated film from New York director Jim McBride that eschews the typically somber biopic mood to have infectious, cartoon-style fun with the life story of rock & roll hellcat Jerry Lee Lewis, played to perfection by Dennis Quaid as an unrepentant bad boy. Presenting Lewis as a force of nature who refuses to bend to anyone's dictums or rules, McBride and Quaid have an absolute blast, never ladeling on too thick their obvious view of the rocker as a creative genius. Alec Baldwin is a delight in later scenes as Lewis' real-life cousin Jimmy Swaggart, whose path to salvation lies along a more traditional, religious route, bringing the two one-time best friends into moral conflict. Winona Ryder is effective as Lewis' teenage cousin/wife, Myra, all wide-eyed innocence and guilelessness, although her character is the film's only sour note, her naïvete a tad suspect given that the real-life Myra is the author of the book on which the film is based. The real reason to catch the film, however, is not for her story, but for its music-fueled, maniacal energy and the sheer bravado of a performance from Quaid that, like his later turn in Wyatt Earp (1994), remains one of his shamefully neglected best. Great Balls of Fire (1989) is a sadly neglected film from a regretfully overlooked director who would soon be reduced to creating made-for-TV cable films, one of which is the little-seen but superb The Informant (1997). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Steve Allen - Himself; Lisa Blount - Lois Brown; Joshua Sheffield - Rusty Brown; Mojo Nixon - James Van Eaton; Jimmie Vaughan - Roland James; David Ferguson - Jack Clement; Robert Lesser - Alan Freed; Lisa Jane Persky - Babe; Paula Person - Sam's Secratary; Valerie Wellington - Big Maybelle; Booker T. Laury - Piano Slim; Tav Falco - New Bass Player; Priscilla Harris - Honky-Tonk Angel; Keith McDaniel - Haney's Big House Dancer; David A. Penhale - Reporter #1; Michael St. Gerard - Elvis; Rufus Thomas - Haney's Big House Dancer; John Tordoff - Cockney Porter; Peter Cook - English Reporter; Jerry Lee Lewis; Ruth Kettlewell - Dowager; Bonnie Beutler - Rebel Room Dancer; Ashley Paige Cook - Mona; Bert Dedman - Young Jerry; Mark W. Johnson - Sheriff; Susan Lonergan - Rebel Room Dancer; Jody Lynne - Party Doll; John Mulrooney - Talk Show Host; W.W. Painter - Onlooker; Crystal Robbins - Frankie Jean; Ryan Rushton - Young Jimmy; Carol Russell - Mamie Lewis; David Sibley - English Reporter; Linn Sitler - Realty Agent; Kim Smith - English Reporter; Chris Solari - Rebel Room Dancer; Juliette Claire Spirson - Lewis Infant; Bruce Stuart - Bank Teller; Sara VanHorn - Minnie Belle; Snowy Winters - Rebel Room Dancer; Joseph Woodward, Jr. - Wedding Preacher; Judith Holstra; Joe Bob Briggs - Dewey 'Daddy-O' Phillips; Steven O'Donnell - Heckler #2
Credit
Jon Spirson - Art Director, Jack Baran - Associate Producer, Karen Penhale - Associate Producer, Bill Landrum - Choreography, Jacqui Landrum - Choreography, Jerry Schilling - Consultant/advisor, Mary Kay Stolz - Costume Designer, Tracy Tynan - Costume Designer, Jim McBride - Director, Lisa Day - Editor, Pembroke J. Herring - Editor, Bert Lovitt - Editor, Jack Baran - Composer (Music Score), Jim McBride - Composer (Music Score), Jerry Lee Lewis - Composer (Music Score), Joe Mulherin - Musical Direction/Supervision, Richard Arrington - Makeup, Tim Hutchinson - Production Designer, David Nichols - Production Designer, Affonso Beato - Cinematographer, Adam Fields - Producer, Michael Grais - Producer, Art Levinson - Producer, Mark Victor - Producer, Kathleen McKernin - Set Designer, Lauren Polizzi - Set Designer, Phil Corey - Special Effects, Steve Maslow - Sound/Sound Designer, Steve M. Davison - Stunts, Jack Baran - Screenwriter, Jim McBride - Screenwriter, Murray Silver Jr. - Book Author, Myra Lewis - Book Author
The picture executive producers were Michael Grais, Mark Victor, and Art Levinson, and was produced by Adam Fields.
The early life of Jerry Lee Lewis when he became a teen idol and married his 13-year-old cousin Myra is depicted in this film. Before the marriage caused a scandal, many thought Lewis would supplant Elvis Presley as the "King of Rock and Roll" in the 1950s.
The film tells the story of Jerry Lee Lewis (Dennis Quaid), nicknamed "The Killer", during the early years of rock and roll, 1956-1958. Lewis is shown as a man with many different sides: a skilled performer with little discipline, an alcoholic, and a loving husband who sometimes beats his wife.
There is a sub-plot of Lewis' relationship with another cousin, the preacher Jimmy Swaggart (Alec Baldwin). Swaggart's career keeps him in constant conflict with his cousin's wild life of rock and roll, and brings out some uncomfortable exchanges. The financially successful Lewis buys a new car and a short time later gives it to his cousin, and when Swaggart praises the Lord for this gift, Lewis replies:
When a British reporter (Peter Cook) discovers he is married to his teenage cousin, Lewis is condemned as a child molester and a pervert by the public.
The movie ends after Lewis learns he is about to become a father, as his 13-year-old wife tells him she has become pregnant.
The closing title card reads: "Jerry Lee Lewis is playing his heart out somewhere in America tonight."
The story was co-written by Myra Gail Lewis (her autobiography Great Balls of Fire!), the former wife of Jerry Lee Lewis, with Murray Silver. Despite this, co-writer Silver was upset by the lack of accuracy in the film, claiming it was "phoney". Director Jim McBride admitted that it was never his intention to tie his film to the facts, and stated "This movie does not represent itself in any way to be a historical documentary. We use the book as a jumping-off point."
Jerry Lee Lewis has openly stated that he hates the film and the book it was based on.[2]
Roger Ebert, film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times, did not like the film because of its screenplay, and wrote, "This is a simpleminded rock 'n' roll history in which the pleasures are many and the troubles are few. Lewis, played by Dennis Quaid as a grinning simpleton with a crazy streak and a manic piano style, climbs the same career ladder as many of the stars of musical biographies, but he does it with lightning speed." Ebert also said that Quaid did a nice job of reproducing Lewis' stage persona.[3]
Critic Caryn James wrote that the film portrays the fun side of rock and roll, and wrote, "Jim McBride's film is a compressed, cleaned-up version of the Jerry Lee Lewis story, but it re-creates the soul-shaking, brain-rattling fun of rock-and-roll. It also captures, perhaps for the first time on film, something of the sexual aura of rock-and-roll at its birth." Yet, she added that anyone looking for a true sense of music history will be let down by the film.[4]
Distribution
In marketing the film, the producers used the tagline: The true story of a legend.
The film opened in wide release in the United States on June 30, 1989.
The box-office receipts were poor. The first week's gross were $3,807,986 and the total receipts for the two week run were $13,691,550. The film was in wide release for ten days.
In its widest release the film was featured in 1,417 theaters across the country.[5]
