Great Balls of Fire (1989)

Great Balls of Fire: Directed by Jim McBride. With Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, John Doe, Stephen Tobolowsky. The life and career of wildly controversial rock ‘n’ roll star Jerry Lee Lewis.

“An excellent job by director Jim McBride of putting Myra Lewisu0026#39;s book about the life of legendary rock and roll star Jerry Lee Lewis (her husband) on film.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDennis Quaid gives an over the top performance (sometimes a bit too over the top; but, then again, this is Jerry Lee Lewis) as Lewis, arrogant and child-like, trying to deal with sudden fame, having to deal with the consequences of having married his thirteen year old cousin (Myra, who authored the book). Quaid was truly excellent in this role. Yes, the lip-synching was perhaps a bit too obvious at times, but for the sake of hearing some great music performed by the real Jerry Lee Lewis, that was an irritant I could easily put up with. The relationship between Lewis and Myra (Winona Ryder) is developed sensitively and tastefully by McBride. Humour is added by exploring the complex love-hate relationship between Lewis and his cousin, the evangelist Jimmy Swaggart (Alec Baldwin). There is also great irony, given what ultimately happened to Swaggart, as we listen to him lecturing Lewis about the dangers of taking the u0026quot;gold-paved streets of rock and roll.u0026quot;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI really enjoyed this movie. Perhaps it was guilty of portraying everyone in it as a bit of a caricature, but it still seemed to offer an entirely believable story of Lewisu0026#39;s life. Well worth the watching.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e9/10”