Times Square (1980) Associated Film Distribution/Drama RT: 111 minutes Rated R (language, nudity, some sexual content, mature themes) Director: Allan Moyle Screenplay: Jacob Brackman Music: Blue Weaver Cinematography: James A. Contner Release date: October 17, 1980 (US) Cast: Tim Curry, Trini Alvarado, Robin Johnson, Peter Coffield, Herbert Berghof, David Margulies, Anna Maria Horsford, Michael Margotta, J.C. Quinn, Miguel Pinero, Ronald “Smokey” Stevens, Tim Choate, Elizabeth Pena, Steve James, Melanie Henderson. Box Office: N/A
Rating: ***
I purchased the soundtrack to Times Square a few years before I actually saw the film. Here’s the timeline. The movie came out in 1980. I bought the two-record set at a flea market in ’83 after listening to a few tracks at my then-girlfriend’s house. I finally saw it on cable in ’88.
I wanted to see Times Square when it came out, but the R rating and two overprotective parents prevented it. It played for a week before disappearing into movie oblivion. Over the years, I would pore over the pictures inside the album cover, wishing that my local video store carried this movie. Sadly, it wasn’t available in that format. By the time I finally saw it, I already had a sufficient knowledge of the music AND a newfound appreciation for lead actor Tim Curry having seen The Rocky Horror Picture Show for the first time the previous year.
My initial reaction to Times Square was one of disappointment. I didn’t think that it was all that great. I didn’t get the opportunity to rewatch it until fall 2000 when it popped up on The Movie Channel. That time, it clicked. I’ve been a fan ever since.
What’s cool about Times Square is how it captures pre-Giuliani Times Square in all of its seedy glory when the streets were lined with grindhouse theaters, adult book stores and shady people. It also perfectly embodies the New York punk rock scene of the late 70s.
Times Square concerns two misunderstood teenage girls, streetwise Nicky Marotta (Johnson) and sheltered Pamela Pearl (Alvarado, The Frighteners). They meet in a mental hospital where Nicky’s taken for a psych evaluation after an altercation with some cops. Pamela’s politician father David (Coffield, Cry Rape) commits her after she has a meltdown at a public hearing regarding his plans to clean up Times Square. Nicky decides to bolt and convinces Pamela to come with her. They get away in a stolen ambulance.
Naturally, Mr. Pearl makes every effort to locate his wayward daughter. The girls don’t want to be found. Now you would think that they’d try to keep a low profile. That’s simply not Nicky’s style. The girls form a punk rock band called The Sleez Sisters and become an instant underground sensation. Their acts of public defiance mainly involve throwing TVs off of building rooftops.
The girls develop a friendship with overnight disc jockey Johnny LaGuardia (Curry) who reads Pamela’s poetry on the air. One of the film’s pivotal moments is when the girls lash out at the adult authority figures in their lives in an angry song called “Your Daughter Is One”. They perform it live on Johnny’s broadcast. The targets include Dr. Huber (Berghof, Target), Dr. Zymansky (Margulies, Ghostbusters), well-meaning social worker Rosie Washington (Horsford, Minority Report) and Mr. Pearl. One can see the potential greatness of Times Square in scenes like this. Unfortunately, it was the victim of studio interference. This is what ultimately led to director Allan Moyle’s departure before completion.
There’s so much to admire about Times Square that it’s frustrating it doesn’t live up to its full potential. It’s good when it could have been great. It’s bold, but it could have been bolder had the powers-that-be at the studio allowed Moyle to do it his way. They removed the more overt lesbian content which would have added more depth to the girls’ relationship. Nicky and Pamela form a strong bond with each other as shown in the scene where they make a pact to scream each other’s name as loud as they can in times of trouble. The next logical step would have been a sexual relationship, the ultimate form of rebellion against Pamela’s narrow-minded father.
The movie’s narrative problems can be attributed to the changes demanded by studio execs fearful of alienating audiences. It’s somewhat choppy and disjointed due to a sudden shift in focus. It starts off as Pamela’s story then turns into Nicky’s story without warning. I don’t mind this kind of thing. I’m just saying the transition should have been smoother. It might have been if the suits just left Moyle and his film alone.
The soundtrack is awesome! It contains songs by Roxy Music, The Ruts, Talking Heads, The Ramones, Lou Reed, The Cure, XTC and The Pretenders. Moyle makes excellent use of Patti Smith’s angsty anthem “Pissing in a River”. The only sour note is a track by Robin Gibb (of The Bee Gees) & Marcy Levy. It’s definitely out of place among the more punk-oriented tunes.
Curry does a great job (as usual!) here, but I suppose there’s a fair amount of bias involved since I am a big fan of this actor as well as Rocky Horror (member of the Philadelphia cast, summer ’94!). The two female leads have great chemistry and each turn in fine individual performances as well. A quick peek at Johnson’s filmography reveals that she hasn’t appeared in a film since the 1988 remake of DOA. She turns in a performance of such raw power in Times Square it’s befuddling that she didn’t get too far with her acting career.
Times Square has most of the right pieces, but they don’t fit together quite as well as they should. It’s a good movie as well as a perfect documentation of a time and place that no longer exist. Somebody in real life achieved Mr. Pearl’s goal of cleaning up Times Square. Now it’s a clean place suitable for all ages which goes to show that not all progress is the good kind.
