When I was a sixteen and a senior in high school, Alan Moyle's Pump Up the Volume really spoke to me on a personal level since I'd felt like an outcast for most of my secondary school existence. It's mix of rebellion, punk-filled soundtrack, and Christian Slater at his Jack Nicholson-sounding best made me explore the past works of Moyle which lead me to 1980's Times Square. When watching it, all those years ago, I remembered seeing bits and pieces of it on late night television when I was younger and upon finally seeing the entire thing it didn't make much of an impression on me.

Recent conversations about the early 80s and the punk music that went with it brought me back into the orbit of Times Square and I've changed my tune about its worth. Despite the fact Jacob Brackman's script has a few minor believability issues and that Moyle was actually fired from the production because of his refusal to add in new scenes to pad out the runtime (and soundtrack) at the behest of the producers; what's on display here is a portrait of discontent youth propped-up by a strong performance from newcomer Robin Johnson, a killer soundtrack, and the sleaziness of 42nd Street in New York City.

Johnson plays street punk Nicky who has no fixed address and is content to stir up a ruckus wherever she goes. She does things her way and does what she wants, when she wants. Upon being admitted to a nearby psychiatric hospital as a juvenile delinquent she ends up having to share a room with the naïve Pamela (Trini Alvarado), put there by her politician father who seems more concerned with cleaning up the city than actually paying attention to his daughter's problems.

The girls eventually form a bond and end-up fleeing the hospital together taking up residence in an abandoned factory. Nicky's brash personality should really clash with Pamela's shyness but the two new friends soon find themselves doing what they can to stay alive on the streets while gaining attention due to letters and poems Pamela's been sending to a local radio disc jockey (Tim Curry) expressing her frustration with her father and life in general. Soon Nicky's dominant personality takes over which leads Pamela to getting a job dancing at a strip club (at thirteen no less, her refusal to not dance topless still makes this entire scene creepy) and them re-dubbing themselves the Sleez Sisters when Nicky gets to broadcast a song she's written entitled "Damn Dog".

The second half of Times Square takes on a "punk rawk" aesthetic as the girls garner a cult following and continue getting up to hijinks such as tossing TV sets from the tops of apartments. This leads to a concert-like finale set at the title location filled with garbage bag wearing, bandit mask make-up sporting groupies, which, to me, doesn't feel true to what Brackman's characters have been building up to.

The early 80s was an interesting time for teenage angst films with 1979's Over the Edge basically setting the groundwork for films such as this one, Adrian Lyne's Foxes, and Penelope Spheeris' Suburbia. While the sub-genre wasn't a new one at the time the way these films presented the dissatisfaction, unhappiness, and depression of teenagers at society and parents was like nothing we'd seen before. Occasionally unflinching, and angry, they were powerful documents of the times. Times Square does fit into the mold, and does get some emotional impact from a scene where Nicky has a meltdown at the radio station upon feeling abandoned by her only true friend Pamela, though it might play it safe a little bit too much.

This isn't the fault of the young leads who are engaging enough to even outclass veteran actor Curry (The Rocky Horror Picture Show). Alvarado brings the right amount of naiveness and smarts to her disillusioned rich girl while Johnson, making her debut, basically demands your attention as the volatile firecracker Nicky - there's times you really don't like her but can still understand. Curry does get a few moments to shine, like when he confronts Pamela's father, but is really second fiddle here - his character would end-up being mutated by Moyle in the aforementioned Pump Up the Volume.

If you're able to forgive the film's small shortcomings and are interested in this whole cycle of teen rebellion films then, by all means, check out Times Square. It's definitely a worthwhile film. Try and pick-up the currently out-of-print DVD from Anchor Bay simply for Moyle's commentary track where he tells us the films thinly-veiled lesbianism was cut down at the behest of the producers. Moyle would continue to blend music with film in later films like Pump and his 1995 effort, Empire Records. (Chris Hartley, 7/6/10)

Directed By: Alan Moyle.
Written By: Jacob Brackman.

Starring: Tim Curry, Trini Alvarado, Robin Johnson, Peter Coffield.