Many fans probably don’t know that Walter Hill’s apocalyptic 1984 cult favorite STREETS OF FIRE was originally intended to be the first film in an epic trilogy. But poor box office kiboshed those plans, and STREETS was destined to sit alone on video-store shelves, maligned by the studio that made it and dissed by other Universal-funded filmmakers whose own projects were threatened by the fallout of STREETS’ budgetary indulgences. But repeated television airings secured a substantial following for the film, and left fans wondering just what would have happened to antihero Tom Cody if the STREETS saga was to continue.
Enter Albert Pyun. The oft-misunderstood director whose credits range from 1982’s THE SWORD AND THE SORCERER to last year’s INFECTION has publicly acknowledged his love of the original, but didn’t know about the aborted trilogy until meeting STREETS star Michael Paré in Spain last year. “I found it very interesting,” Pyun tells Fango, “because since 1984 I’ve wondered where life would have taken a character like Paré’s in STREETS OF FIRE. That meeting with Michael is what really lit a fire in me to make ROAD TO HELL.” Pyun describes this new movie as more of a horror film than its predecessor. “An ex-soldier and now hunted killer, Cody is stranded when his jeep breaks down in the desert, on the road to Edge City,” the director explains. “Edge City is where people who have crossed the line of darkness go to have their souls reborn. Cody is hunting for his lost love, the rock star Ellen Aim, believing she is the key to his redemption.” He hitches a ride with two female spree killers (THE GRAVEDANCERS’ Clare Kramer and MORTUARY’s Courtney Peldon), and the film takes a dark and violent turn. “It’s not standard horror,” Pyun elaborates, “because we go deeper into the characters and how they arrived at this point in their lives. The true horror is how life can create monsters when things go awry. Disappointment, disillusionment and bitterness fuel the horror in ROAD TO HELL. That makes the shocks and terror far more disturbing.” The ending of the original STREETS OF FIRE was a mix of triumph and melancholy. Tom Cody walks off into the night with his sidekick McCoy, leaving behind Ellen Aim—the girl whose dreams were too big for him—as the pounding rhythm of “Tonight Is What It Means to Be Young” closes out the credits; this conclusion is reminiscient of Paré’s earlier hit EDDIE AND THE CRUISERS. “I always thought of Michael at the end of EDDIE or STREETS as an incredibly lonely and tragic figure,” Pyun says. “It was like the world needed and used him but really, at the end, wanted no part of him. At the end of those films, Michael was cast off into the shadowy margins of life until the next time we needed him. I found that really interesting, and wanted to explore it.” The ROAD cast members who returned from the first film, namely Paré and his onscreen sister Deborah Van Valkenburgh (whose costuming includes an original Marilyn Vance-designed jacket from STREETS), were intrigued by the prospect of revisiting their characters. “Revisiting is the perfect word,” Van Valkenburgh says. “Albert is so imaginative; his mind overflows with ideas. I’m always interested in what he’s creating! Michael and I technically had no scenes together, but it was most definitely fun to spend time with him again! He looks great in the film, too, and delivers a gritty, grounded performance.” “For Michael it was going back to his roots,” continues Pyun. “Much like his character in ROAD TO HELL, it’s a return to the star we first saw in EDDIE AND THE CRUISERS and STREETS. You can see his magic and understand what an icon he was and still is. But I believe it was a bit of a challenge revisiting their past selves. They got there, but with the added layers of age, experience and a bit of melancholy. Underlying the film’s story is the idea that life doesn’t always turn out the way we want or think it should, and sometimes that can change us for the worse.” Pyun did his best to maintain the pulpy style of STREETS’ no-fat dialogue with an original script by frequent collaborator Cynthia Curnan. “The lines are very tough, hard-bitten, clipped and glib,” he says, “very much in the spirit of the noir thrillers of the past.” But add to these stylistic touches the liberties with pre-existing characters and the fact that two Jim Steinman songs were licensed for the film, and you’re getting dangerously close to a copyright issue. Still, Pyun isn’t worried. While clearly a tribute, his film aims to stand on its own. “But I hope it does retain the feel, energy and innovative style of STREETS OF FIRE and EDDIE AND THE CRUISERS, and the other landmark music-fueled films of the early ’80s,” he concludes. “ROAD TO HELL does rock—darkly!” A limited special-edition DVD release will be available soon via the movie’s official website, which also contains more info and photos. —Kier-La Janisse Peace out, CapnHollis. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Joe Bob's Trailer Park" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Joe-Bobs-Trailer-Park?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
