Such a frustrating disappointment

From my favorite movies..

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

In a suffocating upper middle class suburb, an angry teen's pirate radio station offers a clarion call to his peers: Everything is terrible, and we should do ... something!The movie doesn't really explain too clearly what's terrible, beyond parents and a bit of corruption introduced late in the movie just to prove the DJ is right, but that doesn't matter, because angsty teens don't need proof that parents suck and the school is a mind-killing fascist state.You could dismiss this as a movie about privileged white teens throwing a tantrum, but the movie is so compelling that you probably won't. With Christian Slater perfect as an angry DJ by night and a shy kid by day, the movie runs on passion and a great soundtrack (with songs ranging from Everybody Knows to Dad I'm in Jail), and you totally believe every unlikely second, as kids consistently outwit remarkably stupid and cartoonish adults and start a movement to ...It's unclear what the agenda is, beyond free speech and being true to yourself, but it doesn't really matter. Even if it's unclear what the revolution is, this movie makes you want to sign up.

Mark has just moved to Arizona from the East Coast. His parents give him a short-wave radio so he can talk to his pals. But he sets up a pirate Station, going under the pseudonym of D.J. Hard Harry, and becomes a hero to his peers while inspiring the wrath of the local high school principal. When one of Harry's listeners commits suicide and chaos breaks out at the school, the authorities are called in to put a stop to Harry's broadcasts....Made in a time when Slater was at the height of his Heartthrob-ness, and to be fair he was a pretty big deal in the early nineties (if you were fifteen), The film is like a big sunshine Strawberry smoothie, with a little teen angst thrown in.Slater does channel a kind of profane, alcohol induced Spider-man in his performance. By day, a shy, spectacle wearing back of the class type student, by night, well, you get the gist.And he has never been better, and I really don't know what happened from there. His Harry is something many the targeted demographic could only dream of doing.He's honest, funny, sympathetic, and full of empathy, yet he still inspires anarchy across the very small town, and obviously, it irks the older population of the town.The soundtrack too, is wonderful, playing a kind of narrative in itself, and only adds a little more depth to the film.There are minor flaws in the film, stereotypes are rife throughout the film, but it wasn't aimed at most people, it was aimed at misunderstood teens, and at one point in our lives, we were one of those.Still cool 23 years on....

This film is definitely more a period piece than anything else but I thought that was fantastic. Angst is heavily present but I felt that the soundtrack really defined it. What happened in the movie to me didn't really matter, I felt that it was more about just the lifestyle and the time period of the late 80s. I think its a wild ride into the mind of a teenager at the time.Well-made and just really interesting to look at.Worth a view, you definitely won't regret seeing this movie; very entertaining and enlightening. I was changed by the end of it, I've never been the same. Ima a completely different person. i don't even know who i am anymore thanks to this film

Pump Up the Volume might have been the true opening salvo of the 90s, and the voice of Generation X, but it speaks to every teen of every generation.It is about raising your voice, being heard, but only with the advent of the Internet was its dream fully realized.This is the type of movie that will make you want to write your own blog, make a video journal, or do a podcast. It has that quality that grip people attention and make them do things worthwhile with their lives.It's an excellent performance by a young Christian Slater, and the rest of the cast. The whole story, every scene, each dialog, they all ring of authenticity. And the soundtrack is amazing.It might be getting old, but it doesn't feel like it.