Quicksilver (1986) starring Kevin Bacon, Jami Gertz, Paul Rodriguez, Rudy Ramos, Andrew Smith, Laurence Fishburne, Louie Anderson directed by Thomas Michael Donnelly Movie Review

Quicksilver (1986)   3/53/53/53/53/5


Kevin Bacon as Jack Casey in Quicksilver (1986)

Spinning its Wheels

I've been looking for the right words to describe the lesser known Kevin Bacon movie "Quicksilver" and the most accurate would be to say it is typical 80s. Here we have a riches to rags to riches story as a stock broker loses it all and doubts himself as he takes time out as a cycling delivery boy, we also have a romance as well which is also typical 80s. But most significantly is that stylistically "Quicksilver" is 80s with various random breaks where we have what are little more than music videos, a bike eye view of darting through city traffic, a race between delivery riders and an impressive but also impressively cheesy trick riding scene. It means that when "Quicksilver" isn't trying to distract with the unimportant it delivers a cliche storyline which whilst mildly entertaining is never more than average.

Jack Casey (Kevin Bacon - Footloose) is a hot shot stock trader who broke records with the money he made; he also broke records when he lost everything including his parent's money in a catastrophic bad decision. Having lost belief in himself he decides to join the delivery riders at Quicksilver's where he soon gets known for being one of the quickest riders in the city. It is also there that he becomes friends with entrepreneurial Hector (Paul Rodriguez) and young Terri (Jami Gertz - Lost Holiday: The Jim & Suzanne Shemwell Story) who finds herself getting in deep with drug dealer Gypsy (Rudy Ramos) who Jack can't stand.

Jami Gertz as Terri in Quicksilver (1986)

I want to say that "Quicksilver" is a good movie purely because its an 80s movie but I can't because it is nothing more than some cliches and some cheese. The cheese starts when we first meet Jack, seeing Kevin Bacon in a suit with a terrible moustache trying to act like a hot shot city boy is wrong on so many levels. Fortunately after he loses it all and thankfully the moustache as well as regaining the Bacon 80s hair it becomes more realistic as he becomes a dispatch cyclist in the city and this is sort of where the movie starts.

I say sort of because what we get is really just more cliche, the dodgy Gypsy who deals drugs, Jack's girlfriend Rand who is embarrassed by the fact he is no longer a stock broker and of course pretty Terri who Jack grows fond of. This mix of cliches plays out in quite a predictable way as Jack gets to sort out all these issues from loss of self belief to his friend Hector who needs money to start a business but can't get a loan. Everything about it is predictable and whilst there is an action ending it is a corny one.

Talking of the corny we have the 80s styling, I am not just on about the fashions and music but that every so often we get a music video break. There is the corny scene of Jack dancing on his bike in his apartment, there is another when the dispatch riders have a trick off on their bikes and there are a few others as well. It is typical of 80s movies but it is also very cheesy especially the cycling trick off because whilst the stunt riding is impressive it has no purpose in the movie what so ever.

As for the acting well other than the surprise of seeing Laurence Fishburne on a bike it is as typical as everything else. In fact the best thing is that both Kevin Bacon as Jack and Jami Gertz as Terri are both likeable even if their characters are flat an uninspired.

What this all boils down to is that "Quicksilver" is not a great movie in fact it is barely good with some typical 80s styling dragging it down with random unimportant scenes. But if you are a fan of 80s movies and wants some nostalgia watching Kevin Bacon on a bike isn't a bad way to find it.


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