Rachel C. Telegen | 80's Movie Guide

Taglines: They're out of school, out on Nantucket, and out of their minds. With this crowd, anything can happen! One Crazy Summer movie storyline. With a name like Hoops McCann, he's bound to get that basketball scholarship after high school, right? Wrong! What Hoops really wants to do is write and illustrate a love story. To help him find his way, his friend George invites Hoops to come with him and his sister to spend the summer on Nantucket. The friends Crazy Summer begins when they pickup Cassandra on the way--she's being chased by a motorcycle gang. From here on in, it only gets crazier. Once on the island, Hoops and George, along with George's island friends the Stork twins and Ack-Ack (son of a marine), must help Cassandra save her grandfather's house from the greedy Beckersted Family. Along the way, Hoops must find a way to write his cartoon love story - and maybe a real one of his own. One Crazy Summer is a 1986 romantic comedy film written and directed by Savage Steve Holland, and starring John Cusack, Demi Moore, Bobcat Goldthwait, Curtis Armstrong, and Joel Murray. The original film score was composed by Cory Lerios. Film Review: One Crazy Summer There are all kinds of movies. Movies that entertain, that frighten, that excite, that thrill, that move, that make you laugh and that make you think. "One Crazy Summer" cannot be accused of being any of these - although there are a few jokes at which you may find yourself smiling. In fact, the film is so successful at turning your brain into something resembling mashed potatoes that it is not clear when you'll be able to respond to intelligible stimuli again. That may be its point. This mindless romp written and directed by Savage Steve Holland, whose last film was "Better Off Dead," is a string of set-up punch lines. It is the ultimate luxury for the kid who has everything - a film that means nothing. It opened yesterday at the RKO National Twin and other theaters. Two high school graduates (John Cusack as Hoop and Joel Murray as George) go to Nantucket for the summer, looking for fun and romance. They meet Cassandra (Demi Moore), whose house is being foreclosed by some wicked developers who want to build a restaurant on the property. In a series of bizarre adventures that publicity agents would probably describe as "madcap," Hoop and his friends, who include two retarded mechanics and a deranged 8 year old, defeat the bad guys and have a great summer. Hoop wants to be a cartoonist, and his animated drawings are set up as sequences interspersed throughout the film. This is a clever idea, and Mr. Holland used animation to good effect in "Better Off Dead." If the movie could have reached the lunacy of Mad magazine at its best, it might have worked. But that would mean some focus - intelligent satire in an absurdist style. In spite of the director's flair for zany humor, this film is just absurd. John Cusack and Demi Moore are such charming personalities that they are appealing even in so silly a setting. There is a good chemistry between them. It would be interesting to see them make a film together, instead of being stock figures in an extended joke. One Crazy Summer (1986) Directed by: Savage Steve Holland Starring: John Cusack, Demi Moore, Linda Warren, Joel Murray, Laura Waterbury, Curtis Armstrong, Rachel C. Telegen, John Matuszak, Pamela Shaddock Screenplay by: Savage Steve Holland Production Design by: Herman F. Zimmerman Cinematography by: Isidore Mankofsky Film Editing by: Alan Balsam Costume Design by: Brad R. Loman Set Decoration by: Gary Moreno Music by: Cory Lerios MPAA Rating: PG for some mild vulgarity. Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures Release Date: August 8, 1986