Rumble Fish

Name: Rumble Fish
Genre: Drama
Released: October 8, 1983
Duration: 94 min
Rating: 63
Cast: Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke

1983

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 45 Ratings

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8.1	User Score Universal acclaim based on 45 Ratings

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Rumble Fish

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Movie Details & Credits

Universal Pictures | Release Date: October 8, 1983 | R

Starring: Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke

Summary: Rusty James (Dillon) has been failing in his attempts to to live up to his older brother - The Motorcycle Boy's (Rourke) reputation. He returns from California to try to pass some his knowledge of life to his little brother.

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: R

Runtime: 94 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

TV Guide Magazine Staff (Not Credited)

Deliriously expressionistic visually and aurally. Read full review

Jay Scott

The most amazing thing about this amazing movie may be that in the end it communicates the large uncertainties and small hopes of a twisted, inarticulate adolescent boy perfectly, and wordlessly. [14 Oct 1983]

Roger Ebert

I thought Rumble Fish was offbeat, daring, and utterly original. Read full review

Staff (Not Credited)

Rumble Fish is another Francis Coppola picture that's overwrought and overthought with camera and characters that never quite come together in anything beyond consistently interesting. Read full review

Janet Maslin

The stunning black-and-white cinematography in Francis Coppola's Rumble Fish functions rather like a cold compress, subduing a film that is otherwise all feverish extremes. Read full review

Richard Corliss

Rumble Fish is the messiest, most provocative inkblot of the year. Read full review

Dave Kehr

The action is clotted and murky, and Coppola obviously hasn't bothered to clarify it for the members of his cast, who wander through the film with expressions of winsome, honest befuddlement. Read full review

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User Reviews

XavierBlaq

Dec 27, 2013

A largely misunderstood, and therefore underrated, film by master director Francis Ford Coppola, Rumble Fish is an experimental film that acts in some ways as a companion piece to The Outsiders, but is actually the better film of the two. Visuals and music are used superbly to illustrateA largely misunderstood, and therefore underrated, film by master director Francis Ford Coppola, Rumble Fish is an experimental film that acts in some ways as a companion piece to The Outsiders, but is actually the better film of the two. Visuals and music are used superbly to illustrate multiple themes, which makes the film the perfect example of how these two things can be used to add to the idea of a film. In my opinion, this one ranks up there with Coppola's best, and, in some ways, surpasses them.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

Carol_reviews

Apr 22, 2019

An art film for teenagers as the master himself calls it. Full of raw style and capturing the rebel charm of Dillon and Rourke cast as brothers, Rumble Fish is on of the finest films Coppola has directed.

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

lasttimeisaw

Nov 19, 2014

After his illustrious heydays in the 70s, 1980s seems to be a more productive period for Francis Ford Coppola when he delved into more scaled-down projects with more leeway for his artistic creation. RUMBLE FISH is a perfect example of this kind, released back-to-back with Coppola’s otherAfter his illustrious heydays in the 70s, 1980s seems to be a more productive period for Francis Ford Coppola when he delved into more scaled-down projects with more leeway for his artistic creation. RUMBLE FISH is a perfect example of this kind, released back-to-back with Coppola’s other film THE OUTSIDERS, both adapted from S.E. Hinton’s novel and met with mixed reviews at then. Nevertheless in retrospect, RUMBLE FISH is a sharply glossy achievement whose sterling lustre of the coloured fish against the canvas of high-contrast Black & White cinematography anticipated masterpieces like SCHINDLER’S LIST (1993, 9/10), and it is also a star-maker for Matt Dillon’s bad boy image and etches Mickey Rourke’s harrowing force of personality mixed with unfathomable mystique and magnetic sex appeal on the silver screen for eternity.

continue reading my review on my blog: google cinema omnivore, thanks… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Sosmooth1982

Jan 9, 2023

Another dumb movie from the 80's. Most movies I've seen from the 70's and 80's have been horrible. This one no different. The story makes no sense and the entire movie is in black and white. Just dumb! It should be called DUMBO BISH!

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Broyax

Dec 28, 2018

Oh dis donc, 1983 le film et ça se voit...! non pas parce qu'il est en noir et blanc (?) et qu'il se passe dans les années 60 ou 70 (?)... ou bien est-ce qu'en 1983, on était aussi ringards ? ou est-ce simplement le film qui est complètement ringard et complètement périmenaze ?

Non, parceOh dis donc, 1983 le film et ça se voit...! non pas parce qu'il est en noir et blanc (?) et qu'il se passe dans les années 60 ou 70 (?)... ou bien est-ce qu'en 1983, on était aussi ringards ? ou est-ce simplement le film qui est complètement ringard et complètement périmenaze ?

Non, parce qu'ici en 1983... on fait le plein de stars complètement inconnues avec Matt Dillon évidemment mais aussi la délicieuse Diane Lane ou un débutant qu'on a peine à reconnaître... Nicolas Cage ! sans compter Mickey Rourke... ou Lawrence Fishburne ou Dennis Hooper. Y a pas à dire, les années passent et les comédiens trépassent. Ou presque. Pauvres vieux et pauvres vieilles.

Donc, l'affiche est en couleur mais le film est en noir et blanc, juste pour insérer le temps de deux plans un poisson rouge et un poisson bleu. Mouais... c'est un message ou ujuste une pub pour Kodak et les voleurs de couleurs ?... En tout cas, le reste du temps très long et chiant, on suit ces **** loubards minables et perdus dans une histoire minable et perdue, une histoire sans histoire que le Sieur Coppola a bien du mal à meubler (il a même casé sa fille, Sophia, encore une ado ici...). Même la fin est pourrie... Je n'aurais pas cru Coppola capable et coupable d'une telle vacuité.

Faisons donc mine de rien et comme si nous n'avions rien vu... voilà, moi aussi j'ai fini... de meubler ma critique.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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