This 1990 film seems to be rather over looked amongst all the "American high school" films of the 80s/90s which is a shame as it is very good.
Christian Slater plays Mark Hunter, a shy teenager who has recently moved from the east coast to a suburb in Arizona. He has difficulty talking to people in person but has no problem talking to people on his illegal radio station where he can hide behind the anonymity of a voice disguiser and become "Happy Harry Hardon". His broadcasts are popular with all the pupils at his school and soon tapes of them are being traded and played at there much to the chagrin of the school authorities.
Much of his broadcast is taken up pointing out the many faults of his school in particular the actions of the principal and the guidance councillor, he also reads letters from his listeners and attempting to give some advice. Unfortunately he can't always help and after a student he spoke to on air carries out his threat to commit suicide the school uses it as excuse to clamp down on anybody who might know who he is.
Also trying to identify him is classmate Nora, played by Samantha Mathis, she however has more luck than the authorities. When he has doubts about carrying on his broadcasts she is the one who talks him into continuing.
The acting in the film is fairly solid especially from Slater and Mathis and the story is both interesting and amusing. Like most good films it isn't without its weak points; the students seem rather too uniformly fans of the broadcasts and the authorities attempts to catch him seem highly amateur although I guess if he'd been arrested five minutes into the film it wouldn't have been as interesting.
Even though it was made almost twenty years ago it still feels relevant today as it did back then the only things that really dates it is the fact that there is no internet and none of the children have mobile phones like they would today.
Christian Slater plays Mark Hunter, a shy teenager who has recently moved from the east coast to a suburb in Arizona. He has difficulty talking to people in person but has no problem talking to people on his illegal radio station where he can hide behind the anonymity of a voice disguiser and become "Happy Harry Hardon". His broadcasts are popular with all the pupils at his school and soon tapes of them are being traded and played at there much to the chagrin of the school authorities.
Much of his broadcast is taken up pointing out the many faults of his school in particular the actions of the principal and the guidance councillor, he also reads letters from his listeners and attempting to give some advice. Unfortunately he can't always help and after a student he spoke to on air carries out his threat to commit suicide the school uses it as excuse to clamp down on anybody who might know who he is.
Also trying to identify him is classmate Nora, played by Samantha Mathis, she however has more luck than the authorities. When he has doubts about carrying on his broadcasts she is the one who talks him into continuing.
The acting in the film is fairly solid especially from Slater and Mathis and the story is both interesting and amusing. Like most good films it isn't without its weak points; the students seem rather too uniformly fans of the broadcasts and the authorities attempts to catch him seem highly amateur although I guess if he'd been arrested five minutes into the film it wouldn't have been as interesting.
Even though it was made almost twenty years ago it still feels relevant today as it did back then the only things that really dates it is the fact that there is no internet and none of the children have mobile phones like they would today.