I only tuned into this film to see Ione Skye. Denise (Ione Skye) and Jimmy (River Phoenix) had an interesting thing going on. Outside of her, I am really not sure what was going on.

Jimmy seemed to be trying to find his own way and not follow what others wanted him to do. Sort of a slacker, he was in constant turmoil with his father until they managed to find something in common to bind them together. :-) He totally screwed things up with his girlfriend, but one suspects that he might have decided to try again as the movie ends. Who Knows?

I really was hoping for a film that would give me an idea of what River was like as an actor. This wasn't it. It really didn't have much going for it except Ione.

A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon (1988) was another starring vehicle for River Phoenix. The film is filled with a lot of teen stars that paraded around on the silver screen during the eighties. But unlike the teen comedies of today, these were rated R are just rated that way to get more of their core viewers. This was a great era for River Phoenix. He was starring like in every other big production that came out of Hollywood. But like all the stars, they eventually come down hard and River Phoenix was no exception.

The movie is about the life of a wild teen. He has all sorts of adventures and conquests. His home life is also a battlefield. Dealing with his absent father and girlfriend take a toll on his personal life as well as his school life. That is also a problem. At his age many kids are at a crossroads on what to do with their adult life. Go to school or get a job like his old man. What is a rapscallion like Jimmy going to do? Until that one wild night comes and passes.

Just another run-of-the-mill teen comedy from the eighties. Except this one's a River Phoenix starring vehicle. Nothing more, nothing less.

Recommended for fans of eighties films.

C'mon y'all, get off your holy horse! This is a great flick! Finally, a main character I can relate to. He's juggling way too many women, totally out of control with lust and obsessed with sex, too smooth for his own good, and he can't seem to do the right thing even if he wanted to. That's the way life is! I can't relate to all those sappy romantic men in movies who fall in love with one girl and ignore the rest. This guy is a victim of his own libido, as are lots of us guys. Finally, a movie for us! And the ending is great how it comes back to his father. This is the central conflict in the whole movie, his relationship with his father.

His father wants him to be better than he was, but in the end, he is a chip off the old block. He is not romantic and honest and kind. He is manipulative and seductive and selfish. He is a jerk, but a likable one. River Phoenix does a great job and a young Matthew Perry is good too. It's nice to see his pre-Friends work and see that he can actually act.

I wish there were more movies like this. If not, I'll write one myself.