The Legend of Billie Jean (1985)

• Year: 1985
• Released: 19 Jul 1985
• Country: United States
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089470/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/The_Legend_of_Billie_Jean
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-legend-of-billie-jean
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English
• MPA Rating: PG-13
• Genre: Action, Drama
• Runtime: 96 min
• Writer: Mark Rosenthal, Lawrence Konner
• Director: Matthew Robbins
• Cast: Helen Slater, Christian Slater, Keith Gordon
• Keywords: texas, chase, female protagonist, fugitive, brother sister relationship,

	6.6/10
	45/100
	50% – Critics
	75% – Audience

The Legend of Billie Jean Storyline

Average Texas teen, Billie Jean Davy, is caught up in an odd fight for justice. She is usually followed and harrased around by local boys, who, one day, decide to trash her brother’s scooter for fun. The boys’ father refuses to pay them back the price of the scooter. The fight for “fair is fair” takes the teens around the state and produces an unlikely hero.

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The Legend of Billie Jean Movie Reviews

must be taken as camp

Billie Jean (Helen Slater) lives in a Texas trailer park with her brother best friend Binx (Christian Slater). Local bully Hubie picks on them. He steals Binx’s scooter and then trashes it while beating up Binx. Detective Ringwald (Peter Coyote) brushes Billie Jean off. She goes to get the money herself. Hubie’s dad lures her upstairs and tries to rape her. Meanwhile Binx finds a gun in the cash register. The gun goes off accidentally and Hubie’s dad is shot. Billy Jean, Binx, friends Putter (Yeardley Smith) and Ophelia (Martha Gehman) go on the run and become legends as she fights for “fair is fair”. They break-in and befriends horror-fan weirdo Lloyd (Keith Gordon) who volunteers to be their hostage. He turns out to be the son of District Attorney Muldaur (Dean Stockwell).

It is fun and energetic. It’s not subtle. Richard Bradford is being a super villain. There is a lot of silliness going on. It has no believability. Yeardley Smith is ridiculous. But it’s a fun campy 80s movie and there are stuff to like about it. Helen Slater and Peter Coyote are great at their roles. It’s no surprise that they’re the only two reasonable characters in the whole movie. Although Helen Slater striking that pose is hilarious. The movie tries to say something about girl empowerment with the Joan of Arc theme but the movie can’t be taken seriously.

Helen Slater excels in this sturdy 80’s cult favorite

Feisty lower-class teenager Billie Jean (a strong and charismatic performance by Helen Slater) and her brother Binx Davy (a solid and likable Christian Slater in his film debut) become celebrity fugitives after a dispute between affluent jerk Hubie (a perfectly obnoxious turn by Barry Tubb) and his no-count father Mr. Pyatt (a splendidly slimy portrayal by Richard Bradford) about Hubie trashing Binx’s scooter gets out of hand.

Director Matthew Robbins keeps the engrossing story moving along at a quick pace, vividly captures the humid atmosphere of rural Texas, and manages to prevent the potentially campy story from degenerating into totally laughable kitsch. The astute script by Rick Rosenthal and Lawrence Konner offers a pointed and powerful social commentary on how the rich exploit and push around the poor and disenfranchised, the way the media can mold someone into a martyr, and the basic necessity to see that justice gets served after something wrong goes initially unpunished. This film further benefits from fine acting by a tip-top cast: Yeardley Smith as excitable third wheel Putter, Keith Gordon as the helpful Floyd, Martha Gehman as loyal gal pal Ophelia, Peter Coyote as sympathetic cop Lt. Ringwald, and Dean Stockwell as Flloyd’s estranged bigwig politician father Muldaur. However, it’s Slater who really keeps this picture on track: She looks absolutely stunning with close-cropped hair and brings a fierce conviction and winning sense of pure integrity to the character of Bille Jean that makes her real easy to root for and side with as she becomes a symbol of defiant rebellion and female empowerment to the adolescent public at large. Jeffrey L. Kimball’s slick cinematography provides a neat polished look. Craig Safan’s moody score and the pumping rock soundtrack both hit the stirring spot. A super cool movie that’s deserving of its avid fan following.

The Modern Joan of Arc

In Texas, the hot teenager Billie Jean Davy (Helen Slater) lives with her brother Binx (Christian Slater) and her mother in a trailer. In a hot day, she rides with Binx on his scooter to swim in a lake. However, the bully Huble Pyatt (Barry Tubb) steals the scooter with his friends. Billie Jean goes to the police but Detective Ringwald (Peter Coyote) does not give much attention to her. When Binx tries to retrieve his scooter, Huble trashes the scooter and beats Binx up. Billie Jean goes with her brother Binx and her friend Ophelia (Martha Gehman) to the store of Huble’s father Pyatt (Richard Bradford) with the repair bill and the old man lures Billie Jean and brings her to his office. Then he harass and tries to rape her. Meanwhile Binx finds a gun in the cash register and her accidentally shoots Pyatt. Billie Jean, Binx. Ophelia and their teenage neighbor Putter (Yeardley Smith) flee from Ophelia’s car. They meet the teenager Lloyd (Keith Gordon), who is the estranged son of the D.A. Muldaur (Dean Stockwell), he proposes to be their “hostage” so that the runaway teenagers could get some money for their journey. When Billie Jean watches Otto Preminger ‘s “Saint Joan” at Lloyd’s television, she cuts her hair short and makes a video with her explanation and demands, becoming and icon worshiped by the teenagers. Meanwhile Detective Ringwald finds the mess, he realizes that he should have listened to Billie Jean and tries to fix the situation.

“The Legend of Billie Jean” is a super-cult movie from the 80’s and maybe Helen Slater’s best film in her career. The plot entwines action and drama and it is delightful to watch. In the 80’s, many viewers believed that Helen Slater and Christian Slater were siblings since they have the same last name. The story of a wronged teenager that cuts her hair in Joan of Arc’s style and becomes an idol of the youth has not aged and is still wonderful to watch. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): “A Lenda de Billie Jean” (“The Legend of Billie Jean”)