viewsonfilm.com
Kevin Bacon, hot off the heels from his sleeper mega hit Footloose (1984), decided to take on the eccentric role of a floor trader turned bicycle messenger in the underrated, but yet somewhat misguided Quicksilver. I read somewhere that he called this flick quote unquote, "the lowest point of my career." Well Kevin, I'm here to tell ya, it ain't that bad. There is a lot to admire in this mid 80's nugget. It's got an incomparable synthesizer-ready soundtrack, intense bicycle sequences that kill stuff from duds like American Flyers (1985) (Oh don't forget the chase scenes. The movie takes place in San Francisco so just think Bullitt on bikes), a little bit of what I call bicycle "break dancing" (you'll see it about 20 minutes in), and an exciting, tantalizing opening credits montage that holds a bit of a promise. Unfortunately, like most 2 and a half star movies, Quicksilver's flaws outweigh its strengths. Let me put it this way, it's a film that doesn't quite know what it wants to be. Somewhere along the line, it seemed like this thing wasn't quite edited in time. A deadline had to be meant, Quicksilver had to be unleashed into theaters, and you can tell that some scenes were left on the cutting room floor. However, even with its moderately short running time (1 hr. almost 40 minutes), it still feels like you're watching 3 different movies at once. Back in 1986 (year it was released), theater owners probably should have charged double admission (I hate to say it, but it's justifiable).Quicksilver plays out like this: Kevin Bacon glides into the role of Jack Casey (by the way he is really moody in this vehicle), a one time stock broker who loses all his life savings (along with his parents as well) on a bad trade and decides to quit the business and become a bicycle messenger. In fact, it's explained early on that a lot of bike messengers used to have big time, well paying jobs (it's also explained that one of these dudes used to work for the mayor). At first, I chalked this up to be sort of an unusual career change (He was in a cab that raced a random cyclist and lost. That could have been his inspiration, who knows?) but then Bacon's character explains the whole thing in a tiny compelling soliloquy while talking to a friend in a coffee shop. He explains that this job is simple, less stressful, and the main thing is, he doesn't have a lot of responsibility (take the package from here to there, que sera sera). Since taking this job, Casey barely pays his rent, lives in kind of a warehouse, and shares the space with a snobby pretentious dancer (Whitney Kershaw, who I'm guessing is his girlfriend). So okay, you get the blueprint. But I will reveal a little more later on in the review. It's not exactly an exercise bent on storytelling in the cycling realm. That's for darn sure. I will say this though, I learned a lot about the bike messenger business from a recent viewing. It seems to be run like a pizza delivery chain, a very lucrative pizza delivery chain. Oh, and be on the lookout for the outside of the building or home base where all the messengers huddle while waiting for assignments. It clearly looks like an almost blatant, fake, Hollywood set instead of an actual shooting location. So anyway, I stated earlier that this film didn't quite have an idea what it wants to be. Okay, let's examine this rather large factoid. Is it about Bacon wanting to return to his old job, is it about his friend Terry (Jami Gertz) delivering packages for a psychotic drug dealer named "Gypsy" (Rudy Ramos) and not getting paid for it, is it about Bacon's friend Hector (the likable Paul Rodriguez) needing his help to start a hot dog cart business, or is it about Bacon's parents disapproving of his new lifestyle (his dad is in two powerful scenes that have value, but we never see him after that)? Notice, I didn't really mention cycling. When the movie was about to come out, it was clearly advertised this way but gosh, it feels like good old ten speeds got pushed to the wayside.Now as I said in the beginning of the review, I certainly don't think that Quicksilver is a bad film. There are some poignant and excitedly dark moments where tension is mounted and we view the bare bones of a solid dramatic thriller. But alas, this in an exercise where momentum is sometimes undercut by hardly relevant side plots and massively underdeveloped characters. Now listen, don't be so "quick" to judge it based on some of the things I've said. You just gotta know what you're getting into. Entertaining yet flawed, promising yet manipulative, this is a flick about bicycles that's not really about bicycles. In truth, it's a solid nostalgic rental (if you can find it) and with multiple viewings, it may just bring home the "Bacon". Natch!
eric262003
Even though Kevin Bacon has turned in some wonderful performances in the 35 years as a performer I for many years have dodged the 1986 low-budgeted thriller "Quicksilver". I just felt that Bacon has made far better movies than this. But once I purchased it on Blu-ray, I was pleased by the movie. For a meagre budget, this movie was very heart pumping, entertaining and once again, Bacon excels in another vibrant performance.Granted it has its bizarre scenes. But what do you expect? This movie was released in the 1980's. But to delve deeper into the layers of the movie, I think it will satisfy an audience who like a vast variety of genres because there's some thing there for everyone to enjoy. Kevin Bacon plays the part of Jack Casey, who at one time was a top notch stockbroker who made a living trading stocks. One day, a bad tip has come his way and suddenly he gets knocked down from Cloud 9 to rock bottom, even his parents are left in the drenches of his financial downfall. Down on his luck, he ends up getting a job as a messenger cyclist and becomes an unwritten adviser to other messenger cyclists in San Francisco who take their low-payed jobs very seriously. With a talent pool of outstanding supporting players like Jami Gertz, Paul Rodriguez and Laurence Fishburne these performers utilize their abilities to provide, thrills, drama and action.With the concentration of Mr. Casey returning back to his old job, he must resolve his past failures while trying to win back his dignity once again. Losing everything he's got has made Jack downtrodden and just fixated with hanging on to everything he still has. When his fellow messenger Hector (Paul Rodriguez) has ambitions to open up a hot-dog stand, Jack pulls all his resources to help Hector fulfill his dream. Jack stands up to his fellow messengers once drug-dealers begin to take over to deliver their goods. After being a witness to a murder, Jack learns first hand that these druggies are hiring messengers to do their dirty work, this leads to Jack coming to the aid of Terri (Jami Gertz) so that she does not bite in with their manipulative schemes.Terri is quite vulnerable to give into their schemes, while Hector in an reluctant act of desperation joins in to make quick money to gather his funds. And while Jack's quest to go back to being a broker, takes a negative impact on the bikers as they're now part of this illegal operation. They're fates all depend on Jack for getting back to his old ways again as Jack has now become a hero to all of them.The editing was tightly knitted and the action pieces were purely sublime as it compliments the rather dark sub-plot that this movie has to offer. This movie stands the test of time as a definitive Kevin Bacon 80's film that's worth to take a gander at. Though it was made 27 years ago, it has aged quite gracefully. Even though the Blu-ray offers no special features, the picture restoration is quite an improvement.
bobwhitt1210
Anyone who has a 6 digit salary would agree that the only thing better than have a great income is not having one...which is exactly what Kevin Bacon decides to do in Quicksilver. Bacon is a stockbroker, the best there is, but somehow manages to lose all his and his parents money. What happens next is that he decides that being a bike messenger is the only life he can have now. He learns all the bike tricks and can even do jumps. This may not be suitable for children since he rides around without a helmet or reflectors. Things to remember when you go on your next bike ride. A. Check you tires, make sure you haven't caught any debris in them. B. Make sure you have a nice hairdo so old ladies aren't offended by your appearance. c. Don't talk to dogs you don't know, stray dogs may bite you.
Squonk
In 'Quicksilver,' Kevin Bacon is a stock market big shot who loses everything and ends up a bicycle messenger. From there, the film can't make up it's mind what on earth it's about. Drug dealers, rival bike riders...they're all here. This film just coasts around for awhile, but there's nothing interesting along the way. About the only thing this film has going for it is it's synthesizer score by Genesis keyboardist Tony Banks.
