Stebaer4
It's a pretty good film showing a boy who's not popular but still variably appreciated in the end for his efforts short and to these points. Yes it's portrayal of an outcast who still manages to have a girlfriend.Yes The now late Corey Haim may well have been typecast as an outcast as we may see from film to film and even on TV like in "Roomies" later on.Yes Lucas' love of bugs doesn't even draw his girlfriend away from him anymore than when they go to a concert underground where he can move the round lid & ask some man above to lend him his program but without giving to much away we get to see how in the end Lucas get's to be appreciated more and more.What can anyone also say but sadly Corey Haims's Star had faded upon his getting older.Truthfully, Stephen "Steve" G.Baer a.k.a. "Ste" of Framingham,Ma.USA
Steve Pulaski
Lucas is not only a marvelous high school film, but a brilliant Corey Haim film as well. I don't recall cheering in too many teenager movies for the protagonist to accomplish a certain goal, but I couldn't help myself. This is the kind of movie that is one I'll remember for years to come. It's nothing shy of it's expectations, and puts other movies of it's kind to shame. It's so polished and witty, I'm surprised John Hughes didn't have his name on this gem.I bring that up because it's a good point. John Hughes was always doing movies that revolved around "the underdog" or someone who was an unlikely hero. In Weird Science, the premise was centered around a couple of geeky kids, Career Opportunities is centered around a Target slacker, and Sixteen Candles was when the geeky kid gets the girl. So it looks like someone beat John Hughes to his own game making a film about the nerd and the dream girl. Still, no disrespect to the God of teen films.Lucas (Haim) is a nerdy fourteen year old who meets and quickly falls in "love" with a girl named Maggie (Green). Maggie is a new girl, and Lucas wants her all to himself. Who could blame him? Maggie is a gorgeous individual. Id want her all to myself as well. If I went to the high school Lucas was in, it'd be "The Battle of the Nerds".Like many would guess, Lucas' nerdy ways and foul mouth get him into all kinds of trouble. The main bullies are ones on the football, but due to their high appeal of being "men", Maggie is attracted to Cappie (Sheen). Cappie is a football player who sticks up for Lucas because he fears his mouth will get him hurt. Maggie and Cappie become close friends, which drives Lucas nuts. Lucas begins to become more and more distant from Maggie.The film captures what many teen movies ignore, or don't focus on too much; the first love. I'm going to kind of follow Roger Ebert and say your first love isn't because of beauty, it's because the other person is perfect in their own way. I remember my first "love" way back in first grade. I invited her over to my house countless times. During the second grade, she went to a Catholic school and I never saw her again.Thankfully, I found her on Facebook this past year. She lives out of state, and we talk every now and then. By "now and then" I mean once every six months. It hurts because I know we'll never be close like we used to. I was nuts about her, and talking to her not too long ago she said she even knew I was head over heals, but never told me. I was so shocked.I got over it like anyone would, but I think about her a lot from time to time. She was perfect, but chances are I'll never see her again. She was one who made me think about marriage at age six! Thats an accomplishment. Thats what makes her on my "unforgettable people list".Going back to the film, I can say with a straight face I saw myself inside Lucas. The way he was picked on and mocked, to be loved and cherished at the end is how I see myself sometimes. I can be ridiculed at points in life, but I'm also loved by lots of people. I'm extremely grateful for that in every possible way.Lucas is one of the many teen movies that is worth watching, but only one of the handful that deserve the title of "coming-of-age". Lucas himself shows you that it's okay to live life on the sidelines and to stand up for what you believe. He shows you it's okay to be different. And most importantly, he delivers one of the simplistic but satisfying lines in a film; "Keep an open mind." You go, Lucas! Starring: Corey Haim, Kerri Green, Charlie Sheen, Courtney Thorne-Smith, Winona Ryder, Tom Hodges, and Jeremy Piven. Directed by: David Seltzer.
Michael_Elliott
Lucas (1986) **** (out of 4) Marvelous coming of age film has Corey Haim playing the title character, a 14-year-old dork who finds himself in high school due to his brains. During the summer he meets a new girl (Kerri Green) who he falls in love with but she ends up with the popular quarterback (Charlie Sheen), which Lucas doesn't quite understand. This comedy/drama is without question one of the best of the 80s as it features a terrific story, a great young cast and some down to Earth real moments that make it an easy classic. The screenplay by writer/director Seltzer makes the right decision to have the characters we're watching to be realistic and smart to the situation going on. I think the script makes the right choice to have Lucas know he's a dork and know that in the real world things don't always go his way. The fact that Lucas falls in love with someone he obviously can't have makes for a lot of movies like this but this film takes it to the next level because Lucas is someone we can all identify with and the supporting players are likely people we know as well. We get the popular character, the dorky character, the popular one and the mean one. All of the characters are given enough time to fully develop where we can connect with all of them and that's why this film works so well. Most films just give us one-note characters but all of the ones here change over time and full develop as the movie unfolds. The film is smart enough to make us understand why some might not take a liking to Lucas and we even turn on him a little as his attitude towards the Green character changes. The performances are also a major plus here as we get a very talent cast and many future famous faces. Haim was born to play this role and he does a terrific job with it as he's able to capture every emotion that his character has and really nails all of them. Be it comedy, drama or romance, Haim hits all the right notes and delivers one of the more memorable performances of the decade. Both Green and Sheen are excellent and really deliver on all their scenes. We even have Jeremy Piven and Winona Ryder delivering good supporting performances. The movie follows a somewhat familiar storyline but it takes a few different spins on the familiar plot and in the end really becomes one of the more memorable films from this genre. It seems there was a different teen movie being released each and every week during the 80s and God knows there are some really bad ones out there but this one here is certainly at the top of the class in terms of heart and entertainment.
bonycowhead
I grew up in Wheaton, IL which is a town right next to Glen Ellyn, IL where the high school and movie theater from Lucas where located. This movie is still one of my all time favorites from the 80's. When I was in middle school we had a track meet at Glenbard West High School where Lucas was filmed. It was a thrill to be on the same football field where the movie was filmed. One interesting thing is that for the movie the visitor's bleachers where removed so that Lake Ellyn could be included in the shots. The movie theater used in the film was the Glen Theater in downtown Glen Ellyn. When my friends and I went to the Glen we where all excited and kept saying "This is where Lucas was filmed!". Glenbard West is a beautiful looking high school. The real mascot for the school is the Hilltoppers and not the Pirates like in the movie. One of the biggest disappointments for me was when I was to substitute teach in the Glenbard West gym it was not the gym used in Lucas.
