The Heavenly Kid

Director - Cary Medoway (Paradise Motel)
Starring - Lewis Smith (Django Unchained), Jason Gedrick (Dexter), and Jane Kaczmarek (Malcolm in the Middle)
Release Date - 1985
Genre - Comedy/Fantasy
Tagline - "Thou shalt be cool!" and "1962 was a bad year for Bobby. First he drove 300ft over a cliff, then they wouldn't let him into heaven..."
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Totally Awesome 80's Double Feature with Teen Witch)

Rating (out of 5):

      If any one is actually reading my mindless ramblings then you may have noticed I have a soft spot for 80's films. This is not a recent infatuation, but in fact I have loved 80's cinema since I was little.  Growing up in the late 80's and early 90's I noticed a big change in the quality of films after 92.  Most of the films before this date had what seemed like a better feel than anything after.  I love the entire 80's style, fashion, music, etc.  When I was real little I remember watching a movie about an angel helping a nerdy boy but could not remember the name.  That is until one day I was flipping through the channels and found The Heavenly Kid on t.v.  I knew right away this was the film I had see all those years ago.  I tried to find it online but was not successful.  After some looking I was able to find it in a double pack with another film I reviewed already, Teen Witch, so I grabbed it.

     The film begins sometime during the 60's and greaser Bobby (Smith) has challenged another greaser-type, Joe, to game of chicken for flirting with his girl.  This is not your average game of chicken.  In this version the two men will drive to the edge of a cliff and the first one to jump from their car loses.  Joe jumps first and when Bobby prepares to jump his bracelet gets caught on the gear shift and he falls to his death.  Bobby is then taken, by train, to the station where the occupants of the train are sorted.  Those people are either headed for Uptown (Heaven) or Limbo because they are not ready for Uptown.  Bobby is not ready for Uptown and has to ride another train, Limbo, until he has an assignment to test his worthiness.  We then fast forward to the 80's where we meet your typical nerdy teenager, Lenny (Gedrick).  He is often the butt of everyone's jokes.  He does have one friend, the typical pretty/ugly girl.  He does not see her as a thing of affection and has a crush on the popular girl in school.  Bobby is instructed to help Lenny with the ways of the world and be a true friend for him.  Bobby's plan is to make Lenny cool and win over his dream girl.  He succeeds but at a cost.  Lenny is now arrogant and will not listen to Bobby or his parents.  Bobby discovers that Lenny's mother is Bobby's old girlfriend, the reason he played chicken with Joe and died.  He also discovers that she married Joe.  Bobby was instructed not to reveal himself to anyone else but Lenny and he breaks that rule.  He reveals himself to his lost love and discovers that Lenny is actually his son.  Rafferty, Bobby's spirit guide, arrives to take Bobby back to the station but Bobby talks him out of it.  Lenny humiliated two bullies at school and was challenged to a game of chicken at the same place Bobby lost his life.  Lenny accepts and during the race his door will not open.  At the last moment Bobby arrives and saves his life.  Lenny now does not take his life for granted and can see the beauty in his pretty/ugly friend and Bobby is able to go to Uptown.

     This movie has most of the elements that I really enjoy in an 80's film.  I love the sets, the camera work, the score, and the costumes the characters are wearing.  This film had a pretty good budget and was backed by a major studio, which is strange thinking of how hard it is to find this slice of 80's gold.  The acting is very good with most of the cast going on to have a lucrative career in show business.  The film also has some great special effects for the time period.  The story is not that original and the film is often compared to Rebel Without a Cause.  Though the story is not that original, it does play out well on the screen.  This movie offers some laughs but they are very dated.  I did not like the ending.  It was predictable for a feel good movie so I can't really hold that against the film.  Overall, this is fun film for those that love 80's cinema and feel good films.  I highly recommend it.