Joey (1986)

Due to conflict with his hard drinking father, who is a working class former musician, a talented teenager runs away from home and seeks to start his own musical career.

Director:

Joseph Ellison

Writers:

Joseph Ellison, Ellen Hammill (story),

Stars:

Neill Barry, Frank R. Lanziano, James Quinn

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Neill Barry	...	Joey
Frank R. Lanziano	...	Frankie Lanz (as Frankie Lanz)
James Quinn	...	Joey Sr.
Ellen Hammill	...	Bobbie
Dan Grimaldi	...	Ted
Mary Ann Neu	...	Sally
Elisa Heinsohn	...	Janie
Dee Hourican	...	Bonnie
Vicky Cohen	...	Cindy
Darci Wood	...	Jeannette
Mickey Berz	...	Tony
Michael Sanville	...	Billy (as Mike Sanville)
Rickey Ellis	...	John
Sal Maneri	...	Moe
Rick Shapiro	...	Larry

Storyline

Due to conflict with his hard drinking father, who is a working class former musician, a talented teenager runs away from home and seeks to start his own musical career.

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Plot Keywords:

character name in title

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Taglines:

The Story of a Rock and Roll Rebel

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 January 1986 (USA)

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rock & Roll Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Crazy Credits

Screamin' Jay Hawkins returns after the credits and asks "Is that alright?"

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Soundtracks

"Jeepster"
Written by Marc Bolan
Performed by Tim Worman and The Polecats

User Reviews

Silly, but a reasonably fun-filled musical trip.

Claimed as a "story of a rock & roll rebel", JOEY misfires on being influentially dramatic, because it's too silly and cartoonish. Which is good, since the 80s teen phase needed some high-enough diversion. This might have sounded like another one of those "afterschool" specials that came on television, but it promises to be amusing. It is also a winning story, as we see a young high-school boy give his best shot at the music scene while struggling with the true father-and-son relationship. The music is a little poor in translation to 80s standards, but they sound as if they're familiar. You might spot a couple of legendary artists in this one, for their benefit in contributing to the "doo-wop" rock category. JOEY isn't bad as teenage fodder, but it might leave you expecting a better movie.