Great Balls of Fire! (1989)

The life and career of wildly controversial rock 'n' roll star Jerry Lee Lewis.

Director:

Jim McBride

Writers:

Myra Lewis (book), Murray Silver Jr. (book) (as Murray Silver)

Stars:

Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, John Doe

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dennis Quaid	...	Jerry Lee Lewis
Winona Ryder	...	Myra Gale Brown
John Doe	...	J.W. Brown
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Jud Phillips
Trey Wilson	...	Sam Phillips
Alec Baldwin	...	Jimmy Swaggart
Steve Allen	...	Himself
Lisa Blount	...	Lois Brown
Joshua Sheffield	...	Rusty Brown
Mojo Nixon	...	James Van Eaton
Jimmie Vaughan	...	Roland Janes
David Ferguson	...	Jack Clement
Robert Lesser	...	Alan Freed
Lisa Jane Persky	...	Babe
Paula Person	...	Sam's Secratary

Storyline

The story of Jerry Lee Lewis, arguably the greatest and certainly one of the wildest musicians of the 1950s. His arrogance, remarkable talent, and unconventional lifestyle often brought him into conflict with others in the industry, and even earned him the scorn and condemnation of the public. In 1956, Louisiana bad boy Jerry Lee Lewis moves to Memphis, determined to dethrone Elvis Presley with his ferocious, God-given talent. When Jerry Lee bangs out the chorus with his feet, huge fans howl out for more. When he finishes his performance by setting his piano ablaze, they mob the stage. But when he marries his 13-year-old cousin Myra Gale Brown...the scandal nearly destroys the Killer's career.

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Plot Keywords:

1950s | child bride | title based on song | marriage between cousins | rise and fall | 

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Taglines:

There wasn't a faster beat... Or a hotter sound... There wasn't a wilder man than Jerry Lee Lewis... and he was born to raise hell!

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 June 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Great Balls of Fire

Filming Locations:

Somerville, Tennessee, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$13,741,060

Company Credits

Production Co:

Orion Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dennis Quaid was 34 when he played Jerry Lee Lewis in his early twenties.

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Goofs

The song "Great Balls Of Fire" is shown climbing the Billboard charts to number one. The song only made it to number two.

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Quotes

Lois Brown: Jerry Lee here's a married man, ain't that right, Jerry Lee?
Jerry Lee Lewis: Well, that's not necessarily so, Lois.
Lois Brown: And just what do you mean by that?
Jerry Lee Lewis: Well, you see I was still married to my first wife when I married my second wife, so I never really was married to my second wife. And since I divorced my first wife a couple of years ago, I'm as free as a bird in a tree!

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Connections

Referenced in Late Show with David Letterman: Episode #20.30 (2012)

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Soundtracks

Beat Guitar
Written by John Greek and Richard Dangel
Performed by The Wailers
Courtesy of Golden Crest Industries

User Reviews

Dennis channels Jerry Lee

From some of the reviews here, I get the feeling many viewers of this film have never seen a Jerry Lee Lewis performance, much less have ever seen him offstage. Well, I can tell you, Dennis Quaid has the man down to pitch perfect. But it isn't just a great impersonation. Beneath every nuance and gesture is the frenzied heart and mind that probably would never have been able to function outside of the venue of rock and roll. Jerry Lee was the white man's Little Richard. He had rock and roll in his blood and he was BORN outrageous! He also made Elvis Presley look like a wind-up doll. `Great Balls of Fire' captures the essence of Jerry Lee's music, especially in the ‘musical' scene with the kids outside the high school. Rock and Roll breaks the rules, so why not have a film that breaks the rules by throwing in a musical number that obviously has no backup band? Those who have seen the high school rock and roll movies like `High School Confidential' and `Rock Rock Rock' will appreciate this spirited ode to them. Winona Ryder does a pretty good job for Winona Ryder, and it's fun to see John Doe (of the L.A. punk band `X') playing the somewhat stymied father of little Myra Gale. This film is not a biopic, it's a rock and roll movie, which is what the King of rock and roll (as far as I'm concerned) deserves. Is he a bad, bad man for marrying his thirteen-year-old cousin? Is it anyone's business? The marriage lasted longer then most marriages these days do. Even if it hadn't, I think people can be capable of respecting the artist and his music even if that artist's lifestyle offends them. That's this film's point of view, so no doubt, there will be viewers who will take offense. But to set the record straight, the whole world did not turn their back on Jerry Lee when the news got out about his marriage to his cousin. There were thousands of fans who actually embraced him more BECAUSE their parents and authorities hated him. And then there were just the fans (like myself) who will always love his music and audacious energy at the piano, and have decided to leave judgment of his personal life to whatever entity is in charge of such things.