'License to drive', the never talked about 1988 film starring both Corey Haim, Corey Feldman and a then unknown Heather Graham, remains one of the funniest films of all time, whilst also representing the issue that a driver's license respresents individualism, liberation and freedom. This all may seem like an over exaggeration but when a film has a clear set out idea, that begins with Les Anderson, (before there was Mr Anderson in Matrix, who stands for so much less in comparison to Les) chained to a school bus and his attempt to escape this kind of future for his life, and his dream of getting the girl and the car. Because in life, without a license, you have nothing...
'Les, that license in your wallet, that's not an ordinary piece of paper, that is a driver's license, and its not only a driver's license, it's an automobile license, and it's not only an automobile license, it's a license to live, a license to be free, a license to go wherever, whenever and with whomever you choose.'
There's too much for me to say really about 'License to drive', for me it is a brilliant film, clear in what it is about, what it is trying to achieve in it's genre and style, it uses childish techniques at times, empathising certian sounds and edited cleanly with some old fashioned flip cuts in places. Whilst I might make it sound, as if the film takes itself too seriosuly (and maybe the filmmakers did) far from it coming across like that in the film, as the script is direct, funny and of course the performances shine through, with Corey Haim brilliant as the young kid with the American dream...a joy to watch everytime and a film which deserved to be known.
Of course, one of the most famous films of Haim's career is 'the lost boys' (1987) which displays the idea of being, acting and feeling differently to our parents and siblings, it is at the end of the day, essentially a good old fashioned, fun -vampire-killer-slasher film, made to better standards to ones in the genre today.
In 1986, 'Lucas' showed adolescene in one of the best possible ways as Roger Ebert once described...
"Haim ... does not give one of those cute little boy performances that get on your nerves," wrote Ebert. "He creates one of the most three-dimensional, complicated, interesting characters of any age in any recent movie. If he can continue to act this well, he will never become a half-forgotten child star, but will continue to grow into an important actor. He is that good."
I remember seeing it at a young age, (it was an after midnight fill-up-the schedule screening on ITV) I haven't seen it since but have never forgotten it, how much I felt for Lucas and what he was trying to acheive and prove, to himself, to the girl he lusted after and the world around him. It was a powerful film for me and I look forward to seeing it again.
As with many shocking deaths in life, they always leave at a point when there is so much left behind, his mother battling cancer and talk of a career comeback, to name a couple in Mr Haim's life. Corey Haim once said...
"I want to be the guy they talk about when they talk about comebacks," he said three years ago. "I want people to learn from me, see I'm human, and understand that I make mistakes just like they do, but it doesn't have to consume you. You've got to walk through the raindrops, and that's totally what I am trying to do."
R.I.P.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2010/mar/10/corey-haim-lost-boys
