10 Things You Didn’t Know About Streets of Fire

I guess it’s time for my monthly article on what I deem to be one of the most underrated and underappreciated films of the 1980’s Streets of Fire. For those unfamiliar with the film, it’s a movie heavy on the music, loaded with cool characters, and with an atmosphere that feels like nothing else. Directed by Walter Hill, a young Diane Lane and an evil Willem Dafoe support anti-hero Michael Paré as he rides into town to save the beautiful girl from Dafoe’s pale, skinny fingers. If you’re a mega-fan, like myself, you might already be privy to the facts below. Either way, read on for some factoids from one of my favorite movies…

1. The Trilogy– The movie was planned to be the first of a trilogy. The Second and Third stories were “The Far City” and “Cody’s Return”.

2. The Hero– Michael Paré was a relative unknown when he was brought in for this film. Walter Hill had seen him in Eddie and the Cruisers but they had already offered the role to Tom Cruise and had it turned down by Eric Roberts. Hill needed someone who could play “young” for the character but needed a guy who could show an edge. Paré was the man they eventually went with.

3. The Sidekick– Amy Madigan was asked to go in and read for the role of Cody’s sister. She didn’t want to do that so she requested to read for the sidekick role that would eventually become McCoy. Amy talked Walter Hill into it. Edward James Olmos was going to be brought in for it at one point as the character was always scripted to be a Hispanic man.

4. The Final Beatdown– The final fight scene with the hammers was filmed over a two week period. Originally, the scene was much more violent with Paré stabbing Dafoe to end the fight. They toned it down because they wanted the focus more on the music than the violence.

5. Drivers Education– Michael Paré had never ridden a motorcycle before so he had a secret crash course the day before he was to film the riding scenes. It could have been a major debacle. He had also not driven a stick shift so he had to learn to do that so he could drive the old car.

6. Soundtrack– The Blasters are the only band that play themselves in the movie. They had turned down an opportunity to do a couple of songs for 48 Hours and they felt like idiots cause the movie was a hit. When they got the chance to do Streets of Fire they couldn’t pass it up.

7. Iron Chef– The knife sequence with the butterfly knife wasn’t scripted but Paré had been a chef and was good with knives. He got ahold of the knife from the other actor on set and was able to fling it around so they put it in the movie. Paré claims it was one of the few times that producer Joel Silver liked him.

8. Young Lane– Diane Lane was only 18 when they started filming. She actually had her high school grade card sent to her trailer during filming.

9. One Percenters– Many of the bikers you see in the film as part of The Bombers are members of the Hell’s Angels. The crew had slightly modified their bikes, leathers, haircuts, and beards so they would fit the look of the film.

10. The Heart of the Film– The music was what really captured the tone of the movie. Then the filming had to match that. Walter Hill had come up with much of what was filmed just from ideas he had as a kid. The movie was essentially a western but with motorcycles, neon lights, rock music, and shootouts. It was imperative that the songs went along with the tone of the film and the actor’s performances. That was a huge reason why the violent nature of the script was eventually abandoned for a much lighter film.