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poster of The Wanderers
Rating: 7/10 by 194 users

The Wanderers (1979)

The streets of the Bronx are owned by '60s youth gangs where the joy and pain of adolescence is lived. Philip Kaufman tells his take on the novel by Richard Price about the history of the Italian-American gang ‘The Wanderers.’

Directing:
  • Philip Kaufman
  • Laurie B. Eichengreen
  • Alan Hopkins
Writing:
  • Richard Price
  • Philip Kaufman
  • Rose Kaufman
Stars:
Release Date: Fri, Jul 13, 1979

Rating: 7/10 by 194 users

Alternative Title:
Gänget - SE
Tuláci - CZ

Country:
United States of America
Language:
English
Runtime: 01 hour 57 minutes
Budget: $0
Revenue: $23,000,000

Plot Keyword: new york city, adolescence, rock 'n' roll, street gang, black people, american football, coming of age, 1960s

Toni Kalem
Despie Galasso
Val Avery
Mr. Sharp
Dolph Sweet
Chubby Galasso
Burtt Harris
Marine Recruiter
Terri Perri
Terri Perri
Tara King
Pretty Girl
Adam Kimmel
Folk singer
Ken Foree
Black Sportsman
John Califano
Bowling Bankroller
Richard Price
Bowling Bankroller
Linda Artuso
Buddy's Woman
Lorna Erickson
Gloria Galasso
Adam Kimmel
Folk Singer
Sheryl Posner
Despie's Girlfriend
Konrad Sheehan
Ducky Boy 2nd-In-Command
Harry Benjamin
Pharoah Leader
Alan H. Braunstein
Ducky Boy Leader
Mark Lesly
Second Ducky Boy
Anthony Tirico
Executioner Leader
Anton Evangelista
Wanderer (uncredited)
Olympia Dukakis
Joey's Mother (uncredited)
Wayne Knight
Waiter (uncredited)

John Chard

Rumble in the Bronx. The Wanderers, an Italian street gang in the Bronx 1963, preparing for a rumble with rival gang the Del-Bombers, try to enlist other gangs to help their cause. However, as the times are a changing, The Wanderers and all the other gangs of the city must come to terms with pending adulthood, and, the ending of an era. Directed by Phillip Kaufman, this adaptation of Richard Price's novel stands up as one of the best pictures to deal with gang culture. Laced with crackling adolescent humour, and sublimely sound tracked, The Wanderers triumphs better than most because it captures the time frame perfectly. Encompassing the killing of JFK, and subtly showing (during an hilarious sequence) the enlisting of ignorant youths into the Marines, to be carted off to Vietnam no doubt, The Wanderers has far more to offer than merely angst and high school jinx. The cast are surprisingly strong, Ken Wahl, Karen Allen, Tony Ganios and Erland van Lidth all shine in their respective roles, whilst Kaufman directs with a knowing sense of purpose of the thematics to hand. All of which culminates in a quite eerie final third as the deadly Ducky Boys enter the fray. Not quite as serious as The Warriors, which was released the same year, it's a film that much like this one now feels part of my teen education. The Wanderers is however the smarter picture of the two in terms of substance. The coming together at the finale, the racial harmony bursting out from the screen, is and always should be eternally embraced. All together now, "I'm the type of guy who will never settle down" 8/10


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