THE WANDERERS (1979) ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢
D: Philip Kaufman
Ken Wahl, John Friedrich, Karen Allen,
Tony Kalem, Alan Rosenberg, Linda Manz
Philip Kaufman's evocative account of an Italian-American street gang fighting an ongoing turf war in the dark streets and broken-glass alleys of the Bronx. While the Wanderers scrap and battle to rule their rundown corner of the world, there's a strong underlying sense that they're trapped in it, as well. The year is 1963. The television sets in the window of the appliance store are tuned to the death of a president. The Marine recruiter down the street is signing up every potential fighting man he can get. In a smoke-filled coffee house, a kid calling himself Bob Dylan is trying out a few songs nobody's heard before. The Wanderers don't know it yet (or maybe they just can't admit it), but the days of ducktail haircuts and cigarettes stashed behind the ears are numbered. History is about to pass them by. It would be interesting to see a sequel to this, to find out what happened to these guys in the years ahead. But Kaufman wisely chooses to leave them there, still swaggering, still talking tough, the self-appointed kings of the block. Wanderers forever.
Linda Manz
(1961-2020)
