Review of The Legend of Billie Jean

"Corvette Summer" director Matthew Robbins wrote and helmed Helen Slater's second big-screen movie, the above-average road epic "The Legend of Billie Jean," about a blonde Texas teenager from a trailer park who becomes a highly-sought after fugitive after several guys stole her motor scooter from her little brother and vandalized it. Fifteen-year old Christian Slater plays Binx, the brother of Billie Jean (Helen Slater of "Supergirl") in this 1980s era who embarks on a journey of hardship as they dodge the law. When Billie Jean confronts the villainously mustached Pyatt (Richard Bradford of "The Milagro Beanfield War") whose reckless son Hubie (Barry Tubb of "Top Gun") damaged their scooter, she has to ward off a rape attempt. It seems that Pyatt is willing to pay Billie for the damages if she will accompany him upstairs. Fleeing from him, she descends from the room above the store and finds Binx has removed a revolver from Pyatt's cash register. Pyatt threatens Binx and Binx shoots him in the shoulder by accident. The entire state of Texas scrambles after Billie Jean, and she manages to not only elude them but recreate herself as a media icon by cutting her hair and emerging as look-alike Joan of Arc. She gets the idea one evening while watching the Otto Preminger classic movie "Saint Joan" (1957) with Jean Seberg cast as Joan. There is a wonderful scene when Detective Ringwald (Peter Coyote of "Sphere") is informed by one of his men that they have captured Billie. Actually, they have captured a quartet of girls with shorn coifs claiming to be the fugitive in a riff on the Kirk Douglas slave saga "Spartacus." Robbins co-scripted the Spielberg chase thriller "The Sugarland Express" and comparisons between the two are inevitable. The kids take a hostage, Lloyd (Keith Gordon of "Christine") who uses his videotape camera to shoots videos of Billie proclaiming her slogan "Fair is Fair." Actually, "The Legend of Billie Jean" is more than fair, and Helen Slater is delectable as the eponymous heroine. Rock star Pat Benatar hated this movie, but her song "Invincible" appears in it and adds to its message about wronged youth. Richard Bradford makes an evil villain who exploits Billie. A memorable moment occurs near the conclusion when Billie sets fire to Pyatt's canvas tent store selling posters of Billie Jean. In this instance, a towering statue of Billie Jean catches fire in a riff of "Saint Joan." The ending with our heroine and her brother in the snow-swept north is amusing. Binx spots a snow scooter reminiscent of the motor scooter that they were riding at the outset of the film. Yeardley Smith is fun to watch as Billie's friend who has her first period in the station wagon that they use to elude a carbine wielding truck driver. Clocking in a 96 minutes, "The Legend of Billie Jean" qualifies as entertaining with strong performances.