Roadie
Tags: cult

Plot synopsis:
Travis W. Redfish (Meat Loaf) is a beer-drinking, bar-brawling, fun-loving distributor of Shiner beer. He also helps his father, Corpus C. Redfish (Art Carney) with the family salvage company, whose motto is "Everything will work if you let it!" B.B. Muldoon (Gailard Sartain) is both his best friend and business partner.
In the opening scene, B.B., driving their Shiner beer truck, arrives at the Redfish family home and business to pick Travis up for work. A short time later, after embarking on their daily delivery route, they notice an RV that has broken down on the side of the road. At first, they laugh at the thought of helping the stranded motorists. Until, that is, Travis sees wannabee groupie Lola Bouliabaise (Kaki Hunter) smile at him through the rear window of the RV. Redfish slams on the brakes and decides to help, hoping to get a closer look at Lola. Lola is a big Alice Cooper fan and Travis has never heard of "her". 'Ace' (Joe Spano), a road manager, and his assistant George, try to talk Travis into driving them to Austin for a show to be played by Hank Williams Jr. and put on by music mogul Mohammed Johnson. He meets Bird Lockhart, a hippie and lifelong roadie in the music business. After repairing the RV Lola is able to talk Travis into coming along where he ends up becoming the "greatest roadie that ever lived" with his unusual techniques on fixing things.
On the road, Redfish gets into a bar fight with "Tiny" Thompson after Lola accidentally ruins his little sister's hair by dumping beer on it in an attempt to meet Roy Orbison. After knocking heads, Travis ends up with "Brain-Lock" that he developed in the war and only a pitcher of beer will cure him.

Review: This was a great movie and if you're into American pop music culture and history I think you would enjoy this movie greatly.Meatloaf stars as Travis W.
He ends up in this situation when the bus carrying groupie Lola Bouilliabase breaks down on a stretch of road near Travis' home town.Art Carney is wonderful as Travis' father and junkyard owner and the movie is full of cameo appearances by the likes of Debbie Harry, Roy Orbison, Alice Cooper (who Lola is in love with) and has music from a wide variety of 80's artists.I was so impressed when I saw this movie I went out and bought the soundtrack, which is a double fold out album with pictures and some background information.I also liked the movie slogan "The Bands make it rock, but the Roadies make it roll"I think "Roadie" is deserving of cult-classic status, but unfortunately I don't think very many people saw it.
Roadie is a fun movie with a chance to see some rock and rollers on the screen.
Meatloaf stars and plays a roadie (big stretch there) who is great at fixing stuff and inventing things.
Well Meatloaf hits the road and helps the likes of Debbie Harry and her band Blondie, Alice Cooper, Hank Williams Jr among others.
The film is a bonafide B-movie cult classic.
People who don't understand Austin (or Texas) won't get the film, and probably won't like it.High points of the film include a Hank Williams Jr./Roy Orbison duet singing "The Eyes of Texas" (the school song of the University of Texas at Austin) to break up a bar brawl; a high-speed chase through downtown Austin involving Austin police, a Lone Star Beer truck, and a limousine; and an outdoor rock concert, the "Rock N Roll Circus", featuring Blondie singing a cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire".
As an "old guy" with a nervous disposition who has enough trouble sitting through many movies once, the ultimate tribute I can give this great "on the road" rock'n'roll saga is that I watched it numerous times when it was on cable in 1981, I have watched it several dozens of times on VHS, and now that it's on DVD, I have watched it several times again.
The film has a rock'n'roll backdropa backdrop we rarely see from the workingman's eye the way we do here.
The movie gives us what amounts to real-world views of several 70's favorites (Meatloaf, Alice Cooper, Blondie, etc.).
But what keeps me watching the film is that it is really funny in an honest, straight-forward way that we have enjoyed far too seldom since Hollywood started grinding out its cookie-cutter farces in the wake of "Airplane." The dual surprises of the film are the really solid performances put in by Alice Cooper and Meatloaf in their respective roles as rock star and roadie.
This is a "cult" movie in the most real sense of the word and anyone who is made nervous by rock music, farce that is outside of the "Scary Movie" mainstream, or three-hundred pound leading men (Meatloaf) should avoid this movie at all costs.
The soundtrack was worth having simply for the long and messy "Brainlock" which plays during one of the few really funny car chases in the history of film..
Rock and roll cult movie.
This movie, in my opinion has many of the features of a cult classic.The acting is uneven, the comedy is uneven, and the plot is a cliché.But the movie is worth watching (as a cult movie,) for a number of reasons.1) Ecletic and enjoyable sound track including a fun cover of Ring of Fire (and you can't experience too many covers of Ring of Fire.) 2) A mix of different comic elements such as an amusing car chase, and Forest Gump like moments where Redfish is simply in the right place at the right time 3) Great rock and roll cameos 4) Occasional surreal moments, if you like that kind of thingAnother part I found refreshing was doing a rock and roll movie involving a groupie with no gratuitous sex or nudity.
Now as a band cameo movie it isn't that great but Meatloaf in brainlock is worth watching just to hear what he says.It's a classic in my opinion..
Love finding these DVD's of movies we haven't seen in years.
We found it on DVD last month and we laughed and sometimes said oh--didn't Blondie look really good then, and Hank Williams Jr. was kinda tame.
Some times it is over the top, but most times is kinda sweet and the music is not bad, except the title version of Everything Works if you Let It (there is another version which is not so bad in the movie) by Cheap Trick.
Alice Cooper is fun to watch, but not as much fun as Meatloaf, and luckily they got Art Carney to play Dad..
I'm also a fan of Meatloaf; for about the same amount of time; so I was surprised to find this on the shelves of my local video store.The story is simple, a handyman meets the woman of his dreams who just so happens to be in love with Alice Cooper.
Meatloaf is very convincing as the country hick (yes COUNTRY HICK) engineering genius named Redfish and while Kaki Hunter tries to pull off the excited groupie routine, she's mostly annoying.For those of you who didn't know it, Art Carney is in this movie as Redfish's father, Corpus Redfish.
He is, as always, excellent in his role as a grouchy junk yard owner.The movie has many memorable (and unfortunately, period) cameos in it by Blondie, Roy Orbison and, of course, Alice Cooper.
Cooper actually shines as a rock star and has a very interesting manner; half manager/half psycho.I recommend this movie simply because it's a total shock.
Roadie (1980) ** (out of 4) Travis Redfish (Meat Loaf) is a man who can fix anything so he's hired by a promoter to become a roadie and make sure a rock and roll show keeps going without issues.
Lola (Kaki Hunter) is a virgin groupie who wants to land in NYC so that she can give herself to Alice Cooper (who plays himself).
ROADIE was one of many musicals that went down as a major flop back in the day but looking at the picture today you can't help but find it somewhat charming and of course there's all the major talent on display.
This "story" appears to have about four different sides and all of them are fighting against one another and in the end you're really left with a movie that doesn't seem to know what it wants to be.
On one hand, you have a behind the scenes look at a rock show on tour but the thing is so tame that you really do feel as if you're watching something that has been watered down.
On another hand you have a groupie getting used to the road but Meat Loaf's character is so full of holes that you have a hard time making any sense out of him.
Another problem with the story is that Loaf's character goes "crazy" at times and apparently this is from an earlier UFO abduction but this subplot is just downright annoying.
The story goes off in so many directions that you're head will be hurting by the time it's over or you at least be sitting there wondering why they couldn't have just left the spotlight on some of the music acts.
Hank Williams, Jr., Blondie, Asleep at the Wheel, Roy Orbison, Jack Elliott and The Pleasant Valley Boys are just a few of the acts that appear and most of them give good performances.
Cooper gets the biggest role of any of the musical acts and he has proved that he can be a very reliable actor and his charm is certain quite high here.
Meat Loaf also delivers a pretty likable performance as he certainly makes you entertained by his character even though it's underwritten.
ROADIE is a pretty bad movie due to its bad screenplay but at the same time fans of the musical acts should be somewhat entertained with the music alone.
one of the few great rock 'n' roll movies.
It is a very fun movie, filled with the rebellious spirit of rock & roll.
'Roadie' is an absolutely awful and unfunny road movie about a country hick (Meatloaf) who inadvertently becomes "the world's best roadie" while pursuing a wanna-be groupie (Kaki Hunter) whose ambition is to lose her virginity to shock rock legend Alice Cooper.
Cooper plays himself and performs, as do Hank Williams, Jr, Blondie and Roy Orbison.
The rest of the very odd cast includes 'The Honeymooners' Art Carney (as Meatloaf's Dad), Joe Spano ('Hill Street Blues') as a clueless road manager, and 'Soul Train's Don Cornelius as a flamboyant promoter to name just a few familiar faces.
Most movie goers will find 'Roadie' a pointless exercise, but obsessive musical nerd record collector types (like me) will be entertained.
What can be said about a movie where Meat Loaf plays the most intelligent and sanest character?
The characters here are totally unappealing and Meat Loaf doesn't even sing (except for one brief moment for a characteristic "duel" with the female lead, which is the high point of the movie).
The rock star cameos--Roy Orbison, Hank Williams Jr., Alice Cooper, Blondie--look uninspired, as if Rudolph had no idea what to do with them.
I have nothing against the "free form" style that Rudolph appeared to be aiming for--a movie with a real "rock and roll" spirit.
But Rock and Roll High School (which came out one year before this) and Almost Famous (which came out 20 years later) did this much better mainly because the characters were interesting and likeable and we really cared about what happened to them.
The final shot of the film sheds some light on the strange 90 minutes that preceded it, and Meat Loaf manages some inspired moments.
"Roadie" is a frat-boy fracas complete with barroom brawls, horny harpies, Art Carney in a souped-up wheelchair...and Meat Loaf at the wheel.
Meat Loaf (playing Travis W.
Redfish!) is actually a rather charming presence on the screen, and perhaps in a smaller role (in a better movie) he might indeed be ingratiating, but Zalman King's script is full of stereotypical redneck humor and helpless Meat Loaf is kept wide-eyed and moronic.
Alice Cooper, Roy Orbison, Hank Williams, Jr., and Blondie all make appearances--and all look embarrassed.
Roadie is a slow, lackluster experience from an actor who could have the potential to do a very funny slapstick film.
Meat Loaf has the charisma, attitude, appearance, and ability to play a character in a buddy comedy.
And it's not really any movie.The problem is a typical one for comedies in the eighties; they don't know what they want to be.
Roadie could've been one of three things; a musical with performances by many great people like Alice Cooper and Hank Williams Jr., a deep character study into Meat Loaf's Travis W.
Maybe there was a lot of indecisiveness and compromises among them.Starring: Meat Loaf and Kari Hunter.
The first look on the cover of this picture, it looks like a good rock n roll movie.
But don't let the cover fool you, or the fact that Alice Cooper and Blondie is in it.
Plain and simple: BADIt's not a movie about a roadie, its just a thin love story, so awful that you see right through it.
The only good thing about this movie, is the soundtrack.Some good songs, and that is why I give 2 out of 10.
Meat Loaf is a horrible actor(at least he was in 1980), and the girl who plays the groupie isn't even good looking!
This movie was a huge disappointment for me, because it makes a lot of good promises..
How best to describe just how awful this movie is???Let's start with the campy hick humor.
Pity poor Art Carney, who should have known better than to do this movie.And then there is the plot.
That's a sure sign that the movie probably won't be very good.
Sheer, unbridled, let it all hang out somethin' crazy lunacy is the order of the day in this raucous rock'n'roll comedy which features the almighty Meatloaf in a disarmingly sweet and robust performance as Travis W.
Redfish's off-beat initiation into the sprawling fracas of the manic, anything-goes nuttiness and rootlessness of the peripatetic rock'n'roll lifestyle hooks him up with flighty underage aspiring groupie Lola Bouillabaisse (an endearingly daffy'n'dippy portrayal by thin, perky, squeaky-voiced "Porky's" film regular Kaki Hunter), who wants to surrender her virginity to Alice Cooper.
Moreover, there are uniformly outstanding musical appearances by Hank Williams, Jr., Roy Orbison (in one of the movie's funniest moments Roy and Hank pacify a brawling tavern audience by breaking into an impromptu a cappella duet on "The Eyes of Texas"!), Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Asleep at the Wheel, Blondie (who do a great thrashy New Wave rave-up rendition of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire"), and, of course, Alice Cooper.
In short, this gloriously gaga, sometimes downright bizarre, and frequently berserk romp certainly has the correct right-on rambunctious rock'n'roll attitude, thereby making it one of Alan Rudolph's breeziest, more accessible, most unpretentious and hence quite hugely enjoyable pictures that he's ever made..
Meat Loaf is really convincing in all his tribulations, and Kaki Hunter has strong weird charms.
Roy Orbison, Blondie and "you Cooper?" also strongly contributed to this experience, which I for the first time rank as a feel-very-good movie :) I watched it twice the first night, and will often again..
I really loved this movie.It was very refreshing.Meatloaf was hilarious.I loved how he seemed to be out of it but focused all at the same time.He gave the term functioning alcoholic a whole new meaning.My favorite part is when he got out of the car on the plane and looked around like he just realized where he was,then opened the plane's door and saw they were in the air.Hilarious!Perfect!The musical guest stars are surprising and fun to watch,especially Blondie.I would recommend this to anyone.The part where he puts the power station together is inspiring.It auctually is possible.Of course they make it look easy but it makes you think,I could do that.The fact that he didn't even mean to be a roadie,he just sort of fell into it because he liked her is pretty funny and it makes the movie work..
It's not highbrow after all.Here's the skinny...* It's a rock and roll movie (you kind of have to get rock and roll I think) * It's got Blondie (what more do you want?
And the band does a cover of Ring of Fire...what more do you want??) * It's a romance of sorts, intermingled with silly craziness...you sort of have to like silly craziness in movies...
* It's got the makings of a cult classic, IMO; You can revel in it's offbeat characters and plot and thinking is highly discouraged * Meatloaf is really charismatic in it...hard to not fall in love with his innocence and integrity as portrayed * The countless mispronunciations of Redfish by the promoter are great - they bring to mind Guybrush Threepwood in the computer games series Monkey Island...does he EVER pronounce it right?
* What's her name is pretty damn cuteHere's what you won't get - * A coherent plot (like I say, thinking is optional) * Depth of any sort (don't go looking for it, it's a shallow movie, nothing wrong with that) * Mainstream appeal (some people will never like it, it's too offbeat, but fans of offbeat comedies may love it)Anyway, you know who you are.
Some people like offbeat rock and roll comedies and some don't.
Good snapshot of late 70s rock and roll.
Having no expectations, it turns out Roadie is a fun snapshot of late 70s/early 80s rock and roll.Meatloaf is enjoyable to watch as the lovable cowboy, who goes along with a rock show as their go-to fix-it man.
Contrary to the fleshy movie poster, there is nudity in this movie.) Other fun roles are by Art Carney, Don Corlenlous, Joe Spano and of course, all the music stars.
It's always great to see famous musicians in movie roles, where you don't expect them to be great actors, but more of just themselves.
Roy Orbison, Alice Cooper, Debbie Harry and Hank Williams Jr. all seems to be having fun and go along with the breezy plot.The music scene at the time of this movie (1980) was at a crossroads.
But the rest of the music is good enough to forgive some of the silly plot moments and acting.
Does anyone know if a CD was ever released?7 out of 10 stars for a fun trip back in time when rock and roll was a little bit more honest.
Roadie definitely doesn't take itself too seriously, which is what a good rock and roll movie should do..
I've watched it with my sister and my close friend a few times and they both think it's great as well.
They come across a broken down caravan belonging to some band management people and wacky Alice Cooper lovin' groupie, Lola, who Travis just falls for at first sight.
He gets them to Austin where the're supposed to go but get threatened that if they don't set up the band's gear in time Muhumad Johnson-"the ring leader of the rock n' roll circus" will "rape their careers".
All the while he tries to woo Lola but she keeps going on about how much she wants to lose her virginity to Alice Cooper.
What a great musical time piece it turned out to be!
Nonsensical, quirky road movie with Meat Loaf (excellent acting), Blondie and others in a B-movie made for the ages.