This article is from the October 1980 issue of Film Review. It is part of a two-page feature on new films about young women in music; the preceding page focuses on Hazel O’Connor in Breaking Glass (dir. Brian Gibson, 1980).
As with most contemporary reviews, the article posits Time Square as a film in which the desire to become a rock star propels the narrative and drives the protagonists. I find this really interesting, because to me, this is an almost incidental aspect of the film. (Unless “become a rock star” is dyke code for “get a hot girlfriend”; it’s possible, because I was and remain out of the loop. Nevertheless…)
Otherwise, the article focuses on the film as debut for the “witty and talented” Robin Johnson, a “pretty girl displaying a keen sense of humour.” Until reading this article I didn’t know that to prepare for the role of Nicky Marotta, Johnson had “voice lessons, singing tutorial and dance and movement classes.” Also that she had never eaten flowers before.
Sheltered, eh?
"Times Square" Fandom 
I also enjoyed reading about the behind the scenes preparation.
I only remember Robin talking about how tough it was to do the scene late in the movie at the Radio Station. She hinted about the river dunking, but not as much as the last Radio Station scene.
Good stuff.
Thanks.
jj
It’s very interesting to look at contemporary discussions of film-making. We are looking from our perspective, in this case 31 years after the film was released, and it’s hard not to project our own reading onto a scene and what it must have taken to produce it. Because of my own reading, I imagine that the radio station scene must have been really traumatic, because it is still so moving. I get the impression, however, that the tetanus-injecting river-dunking was probably more memorable for Robin!
It’s always great to hear from you, JJ! x 🙂
It still amazes me that Robin and Trini gave such amazing performances at the ages of 15 and 12.
Absolutely. The lead performances are crucial to Times Square and I remain stunned by them. They are such nuanced, mature performances.
Thank you for your comment, Vanessa!
In going through all my stuff, I’ve found that this article comes nearly word-for-word from the materials in the press kit. The “desire to be a rock star” wasn’t a particularly important aspect of the film, but it was what RSO/EMI thought would sell it.
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