Foxes is Adrian Lyne's debut movie after a successful stint in creating commercials in the 1970s.Just like Alan Parker in Bugsy Malone, he teams up Jodie Foster and Scott Baio taking a meandering look at the friendship of four teenage girls growing up in LA's San Fernando Valley in the late 1970s as they deal with sex, drink, drugs, partying, love and growing up. Jodie Foster tries to protect them all but some are hell bent on self destruction. Giorgio Moroder provides the tinny synth music and Donna Summer sings the infectious title song 'On the radio.'Looking at the film over three decades later it features a more grimy and seedier suburb, its still contained in the disco era where even the adult characters seem lost and screwed up. British actor Adam Faith has a cameo as Jodie's dad who is a tour manager. Despite the on-screen talent which contains several Oscar nominees this is a rather dull and plodding film with very little point to it. The music livens it up a little as Glam rockers Angel make an appearance.Lyne makes good use of lighting and establishes a visual look that will become popular in the 1980s.

Adrian Lyne's debut feature ("Indecent Proposal", "9 1/2 Weeks", "Jacob's Ladder" tells a story of four adolescent girls dealing with the conundrums of youth, such as sex, love, drugs, peer pressure and more importantly growing up. Featuring Jodie Foster as Jeanie, the alpha female of the pack, protectively trying to care for her tightly knit group, shielding them from harm. Despite her best intentions each girl has her own paths and at best Jeanie can offer support, but not ultimate solutions to youthful angst and self-destructive tendencies of her crew (especially with the troubled Annie played by Cherie Currie).Ploddingly plotted Lyne's movie offers a realistic portrayal of teenagers on the verge of adulthood, albeit one as intriguing as watching a reality TV show about four average teenagers talking, drinking, partying and supplying occasional mindful commentaries. Despite an endearing lead in Foster (not helped by distractingly tainted performances of other girls) the movie lazily cruises around Los Angeles through collage of scenes scarcely interconnected with each other. Not the best debut, albeit some promise (essentially regarding Lyne's taste for intriguing shots) hid between the underwritten script and chaotically directed movie (ending with disjointed jumping between a morbid car crash, a wedding and finally an errant soliloquy near a grave). The sleepy score by Giorgio Moroder doesn't help matters, ergo enhancing my incessant focus problem, finding myself drifting away from the movie and its story to think about tomorrow's dinner, unfinished work or dissecting Jodie Foster's movie career...

This is 2009 and this way underrated gem has lost nothing of the power it had 31 years ago. It connects a pretty wide variety of different characters and stories without appearing to be cluttered.Clothes and music might have changed over time, but in the end this is a story that will never lose its up-to-dateness. And especially this movie does the job pretty well. Of course it is cheesy at times, but very touching as well.Jodie Foster's performance is striking, and it shows that she is really a natural born actress who showed her true potential especially in her earlier movies.Don't miss this one.

As I reach the "backside" of 35 I find myself shaking my head more and more at the sex crazed, drug influenced teens of today. It was great to be reminded that it was just as crazy for me back in my day as it is for teens today. This film drives that point home to the core. If you are a late 70's fan you'll love the film. From KISS-posters to an Angel concert this movie rocks ! Watch for a young Laura Dern. Why they didn't have more songs from the Runaways I'll never know ? I did have a problem with Randy Quaid's character deflowering a 16 year old girl. While he was away she and her friends have a party that destroys dude's house. The cops come and everything but no mention of all the underage drinking and how these kids got their hands on this stuff.Foxes belongs right there with Over the Edge, Fast Times, Dazed & Confused, and Kids as one of the all time teen angst flicks.I say buy it and watch it with your kids and talk about it all.