Greasers and Socs

Last Saturday, I went to Metrowalk to look for DVDs. I haven’t updated my collection in a long time, so I was excited to see the new arrivals. Unfortunately, I was met by the same old titles and I thought I was going to be forced to settle.

Low and behold, as I shifted to the second DVD stand, I found one of my old favorites: The Outsiders. For those who are not familiar with the movie, it was released in 1982. The film was directed by Francis Ford Coppola – Yes, the guy who bought us The Godfather.

The Outsiders is based on a novel by S.E. Hinton, which was first published in 1967. Hinton began writing the novel when she was 14 years old. The story highlights the tension between two groups: the greasers and the socials or “socs.”

The Socs are a click of rich teenagers. They have no reservations about “jumping” greasers whom they encounter in the streets. They listen to the Beatles, wear madras shirts and drive Mustangs.

On the other hand, the greasers live care-free lives. Their hard-knock backgrounds make them rough and tough. They listen to Elvis Presley, wear James Dean-type attire and are tagged by society as juvenile delinquents.

The movie is told from the greaser’s perspective. Our main character – Pony Boy Curtis – is a greaser who gets mixed up in all sorts of trouble. The movie tag line was, “They grew up on the outside of society. They weren't looking for a fight. They were looking to belong.”

The movie has a list of Hollywood notables, including Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio and Tom Cruise.

If you haven’t watched it, you should. It’s a good film, as well as a good read.