Stars: Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke, Nicolas Cage, Dennis Harper.

Rusty James’ blind idolization of the Motorcycle Boy, his world-weary older brother, leads to heartbreaking tragedy in Rumble Fish, Francis Ford Coppola’s “art film for teenagers.”

Bold expressionistic design and lighting create an overpowering sense of romantic fatalism.

The percussive score by drummer Stewart Copeland underlines the film’s theme of subjective time: the irretrievable past, the passing present, and the unavoidable future.

And the cast of young and gifted performers bring a compelling sympathy to the existential drama of finally (or maybe never) growing up.