MOVIES : On the Rebound With Anthony Michael Hall

Hitting Hall when he was barely beyond childhood, sudden stardom nearly proved his undoing. Catapulted into the public eye at a point when he was going through his obligatory stint of teen-age rebellion, Hall was indulged in ways that weren't particularly good for him, and he did some serious damage to his career with his fifth film, the 1986 romantic thriller "Out of Bounds." His new film, "Johnny Be Good," the first work he's done in two years, just opened. Though the film was trashed by the critics, it took in $5.2 million in its opening weekend. It marks something of a comeback for him at the ripe old age of 19.

Thus was Hall launched on the roller coaster of stardom. For all its obvious benefits, fame comes with some nasty strings attached. Stars are simultaneously given more of everything (more money, more attention, more praise), and less of everything--less privacy, less margin for error, less time for the stabilizing consistency of simple daily routine. Problems that aren't particularly unusual are enlarged to grotesque proportion under the microscope of mass media, and the public that applauds your victories is just as eager to laugh should you slip on a banana peel.

"When we were on location, all the local girls were totally enamored with Michael," recalled Adam Fields, one of the film's co-producers. "They literally followed him around; not because he was a famous movie star--he wasn't famous at that point--but because he was just so funny and charming."

When Anthony Michael Hall bopped across the gymnasium floor in "Sixteen Candles" in 1984, his star quality was immediately apparent. A bug-eyed clown with braces on his teeth and the physical grace of a dancer, Hall was only 15 at the time, but his portrayal of the quintessential geek was so fresh and original that he walked away with the picture.

For a spell, his career did go along swimmingly. Hall made three movies that made a lot of money, and he was one of Hollywood's fair-haired boys. "When we shot 'Sixteen Candles,' John Hughes encouraged me to develop what was unique in me, and he gave me all the freedom I wanted," Hall recalled during a recent interview in a Hollywood hotel. "I was just 15 then and it was like magic." The magic continued through two more films with Hughes, "The Breakfast Club," and "Weird Science," both of which garnered good reviews and plenty of cash.

Interviewed in 1985 on the eve of the opening of "Weird Science," Hall came across as a bright, upbeat kid in the process of awakening to the power of his position. At 17, he had his own suite at the Chateau Marmont, outside of which loomed a massive billboard plastered with his 20-foot image. It must've been a strange sight for him to see first thing every morning, but he seemed to be handling things reasonably well. "My life is moving pretty fast," he said at the time, "but I don't think it's out of control."

A year later, Hall was back in Los Angeles from his home in New York City to shoot "Out of Bounds," and things were beginning to veer off track. The second film for director Richard Tuggle, who wrote and directed Clint Eastwood's "Tightrope," "Out of Bounds" was Hall's first attempt at a dramatic role. With shooting about to begin, he was contracted to be a regular on "Saturday Night Live"--making him the youngest Not Ready for Prime Time Player in the show's history.

With this hefty chunk of work before him, the excesses of the preceding three years began to take their toll. Excessive partying, more power than he could handle, more new friends than he could possibly know, more money than he could spend and more praise than any 17-year-old could earn or understand combined to form a psychological undertow that began sucking him out to sea.

"It's easy to get arrogant when you think you can do things," says Hall, reflecting on his state of mind at that time. "A lot of performers get messed up because they think they don't deserve their success, but I was the opposite. I thought I was so talented that I could blow people off and the offers would keep coming."

Hall's first major blunder came when he crossed swords with Stanley Kubrick. Slated for the lead role in Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket," Hall pulled a star turn that cost him the part.

"As I understand it, Michael left the picture rather than get fired," says Tuggle, choosing his words with great care. "Kubrick kept changing the starting date, and Michael wasn't about to make allowances for anybody." (Kubrick and Hall were not able to be contacted for comment on this.)