and the dependence on the deadening effect of dope." The film has since gained cult film status. In late 1981, it was shown at "Film at Joseph Papp's Public Theater" as part of "Word of Mouth", a program devoted to films that had been overlooked because of poor marketing or distribution. This screening led to it being listed on critical top-10 lists, and it was favorably reviewed by Vincent Canby at The New York Times. The film then re-emerged in the 1980s with showings on cable, including HBO and a videocassette release in 1989. In a 2000 review for The Austin Chronicle, Mike Emery said the film is "a vibrant depiction of confused teen life." The Chicago Reader wrote, "Director Jonathan Kaplan has a fine feel for the crushing blandness of 'planned communities'—the anger that possesses his underage heroes proceeds from a physically oppressive emptiness, represented by rows of hollow town houses and vast, blasted fields. Part wish fulfillment and part social moralizing, the film never resolves its point of view, but a few of the apocalyptic images stay in the mind." A novelization of the film by Charlie Haas and Tim Hunter was published by Grove Press alongside the film's release. Included in the book are 32 pages of photographs from the shooting of the film. The book is long out of print. Director Richard Linklater has said Over the Edge influenced his 1993 film Dazed and Confused. Over the Edge also partly inspired the music videos for the songs "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana and "Evil Eye" by Fu Manchu. In 2021, entertainment website Yardbarker named Over the Edge the “signature film” of the city of Denver. References External links An interview with co-writer Tim Hunter 1970s coming-of-age drama films 1979 crime drama films 1979 films American coming-of-age drama films American crime drama films American independent films 1970s English-language films Films about drugs Films directed by Jonathan Kaplan Teen crime films Films set in Colorado Films shot in Colorado Orion Pictures films Teensploitation Films scored by Sol Kaplan Films based on newspaper and magazine articles 1979 independent films 1970s American films 1970s teen drama films American teen drama films