I thought Rick Moranis gave a perfectly irritating performance as Diane Lane's sniveling sleazy toad of a manager.
You've seen Guy Standeven in something because the man was in everything.

Oh no. I loved Moranis in that movie. Whatever happened to that guy? I was gonna make a post about if anyone knew whatever happened to Rick Moranis cus I'd watched him in a family movie about 2 kod's football teams battling it out.
And after a certain time period, dude disappeared from Hollywood movies.

𝙽𝚈𝙲 []

He did this film right before the first Ghostbusters movie.

At a sideways glance, he appears miscast at first.
But when you watch the film, it becomes apparent that he is fully committing to the role 110% and mostly succeeds. It's actually fascinating to see a role that would never be played by Rick Moranis, successfully portrayed by Rick Moranis.
The film has its head-hanging moments of shame, but Moranis emerges triumpant.
The war is not meant to be won it is meant to be
continuous
.

He did a good job playing a sleazebag which is ironic since he's best known for playing the lovable loser.

Michael pare was the one who was miscast. he may look the part; but, when he opened his mouth he killed any notion of art. he was such a limited actor I never have understood how he got the few lead roles he had. Moranis is a darn good actor, as he regularly demonstrated on SCTV.
Pare has always been the weak link in the film, for me and he has no chemistry with either Diane Lane or Deborah Van Valkenburgh. The film needed a more charismatic lead actor.
Fortunately, Ah keep mah feathers numbered for just such an emergency!

I thought Moranis was great in his role. In fact, this film has endured for so long, in large part, because
everyone
in it was perfectly cast. The writing in this film left a lot to be desired but the acting, for what the director intended the film to be, was excellent.
Remember When Movies Did Not Have To Be Politically Correct?

I think his acting was good. The only trouble is that seeing it now, 30 years after it was made, Rick Moranis is famous from playing other roles, like his nerdy characters from Ghostbusters, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, etc., and it's difficult not to find it hilarious to see him playing a [wanna-be] tough guy after having seen him in those comedic roles. I think his role provides moments of comedy, but that kind of retrospective hilarity I just mentioned was obviously unintended back then since no one could foresee he would be famous for playing such nerdy characters.

Rick Moranis gives probably the best performance of the cast, but I could argue this either way.
His character is clearly an over-the-top caricature that is perhaps supposed to be more humorous than it is.
I think he perfectly fits the character. I just think it was a miscast as far as being Ellen Aim's lover goes. That really isn't Rick's fault. It is the fault of the character and the direction that production decided to go with it.

Rick was great in this role.
I'm happiestin the saddle.

Yeah, and what about a couple like Billy Joel and Christy Brinklee who also became an item in the '80s and who eventually married and had a child together. I mean was there any more of a classic example of the whole beauty and the beast notion than those two hooking up with each other in real life? It can and does happen sometime you know.
"Life IS pain highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something".

My take is that Moranis was doing an excellent Jimmy Iovine impression. Iovine produced the film's soundtrack, so it seems possible that he inspired the mannerisms of Billy Fish. As for how a guy like Billy Fish could land a girl like Ellen, I'll just mention that Jimmy Iovine and Stevie Nicks were an item in the 80s.

Rick Moranis is incapable of giving a bad performance. He wasn't miscast.

He was very much a miscast. Besides the laughable tough act towards everything he was also supposed to be Diane Lane's boyfriend. I'm sorry but there is no way you're gonna convince me on those ltwo being a couple.

Some people seem to think that Rick Moranis was miscast in his role as Billy Fish
And those people are wrong. Moranis played the role as it was meant to be played.
He was great.
Hey there, Johnny Boy, I hope you fry!

no, he was perfect.

Rick Moranis was on the NERDIST-PODCAST just last week. They (very briefly) talked about how he got hired for SOF, and that he agreed to to it, because he was told, they wanted him for his comedic talent.
"It didn't really turn out that way", he says, and moves on.
One reason, I loved the movie back in the 80's was, because Moranis was playing against type. I still love his performance. Whether he intended it to be like that or not: I love how his charracter completely fails at coming across as a tough guy.

If anybody reading this is into movie podcasts, listen to THE PROJECTION BOOTH's episode about SOF. It's kinda heartbreaking to hear, how lonely Michael Par felt while shooting the film. ("I dind't even know how to ride a motorcycle then. And they wouldn't let me practice!")

Rick Moranis was hilarious.
I'll admit I thought this movie was a letdown when I first saw it (in the theater), but I never forgot it, and each time I watch it again, it gets better and better. Rick Moranis was annoying at first, but now his part is one of the best things about this movie!

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He was perfect in that role.

When McCoy tells the character of Moranis, "Against a big tough guy like you, Cody doesn't stand a chance!" that's so funny!
Or when Pare's character says to Moranis', "The only trouble with beating the beep out of you is it would be too easy." LMFAO

I think Moranis probably gave the films best performance.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

Of course it was intentional. Huge amounts of dialog in this movie was clearly written very much "tongue in cheek" as an affectionate spoof of older movie genres (something that
Streets of Fire
has in common with
Big Trouble in Little China
).

"On another note, when Billy told Raven before the showdown that Raven can't just come into any town and terrorize people, Billy seemed serious rather than just showing off."
I think since ultimately Ellen was going to end up with Billy, it became necessary for the writers to redeem his character by the end. I think you see that in the last couple scenes.
Before the showdown, as you mentioned, Billy tries to stick up for the people of Richmond, Ellen and Tom. He gets slugged for his trouble, which is the second time he was beaten up trying to defend Ellen. In that way, his act is somewhat endearing. He is going to stick up for himself and the things he cares about regardless of the fact that he'll probably get beat up as a result. He might be a smarmy nerd, but he is no coward.
And then, of course, his final scene when he tells Tom that obviously Ellen loves him and should be with him. He is willing to back out. That also shows that he really cares about Ellen and is able to put his pride aside.