1985 No. 1 Pop Rock Anthem Became the Breakout Hit of an Iconic Brat Pack Movie Soundtrack
From "Ghostbusters" to "Footloose" to so many others, movie theme songs were some of the biggest hits of the '80s...and a film didn't even need to be a major blockbuster for a tune from the soundtrack to hit the top of the charts.
In August of 1985, John Parr's "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)" from the coming-of-age Brat Pack drama St. Elmo's Fire went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for two weeks. It was the breakout hit from the movie's soundtrack, though it could be said that the track has sort of a different vibe than the film, which starred Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Andie MacDowell, among others.
"It has the feel of ‘Chariots of Fire,'" Parr said in a 1985 interview with the Los Angeles Times. "It also has the feel of ‘Rocky.' I can see Rocky climbing the steps with that playing in the background."
Of course, St. Elmo's Fire wasn't about athletes, it was about a group of friends struggling to find their way in the world, but Parr found parallels in the film's themes and the story of disabled athlete Rick Hanson, who went around the world in a racing wheelchair.
As Parr explained, director Joel Schumacher "wanted a song about determination."
"He wanted a song about kids who are growing up and have to make decisions about what to do with their lives. That's what the movie is about," he said.
According to Parr, "‘St. Elmo's Fire' was written very fast, between 2 and 4 on Friday afternoon. We wrote it together, with David [Foster, producer] sitting at the piano."
And even though Schumacher didn't want "St. Elmo's Fire" in the lyrics, Parr put the words in anyway.
"They didn't like the idea, but I thought it fit in the song," he said. "In the movie, St. Elmo's is a bar. But to me St. Elmo's Fire is a magical thing glowing in the sky that holds destiny to someone. It's mystical and sacred. It's where paradise lies, like the end of the rainbow."
Reviews for the 'St. Elmo's Fire' movie were mixed
Though St. Elmo's Fire was a success at the box office (and on the charts), critics were less than impressed with the actual movie, for the most part.
David Denby of New York likened the film to "early adolescent gossip" and a "TV sitcom without jokes," while Janet Maslin of the New York Times noted that St. Elmo's Fire was "edited so skittishly that the actors are barely able to complete their sentences, let alone their thoughts," adding, "That's probably just as well."
''St. Elmo's Fire is most appealing when it simply gives the actors a chance to flirt with the camera, and with one another," Maslin continued. "When it attempts to take seriously the problems of characters who are spoiled, affluent and unbearably smug, it becomes considerably less attractive."
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This story was originally published May 5, 2026 at 2:15 PM.