Tanya’s Score: Good-and-a-half*
Rated: PG-13
Starring: Princess Ginger of the 80s; Alan Harper; Robert California
Plot: A teenager (Molly Ringwald) from the wrong side of the tracks falls for a rich kid (Andrew McCarthy) and much to their respective friends’ chagrin – they plan on going to the prom together.
Tanya’s Verdict: I was a bit worried about re-watching this one – you just never know how these kinds of gems have aged. As well, there is serious risk in re-watching your teen favourites with your own snide and hard-to-please teenagers. But my worry was all for naught.
Yes – there are a few things that have not aged all that well – namely James Spaders’ outfits and the high-tech computer scene in the school library. But other than that – this movie does not disappoint. Its core issues remain timeless: acceptance and rejection in a high school setting; true friendship and real love being able to transcend the pitfalls of class and social standing.
But my most astounding discovery as an adult re-watching this film so many years after the fact – the character of Duckie. His raw emotion is so well-done that I believe had this movie been released within the past five years, Jon Cryer would be up for an Oscar for his heartfelt portrayal. He is the true hero of this film – all these years and I had mistakenly believed I was Team Blane – only to discover I have switched loyalties.
This is not just another teen movie – it is a movie about teenagers that isn’t dismissive or disdainful of honest-to-goodness problems faced by some (mainly North American) teens – even in this day and age.
*Four score descriptions: Sh**; Okay; Good; Great