8/10
Lose the Curl (but not this fine guilty pleasure of a flick!)
4 June 1999
Okay, so this one never did (and never will) win any awards. But pound for pound, John Hughes was never better and never will be again, most likely. Yes, I know, I know. "Ferris B." is a more coherent, cohesive film. And "Breakfast Club" has all the lines. And "Pretty in Pink" has all the pathos, plus Ducky. But this one's got Jim Dodge (F. Whaley). Easily one of my favorite film creations ever. You can't not love this guy. Even in the usually dumb montages that plagues MTV-ish films of this nature, he's charming (wearing a veil and cow-boxers and rollerskating, for instance). And then there's Jennifer "Eternally Easy on the Eyes" Connelly who, yes, has her usual charms (both of them), but who manages to bring a degree of wit, grace and sincerity to the "girl next door anyone would die to get with" role that's rarely been matched since. This film's full of terrific lines and memorable moments. Jim's "Jimget" fantasy. John Candy's entire cameo. "Could I get this uniform washed, it...smells a little like Darnell." "You mean you've never heard of sashimi?" "The subsonic tummy bump..." The list is endless. The bad part: yes, the last 15 or so minutes are plagued by a lack of money and a lack of laughs (money as in it looks like they ran out and decided to end the film...now). But the two leads are terrific together and the idea of them hashing out their high school trials and tribs in this particular setting is quite effective, really. Sweet, simple, goofy and funny, this one deserves another look, despite the "run out of steam in the last stretch of the race" factor.
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