An odd thing to return to this movie after not seeing it for a long time. It’s a quintessential coming-of-age kind of movie, but unlike the other Chicagoland movies shot by John Hughes besides The Breakfast Club, this one’s rated R. A little more, shall we say, Risque Business? Damn. Kick me in the ding-ding, that was horrible. Appropriate though. There’s a couple different layers to this one. The worst of them being, for the love of all things holy, do not flaw your Mom’s egg. Jeebus. That’s, yeah, it’s a helluva subtext here. While involving whooores. Oh shit. Sorry. I meant ‘entertainment management specialists.’ [ahem]
Chicago Northshore, the richer side of town. A high school varsity boy having the dreams and anxieties a lot of kids in that kinda situation have, where bad test scores and not enough extra-curricular activities look bad for getting you into that Ivy League school your parents want you to go to. It’s pretty clear that Joel (Tom Cruise) is driven by indecision and anxiety and whatever else is raging through a young man’s pants at that age. But then some great advice with maybe some poor context is given, a random phone call is made, and Joel needs to step up and make some decisionings, all while getting his infarctions put on his permanent record. Because that’s a thing. Shit. It really kind of wasn’t back in 1983, but it really is now. Stupid Facebooks and Twitter. Why would somebody want to know I enjoyed a pizza from Little Sleazer’s back in 2006? I’m still ashamed of that one. The internet doesn’t forget.
This is actually a pretty solid movie, particularly when considering the now-adult themes of a graduating high schooler. While it’s playful with the naivete of Joel at first (damn, those frozen dinners are solid!), it gets into some serious business pretty quick. And Consequences. And Responsibilities. Odd that writer/director Paul Brickman wasn’t involved in much else of note after this? The Tangerine Dream soundtrack is conducive to the overall feel, plus a few radio hits of the day thrown in. The Seger? Yeah, we got it. But the Talking Heads and probably the only cool tune by solo artist Phil Collins, good thing they used it again with Miami Vice! Well done, you singing drummer! Tom Cruise had a few smaller roles before but this definitely put him on the map as main star. A few other recognizable faces, but it’s a helluva way to explore the notions of getting laid, anxiety and, uhm, capitalism? Some of the oldest truisms known to mankind, so, timeless story here, really. With trains!
