Peggy Sue Got Married

Netflix has been throwing this film at me since I joined more than five years ago. I finally gave in and watched it. I decided it was a morality tale on the ills of wearing white suits.

Nicholas Cage is worse in this film than he was in Moonstruck (though clearly, he didn't ruin either film, to my surprise (and delight, in the case of Moonstruck)). I don't understand his voice. Did he think sounding like a cartoon all the time was a good idea? Frankly, I wouldn't hire him as a voice actor either, but I've really loved his more recent stuff, when he plays regular guys (who turn into flaming skeletons, and drink jelly-beans from a martini glass).

Ultimately, the story of Peggy Sue, who falls very ill at a twenty-year reunion and wakes up to find herself in high school in 1960, is sweet and very, very odd. My brain didn't stretch well over the first few scenes. I couldn't figure out what year it was supposed to be, and why the clothes were weird, or how old anyone was supposed to be. I eventually figured it out, though. Kathleen Turner brilliantly performs a grown woman in the life of a teenager. Things would certainly have been different.

If you're looking for a content advisory, Peggy Sue makes several morally questionable decisions, especially about sex, alcohol, and cigarettes. She makes some great social decisions, though.

I found the scene where Michael asks her to tend chickens with Beth in the hills outside of Provo slightly offensive (as it was clearly written out of ignorance), but still funny.

3/5 for enjoyment, 5/10 for recommendation. Toss a coin - you won't miss anything, or probably regret watching it either.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lost in Austen

Image
My co-worker warned me about Lost in Austen . She said it was cheesy, and from the few clips forced on me by a very fanatically-inclined little sister, I would have completely agreed. In context, though, I think it all sort of fit, although it's not exactly Emmy material. I really liked what they did to this story, but my reasoning is a bit complex. I have read Pride and Prejudice perhaps seven times. The only books I have read more often are Heart of Darkness (8) and The Book of Mormon (?). That doesn't mean that I like the work, just that my professors did. I admit, I liked the book very well the first three times. The romance was classic and endearing, and the language was fluid and fun. Then came Austenmania, and I jumped ship. Jane Austen wrote some enjoyable stories, but I wouldn't rank her any higher than Georgette Heyer (this coming from the same person who ranks Shakespeare with Steven Spielberg). And at this point, having seen every version of P&P ever fil...
Read more

Salt

Image
This film had all the elements of a classic cold-war spy thriller in much the same way State of Play reprised journalism drama. Both Liev Schreiber and Angelina Jolie played very well, especially off each-other, and although this film must essentially showcase stunts and physical effects, the plot and ending work quite well too, without becoming too belabored or falling into too many cliche traps. Salt is ultimately exciting and fun, but don't try to wrangle a classic out of it.
Read more

The Fountain

Image
This film should only be watched once. As a second-time viewer, I knew approximately how it ended, and how the three epic stories tied together, but it wasn't pleasant to watch. It wasn't pleasant the first time, but at least the images were striking, and felt like some kind of voyage of discovery. Watching this again was a bit like watching The Sixth Sense for the fourth time. The impact had disappeared. For most of the film, the camera moved toward those truly frustrating close-up, poser shots that so irritated me about Master and Commander . I understand that these are pretty people, and they earn the money, and so they get close-ups, but when it doesn't enhance the plot or the artistic composition as a whole - when it doesn't create unity, then it has no place. Actors should understand that, and have a serious heart-to-heart with their directors about it. I usually enjoy watching Rachel Weisz, but in this film she seemed flat, passive, and enervated. To be fa...
Read more