National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)

I initially planned on having this review up before Christmas but it was delayed a bit by computer problems, family get togethers, and my full time job. In case you were wondering why I'm reviewing a Christmas movie in early January, well...those are the reasons. I hope you enjoy.

It has been a long standing Christmas tradition in my family to sit down and watch the great Christmas movies: It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol (1938 version), White Christmas, A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34^th Street (the original, obviously), and last, but certainly not least, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.  Of course, out of the movies I just listed Christmas Vacation is obviously the odd man out.  First, it is the third entry in the popular Vacation series, while the other movies listed are stand alone films. White Christmas is a semi-remake of Holiday Inn, but the story is significantly different than the earlier movie.  Second, it easily the crudest out of three (it is loaded with gross out and sexual humor). It maybe the only Christmas the features a woman (albeit imaginary) doing a slow striptease while “Mele Kalikimaka” is playing on the soundtrack.  It is also a bit cartoonish at times; especially when the Griswold family is attacked by a manic squirrel.  It is one of the most unusual Christmas movies ever made, yet it isn’t as far removed from your more “traditional” Christmas movie as it first seems. 

If you grew up in the 1980s, then there is a good chance that you were familiar with the Griswold family. They were featured in three movies (Vegas Vacation was released in 1997) with varying degrees of success; European Vacation is often regarded as the worst out of three. Though, I have a soft spot for it as it was the movie that introduced me to the Griswolds.  In each movie, the well meaning but bumbling patriarch Clark Griswold would obsess over planning the perfect vacation for his family and then watch helplessly as it turned disastrous.  Yet, despite the damage that Clark wreaked upon the world, Griswold family always survived the ordeal.  

It is impossible to imagine anyone else in the role of Clark Griswold other than Chevy Chase. It was a part that he was born to play (it’s no wonder that he kept returning to the role).  On his brief stint on Saturday Night Live, Chase was known for his physical comedy (and for being extremely difficult to work with it) and it serves him well in the Vacation series.  However, what makes Clark Griswold such an endearing character is the sincerity that Chase brings to the role. Sure, he is great when it comes to doing comedic pratfalls, but Chase does fairly well when the script veers more to the sentimental.  There is a nice moment in Christmas Vacation when Clark reassures Ruby Sue, the daughter of Eddie and Catherine (Ellen’s cousins), that she will be getting presents for Christmas this year.  He genuinely wants to give this little girl, and her brother, a memorable Christmas and even buys her gifts.  

Clark is a genuinely interesting character in his own right; one moment can be the most compassionate guy on the planet and then in the next he can be extremely rude and vulgar.  When his next door neighbor Todd asks where Clark is going to put his oversized Christmas tree.  Clark responds, “Bend over and I’ll show you.”  While Clark is a genuine family man that doesn’t stop him from flirting with the attractive sales girl, Mary, at the lingerie shop.  In fact, the whole exchange with Mary is so uncomfortable to watch because Clark acts like a total jackass.  He constantly stumbles over his words and makes all sorts of Freudian slips.  At one point he says, “There is a nipple in the air…” and then has to correct himself.  There is also a child like quality to Clark; he gleefully coats his sled with a kitchen lubricant (that his company has been working) to make the surface more slippy and then screams in terror as it flies down the hillside at a supersonic speed.  He is a man of many contradictions, but there’s no denying that he has a big heart. 

Because Chevy Chase dominates the movie with his comedic presence it is easy to overlook Beverly D’Angelo’s performance as Ellen Griswold – Clark’s devoted wife.  Of course, I’m stating the obvious when I say that Chevy Chase and Beverly D’ Angelo have remarkable onscreen chemistry; they are easily one of the most believable onscreen couples in movie history.  Therefore, it’s not surprising that there was a movie series centered on them.  Even though Clark is bumbling buffoon at times, it easy to understand why Ellen is attracted to him. His good natured persona and devotion to his family is an endearing quality.  It also speaks volumes about D’Angelo that she can hold her own against Chevy Chase.  Sure, Chase is given some of the more memorable lines, but D’Angelo is able to breathe life in what could have easily been an underwritten character.  In fact, there are some nice subtle bits of comedy provided by D’Angelo that you probably won’t catch in the first viewing; Ellen trying to hold back her laughter when her mother complains about her hemorrhoids; when the family is eating the Christmas dinner, Ellen lifts a fork of dried up turkey to her mouth, quickly flicks it off her the fork, and mimes like she is chewing on the turkey; when the police tell the family to freeze, Ellen places her hand directly on Clark’s crotch and keeps it there for most of the scene.   
She is also has one of the film’s funniest lines - when Audrey complains about having to share a bed with her brother (to accommodate the grandparents), Ellen replies, “Don’t be so dramatic.  I’m sleeping with your father.” 

If you are familiar with the Vacation series, then you know the Griswold children, Audrey and Rusty, are played by different actors in each individual movie.  For my money Vacation (the first movie in the series) has the best Audrey and Rusty (played by Dana Barron and Anthony Michael Hall). They are far more naturalistic than their successors and often behave like siblings.  There’s a scene in Vacation where Audrey and Rusty, while sitting in the backseat of the car, keep trying to wind each other up – there are simultaneous amused and disgusted by what the other sibling is doing.  It’s a very believable moment anyone who has been trapped in the back of the car with their sibling for a long period of time.  European Vacation easily has the worst Audrey and Rusty in the series; Dana Hill and Jason Lively are more annoying than they are funny.  Vegas Vacation has probably the second best Audrey and Rusty in the series.  Marisol Nichols and Ethan Embry are decent actors, and are given a few funny moments to shine. In Christmas Vacation Audrey and Rusty are played by Juliette Lewis and Johnny Galecki.  Both actors went on to have pretty significant careers and decent in the roles. The problem is that Audrey and Rusty are fairly insignificant to the actual plot.  Christmas Vacation has the biggest cast out of all the Vacation movies, which means Audrey and Rusty are pretty much pushed to sideline to make for the more eccentric characters.    

This leads me to my least favorite aspect of the Vacation series….

RANDY QUAID AS UNCLE EDDIE! I am not at all a fan of Uncle Eddie, as I find Randy Quaid’s performance to be extremely one note.  In the first movie, Uncle Eddie’s screen time is limited to a couple of minutes and, hence, he is much more tolerable.  Unfortunately, in Christmas Vacation his role is significantly increased and within ten minutes he already wears out his welcome (though, it does make Clark’s frustration even more relatable).  It’s not only Quaid’s performance that annoys me, it’s the fact that once Eddie arrives on the scene, the movie begins to resort to gross out humor; the most obvious example is when Eddie is draining the raw sewage from his RV into a storm drain. The only part I find Eddie amusing is when he’s wearing a black dickey underneath his white sweater.  

Thankfully, once Aunt Bethany and Uncle Lewis arrive on the scene, Uncle Eddy gets sideline for a little bit. Aunt Bethany is Clark’s old, senile aunt and Lewis is his crotchety old Uncle.  Granted, Mae Questel (as Aunt Bethany) and William Hickey (as Uncle Lewis) also give fairly one note performances but the filmmakers know when to use them; it isn’t until the start of the third act that they make their first appearance (though Uncle Lewis is briefly scene in Clark’s home movies).   Whether it’s Bethany reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at the dinner table (after Clark asks her to say grace), or Uncle Lewis accidentally burning down Clark’s Christmas tree, they are genuinely hilarious addition to the Griswold family.   I first saw Christmas Vacation in theatres when I was ten years old (winter of 1989) and I vividly recall my cousin Tom turning towards me every few minutes and trying to predict what would happen next.  He was wrong most of the time, but accurate predicted that Uncle Lewis would burn down the tree. What the moment did happen, we busted out laughing and I complimented him on his clairvoyance.  

Nicholas Guest and Julia Louis – Dreyfus also offer a couple laughs as Clark’s yuppie next door neighbors, Todd and Margo.  It’s interesting how these two characters work on two different levels;  on one hand it is extremely fun to see these two pretentious snobs get knocked down a few pegs (especially when Clark silences the condescending Todd with crude, sexual remark), while on the other hand it’s easy to sympathize with utter contempt they have towards Clark.  The biggest crime they commit in the movie is that they’re a bit snobbish; otherwise they are essentially minding their own business.  They want to enjoy a nice intimate dinner together; instead they become collateral damage in Clark’s obsession to have the perfect Christmas.  By the movie’s end their house has sustained significant damage, Margo is in tatters (after having being attacked by a demented squirrel and Eddie’s dog), and their marriage is in ruins (the extremely frustrated Margo punches the passive Todd square in the jaw). This is very much in the tradition of the Slobs vs. Snobs comedies that began with Animal House.  The snobs always dealt a pretty harsh punishment, even though the slobs (the underdogs) are really no better and are, in many ways, worse.  I recently watched Animal House and it occurred to me that Dean Wormer is one hundred percent correct about Delta House.  They are far more interested in partying than in academics and deserve to be expelled from the campus.  The only reason we despise Dean Wormer is because he is a crusty, middle aged man. Imagine how different the movie would be if he were more compassionate; we would despise the Deltas for taking advantage of kind man. Wormer is given a fairly harsh judgment that he doesn’t deserve.   The same applies to Todd and Margo; they don’t deserve the punishment that is meted out to them even if they are “snobs.”  

There are two themes that Christmas Vacation shares with most Christmas movies: family and redemption.  The Griswold’s are a tad bit dysfunctional at times and often get on each nerve, but are a strong enough unit that they can overcome what ever disaster is thrown their way.  Clark may go overboard at times, but Ellen, and his children, knows it is done with the best intentions. Even though the Christmas starts off disastrous, it ends on a positive note – everyone is together and enjoying themselves.  Clark has achieved his goal of creating a memorable Christmas.  Christmas Vacation knows when to sprinkle in the sentiment - not surprising, given that it was written by John Hughes.  After the night has been a complete disaster (ending when Uncle Eddie's dogs chasing a demented squirrel through the house) Clark lashes out at the family for wanting to leave and then storms into another room to brood for a little bit. He is then confronted by his father, who gives Clark a heart to heart chat; rather than berating his son for ruining Christmas, he encourages Clark to make things right by reading "The Night Before Christmas" to the family. It is an nice moment that is played to perfect by Chevy Chase and John Randolph, who has an extremely warm vibe about him.

The theme redemption comes in the form of Clark's miserly boss, Mr. Shirley. Clark has spent most of the movie waiting for his Christmas bonus to arrive in the mail;  he wants to put a swimming pool in the front yard and had to put on down payment on it even though there wasn't enough in his checking account to cover the amount.  His Christmas bonus will be able to cover the amount. After the Christmas dinner has been a complete disaster, Clark's luck seems to change for the better when a carrier arrives with his long awaited Christmas bonus. Clark shares his plans with the rest of the family and then opens the enveloped.....only to find that there is no Christmas bonus, instead he has been enrolled in "The Jelly of the Month Club." Clark naturally blows his caskets and goes on a profanity laden rant - Clark basically says that he could have his boss standing in front of him right, so he could give Mr. Shirley a piece of his mind.  Cousin Eddie takes this literally and abducts Mr. Shirley from his mansion and brings him back to Clark's house.  Clark tries to apologize, but Mr. Shirley fires him any and wants to call the police. However, Clark makes Mr. Shirley see the error of ways when he points out this wouldn't have happened Mr. Shirley not cut the Christmas bonuses. It's fine that Mr. Shirley doesn't want to give out bonuses, but he could have at least given his employee's a heads up and instead of blind siding them with an enrollment in a "Jelly of the Month Club." Mr. Shirley, after witnessing the consequences of his actions first hand, has a change of heart and reinstates the Christmas bonus.   

It can be argued that this scene is pretty contrived (and unrealistic) but it works extremely well in this narrative. It also gets a huge boast from Brian Doyle Murray who is able to convey so much emotions with just a simple glance.  The real point of this scene, however, is to show unity in the Griswold family - this is the first time in the entire movie that everyone in complete solidarity with Clark, including his abrasive father-in-law, Art. In fact, the movie specifically cuts to a shot of Art standing up to show his support for his son-in-law. We find similar endings in other Christmas classics:  the community rallying around George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life; General Waverly's old Division showing up at the holiday inn to show their support, in White Christmas; and most famously, Tiny Tim wishing, "God Bless us, everyone" at the end of A Christmas Carol.  I'm sure there are many people out there they find this stuff "corny." I could just picture younger audiences rolling their eyes at Mr. Shirley's "little people" speech. That's they're opinion and they're entitle, but as for me -  I'll take a fun "corny: movie over a "bad ass" one any day of the week. 

Credits

Cast:  Chevy Chase (Clark Griswold), Beverly D’Angelo (Ellen Griswold), Juliette Lewis (Audrey Griswold), Johnny Galecki (Rusty Griswold), John Randolph (Clark, Sr.), Dianne Ladd (Nora), E.G. Marshall (Art), Doris Roberts (Francis), Randy Quaid (Cousin Eddie), Miriam Flynn (Cousin Catherine), Ellen Hamilton Latzen (Ruby Sue), Cody Burger (Rocky), William Hickey (Lewis), Mae Questel (Bethany), Brian Doyle Murray (Frank Shirley), Julia Louis – Dreyfus (Margo), Nicholas Guest (Todd), Sam McMurray (Bill), Nicolette Scorsese (Mary), Natajlia Nogulich (Mrs. Shirley).

Director:  Jeremiah S. Chechik
Writer: John Hughes
Running Time: 97 min.

Valley Girl (1983)

I’ve been meaning to write a review about Valley Girl for sometime now, but it’s always eluded me as to how to approach this movie.  On the surface it is a silly teen comedy, but there are a lot of interesting things going on.  It’s a movie that is not only about cultural differences but generational ones as well.  Valley Girl was originally conceived as being a cheap exploitation movie designed to make quick buck at the box office; the fact that it turned out to be a genuinely good movie was just icing on the cake.  In many ways, Valley Girl is a pre-cursor to the John Hughes comedies of the 80s; the romance between the two leads (Julie and Randy) is threatened by Julie’s social status – her best friends don’t approve of Randy and want her to get back together with Tommy, the high school hunk.  Julie is from the Valley (the suburbs), Randy is from the city (Hollywood) and her friends view him as a threat; he is a total outsider and doesn’t belong in their clique. (At my high school, dating a person from another high school was practically an act of treason).  Julie and her friends spend their free time at the mall and going to cliquey parties, while Randy’s idea of idea of a good time is cruising the streets and hanging out at a night club.  Julie is a total preppy, Randy is a punk rocker.  The movie is a modern day Romeo and Juliet (there’s even an embarrassing, none too subtle, shot of the two them exiting a theatre showing Romeo and Juliet. Just in case you missed the analogy). 

 I usually get annoyed when teen comedies contrive away to keep the lovers apart, but in Valley Girl, it feels natural to the story and is done in a believable way.  Julie loves spending time with Randy and wants to stay with him, but she also doesn’t want to alienate her best friends, so she throws away a shot a true love just so she can fit in with the crowd. 

Valley Girl is not without its share of flaws. Though, they are more awkward than they are fatal.  The most obvious is the rather superfluous subplot involving Suzi’s stepmother, Beth, and Suzi’s potential boyfriend, Skip.  Beth sees Skips at the party and views him as a sexual conquest, despite him being significantly younger.  Beth has essentially turned into a Mrs. Robinson-type character; something she probably would not have foreseen in her youth (especially considering Mrs. Robinson was a symbol of the older, sexually repressed generation).  Basically, Skip is torn between pursing a relationship with Suzi or, having a one night stand with her, extremely attractive, stepmother.  This subplot does fit into the generational gap theme that is prevalent throughout the movie; Beth would have been a teenager during the sexual revolution and is, not surprisingly, far more sexually aggressive than the horny Skip.  It also serves as a homage to The Graduate; a movie that was popular among the baby boomers.  It was the movie that “defined the generation.”  I have two problems with this subplot. The first problem is a personal one – I’m not a big fan of The Graduate.  Hence, the scenes between Beth and Skip come off as fairly contrived and awkward to me.  I GET IT! You want to pay homage to an iconic movie, but these scenes could easily have been trimmed from the movie. The second problem I have is that the stakes are pretty low – I really don’t care which of the two women Skip chooses, largely because he is such a dim character.  It also doesn’t help that out of Julie’s three friends, Suzi is probably the least interesting.  

 

I think the movie would have benefitted by having more scenes of Julie’s friends pressuring her into breaking up with Randy.  We get a short scene of the girls having a sleepover and each of Julie’s friends make a few pointed jabs at Randy, but that’s about it.  The next thing you know Julie is contemplating whether or not she should break up with Randy. There could have been an additional scene of her classmates at school giving her a few dirty looks or, maybe have a scene where her friends give her the silent treatment.  I also would have liked a scene at the end where Julie finally tells off her friends, instead of having Randy doing all the heavy lifting.  It is also odd that the subplot between Tommy and Loryn (Julie’s best friend) kind of fizzles out.  Tommy seduces Loryn at the party and, after she asks if they are a couple, he puts the guilt trip on her by saying how terrible she is for fooling around with her best friend’s ex-boyfriend. He essentially blackmails her into silence.  When Julie contemplates getting back together with Tommy, Loryn briefly expresses her doubts but then goes along with it. Then she is back to her perky self for the rest of the movie.  It is an odd p set up!  The seduction scene basically exists to show the audience what a terrible guy Tommy is (and show some topless female nudity), but it never comes back to bite Tommy in the ass.  These flaws would have destroyed a lesser movie but  Valley Girl is such a likable movie that easily overcomes them. 

What really sells Valley Girl is the amazing onscreen chemistry between its two leads, Nicolas Cage and Deborah Foreman.  Martha Coolidge states in her commentary that Cage and Foreman became romantically involved during production, so that explains why their onscreen romance is so believable.  It also helps that Coolidge knows how to stage a love scene. For instance, in their early scenes together Julie and Randy almost always maintain eye contact.  They are absolutely entranced by each other’s presence; the world around them disappears.  Also, Coolidge is able to convey a sense of intimacy by shooting their dialogue scenes in close up (with the actors’ eye lines looking in the right direction). These are very simple tricks but they are incredibly effective.  

Nicolas Cage is has become famous for his often over the top performances (which, depending on the movie can either be entertaining or embarrassing) but I really do like him in this movie.  His eccentricities suit the character of Randy well; I especially like the little dance he does after saying good night to Julie.  The interesting thing about Cage is that he isn’t your typical Hollywood leading man (especially in this movie) he has a rather long face, is a bit lanky, and (in this movie) has slightly crooked teeth, but his screen presence is undeniable.   The appeal of Nicolas Cage is his unpredictability. You never know what you are going to get with him.  Whether you like him or not he is truly one of a kind. 

Randy is also truly one of a kind, because like Cage, he just goes for broke.  He is absolutely determined to win Julie over, even if it means another potential ass kicking at the hands of Tommy. The movie does a nice job of setting up his character when, after he has been kicked out of a party, Randy sneaks into the house through the second story bathroom window and patiently waits in the shower for Julie to make an appearance.  What if Julie didn’t walk into the bathroom, then what would have Randy done?  After Julie finally makes her long overdue appearance, Randy reveals himself to her and invites her for a night out on the town.  She is charmed by his determination and accepts (on the provision that she can bring her friend, Stacey, with her).  This brief moment tells us a lot about these two characters: Randy will do anything to be Julie and won’t allow anyone to stand in his way. Julie is a bit more conservative in her worldview; the prospect of “shaking things up” does excite her but she doesn’t want to stray too far from her comfort zone.  The fact that going into “the city” is the most rebellious act she has ever committed indicates she has lived a sheltered life (despite having radicals as parents).  

Deborah Foreman never crossed over into mainstream success (her filmography consists of largely low budget movies), and retired from acting at a fairly young age, but she is absolutely radiant in the role of Julie.  She just seems to glow whenever she is onscreen (I attribute this largely to her wonderful smile). Julie is an interesting character: She has become so good at playing the role of this ditzy, materialistic teenager that it has become a comfort zone. It is something she can always fall back on and, most refreshing of all, it requires little effort on her part.   In the first scene, she breaks up with Tommy with relative ease like he is the equivalent to an old pair of shoes.  In her worldview, a boyfriend is merely an accessory.  Tommy is something she can brag to her friends about and makes her feel good when she goes out; but like accessories he eventually becomes tiresome.  Julie complains that their relationship is no longer fun, but rather than work through the problem she would rather get a new boyfriend.  The movie lets Julie off the hook by making Tommy a first rate douche bag, but her attitude in the opening scene is a bit appalling; she bumps into Tommy at mall and publicly breaks up with him without a tiny bit of remorse. She is already making plans to move onto the next high school hunk, Brad.  Her friends are a bit puzzled by her decision (as Tommy is such a hunk) but they accept it and even enable Julie’s behavior…..UNTIL SHE STARTS DATING RANDY!  It is a credit to Foreman that, despite all I mentioned, Julie is a rather endearing character.  

 

At first, Julie’s main reason for dating Randy is simply that he is the complete opposite of Tommy.  Randy is completely different from any guy she has ever met.  Yet, as the night goes on it becomes obvious that they have formed a pretty tight bond.  The only obstacle that really stands in Julie’s way is her disapproving friends, who peer pressure her into breaking up with Randy.  When they are having a sleepover, her friends use this opportunity to take all sorts of pot shots at Randy.  They also guilt trip Julie over the fact that she has been spending less time with them.   Julie eventually gives into the pressure and calls it off with Randy, and gets back together with Tommy.  It is a terrible decision on her part, but an understandable one (she is a teenager, after all).  What I really love about Deborah Foreman’s performance is her ability to listen. This may seem like an odd compliment but too often actors are so focused on memorizing their cues that they fail to react to the person that is speaking.  This is a staple of many bad movies; the lead actor will be saying his lines and the people around him look like they’re about to fall asleep.  Or, it looks like they are trying to remember whether or not they closed the garage door.  With Deborah Foreman, it is her reactions, more so than the dialogue, which says everything you need to know.  On their first date at the club, they speak a lot of gibberish (Randy makes fun of the music Julie likes and other trivial stuff) but they just can’t take their eyes off each other.  There’s also a great attention to detail in this scene: the two of them have to shout over the loud music just to be heard.  If you have ever been to a night club, you can easily relate to this moment.  

If Julie is attracted to Randy because he is different, then the reason Randy is attracted to Julie is that she represents normalcy to him.  Randy may openly scoff at Julie for being part of the status quo, but there is also a sense that he secretly envies her.  Julie comes from a fairly tight knit family; her parents maybe unusual but they also genuinely care about her.  On the other hand, Randy’s parents are nonexistent.  The movie never shows Randy’s parents but given that he spends most of nights at a club (he’s on a first name basis with the bouncer) it can be deduced that he comes from a broken home. His parents are either divorced, or (even worse) fairly indifferent towards him.  The fact that he always picks Julie up at her home, and never invites her over to his house, speaks volumes on his feelings towards his parents.  It is a neat touch that, the day after their memorable first date, Randy shows up the health food store owned by Julie’s parents and is extremely cordial to her father.  This is a far cry from most movie rebels who avoid their girlfriend’s parents like the plague.  Julie is a bit embarrassed by her parents’ business but Randy is pretty okay with it. It also helps that Julie’s father, who was a rebel in his youth, is fairly accepting of Randy.  If he has any reservations about his daughter dating a punk rocker, it certainly doesn’t show.  

The irony is that while Julie’s friends find Randy to be “too edgy” for their taste, he is more than willing to compromise his beliefs just so he can be with Julie.  There is a rather nice moment (in the middle of montage) where we see Julie and Randy hanging out in the food court of a mall. It is pretty apparent, just by Randy’s body language, that he is absolutely embarrassed to be there –he  even puts sunglasses on to hide his face.  Julie teases him for a little bit and, finally, he begins to lighten up. Maybe the mall isn’t so bad, after all? Randy is a punk rocker and against the status quo, there’s no way he would ever be caught dead in a mall……..but Julie coaxes him into it.  

The other theme of Valley Girl is the generational gap between Julie and her parents.  Julie’s parents were part of the 1960s counterculture and have still maintained their radical edge; despite living in the suburbs.  They have opened up a health food store and live a fairly easy going existence.   Julie is representative of the very values they rejected: she is materialistic, a bit superficial, and ruled by the majority.  Julie’s way of rebelling against her parents is by not rebelling.  They are also baffled by having to raise a teenage daughter; they give her free reign to do what she wants but her father, Steven, has a near heart attack after she has spent all night out with Randy. When she comes home early in the morning, her father’s first inclination is to yell at her (like any normal father would).  However, he doesn’t want to come off as too authoritarian (Julie is supposed to grow into her own person, after all) and midway through his speech goes from being an angry father to an understanding father.  Julie is confused by all this and asks, “Why can’t you just punish me like Stacy’s parents?”  Her mother replies, “Bad karma, dear!” 

When Julies goes to her junior prom, it is Steven who is a complete nervous wreck and holding up the show. His nerves are so shot that he sneaks into the bathroom and puffs on a joint just to calm himself.  When he is taking Julie and Tommy’s photo, he leaves the cap on the lens.  In odd way, the Richman’s are living vicariously through their daughter; neither of them went to their prom. They were too busy taking part in demonstrations and didn’t really have time of the stuff. The nice thing about Julie’s parents is that, even though they are different wavelength than their daughter, they are completely supportive of her.  A lesser script would have them berating their daughter for going to the mall (supporting the system) or hoping to politicize their daughter. Instead they just want her to be a normal teenager – even if they are baffled by her life choices. 

This leads me to my favorite performance in the movie – Frederic Forrest as Steve Richman, Julie’s hippie father.  Forrest is one of the most underrated actors of all time. He has appeared in some truly great movies (The Conversation, Apocalypse Now) and has a memorable as white supremacist in Falling Down, but Steve Richman is easily one of his best performances.  Forrest manages to breathe a lot of humanity into what could have easily been a one dimensional character.  In fact, when we first meet Mr. Richman, we mistakenly believe that he is just your stereotypical spaced out hippie; he wears sandals to work, reminisces about the 1960s, and Julie is slightly embarrassed to be seen in public with him. However, he is also a pretty good father.  The scene between Julie and her father is one of the highlights of Valley Girl, for multiple reasons.  The dynamic between Frederic Forrest and Deborah Foreman is terrific; they make for a believable onscreen father and daughter.  While Julie is slightly embarrassed by her parents, it is also clear that she has genuine affection for them. I find it interesting that Julie has more tight knit relationship with her father than she does with her mother.  This is probably because her mother is too laid back (Colleen Camp is funny, but her character is a bit cartoonish at times); when Julie is late getting home, her mother is doing exercises while Steven smokes a cigarette and anxiously paces back and forth.  We get a sense of that father/daughter bond when Steven shows Julie a picture of himself from his younger, long haired days and she, naturally, finds the photo hilarious. Having looked through my parents’ photo albums, I can relate to Julie’s reaction.  

 
Most important of all, Steve actually listens to his daughter’s problems and does the best he can to help.  In most teen comedies the father is usually oblivious to the plight of their children.  In movies like Some Kind of Wonderful and She’s All That, the father is a total hard ass that keeps riding his son to apply to a college; it never occurs to them that their son wants something else.  In other comedies, the father is a bit absent minded that it never occurs to the main character to ask them for any advice.  Steve Richman is kind of absent minded but he isn’t a moron. He soaks in everything Julie is telling him and then offers up some fairly good advice.  He doesn’t tell her what to do but tries to guide her in the right direction. Unfortunately, she discards his advice and goes with the mob rule.  

I find it interesting that it is Randy’s best friend, Fred, who sets the whole plot in motion. Fred is standing behind Loryn and is eavesdropping on a conversation she is having with a friend.  He not only hears about the party at Suzi’s house but gets the address as well. He just happens to be at the right place at the right time.  Randy is reluctant to go to the Valley at first but Fred is able to talk him into it.  Thus our story of star crossed lovers begins.  I don’t know whether or not if this was intentional, but Fred acts as a counterpart to Steven.  They are both genuine individuals who really don’t give a damn what people think about them; Fred constantly strikes out with women at the party but he keeps on trying. He’s not going to allow a few rejections to dampen his spirits.  Fred is probably the closest thing Randy has to a family and is there in his friend’s hour of need. It is Fred who saves Randy from his self destructive path.  After Julie breaks up with him, Randy doesn’t take it well and gives into pure excess – he goes on a drunken bender, hooks up with his ex-girlfriend in the woman’s bathroom of a bar, and then tries to pick a fight with a low rider. Fred’s timely intervention saves Randy from a sure ass kicking.  When Randy goes on a self pity rant, Fred doesn’t coddle him; instead he encourages Randy to win Julie back.  If Randy genuinely loves this girl, then he should fight for her love.  Fred is a stark contrast to Julie’s friends; the idea of Julie dating outsider terrifies them, because they are worried about how it will effect her (and by extension their) popularity. They genuinely believe they are doing Julie a favor by pressuring her into breaking up with Randy.  Fred, on the other hand, could care less about the popular opinion and wants his friend to be happy.  He will go to the ends of the Earth for Randy.  He maybe an oddball, but he is an ideal best friend.  

The character of Stacey is the direct counterpoint to Fred.  Stacey is, understandably, a bit miffed when Julie drags her along for a night out with two punk rockers.  To make matters worse, she is paired the eccentric Fred on this double date. Stacey spends most of the car ride complaining – when Randy notes that he likes the song playing on the radio, Stacey shouts back, “I hate this song.”  Yet, as the night progresses, Stacey takes a liking to Fred.  When he chases her around the car, she puts on an “annoyed act” but she eventually can’t hold back her laughter. She is having a good time with a punk rocker. Unfortunately, once Stacey returns to the “safety” of the suburbs, she immediately wants to forget about him. Sure, she enjoyed Fred’s company but she could never actually date a guy like him.  What would they stay at school? Even more disheartening is that, despite having hung out with Randy, it is Stacey who is most adamant that Julie break up with Randy and get back together with Tommy.  She desperately wants things to back to normal.   The movie, to its credit, never fully vilifies Julie’s friends. There is no malice in their actions, they are simply misguided.  

Valley Girl is probably known for two things: 1) It was the movie that put Nicolas Cage on the map. After this movie he would explode into super stardom. 2) Its soundtrack. The Valley Girl soundtrack is a sample of the type of music that was popular at this specific moment in time. Probably the best known song on the soundtrack is Modern English's "I'll Melt With You." It's a song that has remained popular some thirty five years later. There is also a track that would never make it any modern day soundtrack - Josie Cotton's "Johnny, Are You Queer?" It's a silly song, but if the age of social media has taught us anything - EVERYTHING IS OFFENSIVE!  Martha Coolidge will often use the soundtrack to compliment the action that is occurring onscreen; when Randy and Julie are talking in the bathroom the Psychedelic Fur's song, "Love My Way" can be heard in the background. The Plimsoul's song "A Million Miles Away" is essentially Randy and Julie's love song. The band plays it when Randy and Julie are bonding at the club. The song is reprised later after Randy, coming off rebound sex with his ex, hears it again and immediately thinks of Julie. This sends further into a downward spiral before Fred intervenes. The soundtrack itself is worth seeking out.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Martha Coolidge’s first rate direction. It is actually pretty incredible that she was able to make such a top notch picture on so little of a budget ($350,000). She is especially good when it comes blocking a scene and camera placement.  In the scene where Julie agrees to take Tommy back, she is able to convey what a suffocating presence Tommy is without a single word of dialogue. Tommy sits down next to Julie in the booth and, after she has agreed to take him back, he immediately puts his left on around her shoulder, and then he leans forwards (eclipsing Julie in the process) and starts eating the food off of her basket. 

Coolidge then cuts to a high angle shot with the camera looking down at Julie; it is nice way of showing how Julie has demeaned herself in our, and her, eyes.  She was in a meaningful relationship with Randy and now has reduced herself to being Tommy’s possession. There's also some nice acting from Deborah Foreman in this scene - while she gives Tommy a smile, there is a sense that Julie is about to break down in tears. Forget Citizen Kane!  Valley Girl should be endlessly studied by film students. 

Cast: Nicolas Cage (Randy), Deborah Foreman (Julie Richman), Elizabeth Daily (Loryn), Michael Bowen (Tommy), Cameron Dye (Fred Bailey), Heidi Holicker (Stacey), Frederic Forrest (Steve Richman), Colleen Camp (Sarah Richman), Michelle Meyrink (Suzi Brent), Lee Purcell (Beth Brent), David Ensor (Skip), Tina Theberge (Samantha), Josie Cotton (Singer at Prom), Richard Sanders (Driver’s Ed Teacher), Joyce Hyser (Joyce), The Plimsouls.

Director: Martha Coolidge
Screenplay: Wayne Crawford, Andrew Lane.
Running Time:  99 min.