My fangirl tendencies, and how it takes watching a movie for 27 years for me to really get it.
So, have you all ever seen the movie Some Kind of Wonderful? It is a John Hughes written (but not directed) film from 1987, about a high school love triangle. It was written in juxtaposition to the 1986 Hughes flick Pretty in Pink because that one didn't go the way he had planned it, so he had to write another similar story where the characters followed his instructions.
I've always been a fan of PiP, as it was one of the first VHS videos I ever owned, but SKoW has always been my favorite. And I watched it yesterday with my 16-year-old niece, to introduce her to some 80s greats, and I had the huge realization of what a FEMINIST movie it is.
Okay, but first things first: the greatest movie kiss ever, IMHO:
But moving on: Watts has a line of dialogue in this movie that's dated and hilarious but very true: Ray, this is 1987. A girl can be whatever she wants to be.
But the true feminist hero in the movie isn't the Tomboy who gets the guy, it's Amanda Jones. The girl who has used her looks to get ahead because she was too scared to be alone. And then when a boy, who she has no interest in at all, who even creeps her out some because he has some stalkerish tendencies, provides her with an opportunity to strike back at her villianous boyfriend, she learns this incredible lesson about herself. She's rather be right. She has this beautiful speech in the film about how she'd rather be with someone for the wrong reasons than alone for the right ones, but as her story progresses, she gets the courage to be RIGHT. Her final act in the film is sending the boy who provided a window for her to his RIGHTFUL place, because he's too stupid to figure it out by himself, and the final shot of her face is the happy/sad one she has as she watches him go after the girl he belongs with. It's not because she doesn't like him, because by that point she gets that he's worth her time, but more importantly, she's discovered her OWN worth, and she isn't going to do anything to compromise that anymore.
All my life I've watched this movie because I shipped Keith and Watts SO MUCH, and I always LIKED Amanda and was happy that Amanda does what she does at the end of the movie. But I had never contemplated that character's place in the annals of film history; John Hughes gets all kinds of accolades for his brilliant portrayals of adolescents, as well he should. I think The Breakfast Club is as timeless as any film can ever hope to be with regard to The Issues of the Day, but Amanda's journey in SKoW is without a doubt the one that empowers girls -- if they're paying attention. If they're like me they are no doubt too caught up in Keith and Watts to comprehend the impact, but maybe it gets in there subliminally.
I just wanted to talk about it, so that's why I made this post. If any of you have thoughts and feelings about it, I'd love to hear it!
I've always been a fan of PiP, as it was one of the first VHS videos I ever owned, but SKoW has always been my favorite. And I watched it yesterday with my 16-year-old niece, to introduce her to some 80s greats, and I had the huge realization of what a FEMINIST movie it is.
Okay, but first things first: the greatest movie kiss ever, IMHO:
Click to viewBut moving on: Watts has a line of dialogue in this movie that's dated and hilarious but very true: Ray, this is 1987. A girl can be whatever she wants to be.
But the true feminist hero in the movie isn't the Tomboy who gets the guy, it's Amanda Jones. The girl who has used her looks to get ahead because she was too scared to be alone. And then when a boy, who she has no interest in at all, who even creeps her out some because he has some stalkerish tendencies, provides her with an opportunity to strike back at her villianous boyfriend, she learns this incredible lesson about herself. She's rather be right. She has this beautiful speech in the film about how she'd rather be with someone for the wrong reasons than alone for the right ones, but as her story progresses, she gets the courage to be RIGHT. Her final act in the film is sending the boy who provided a window for her to his RIGHTFUL place, because he's too stupid to figure it out by himself, and the final shot of her face is the happy/sad one she has as she watches him go after the girl he belongs with. It's not because she doesn't like him, because by that point she gets that he's worth her time, but more importantly, she's discovered her OWN worth, and she isn't going to do anything to compromise that anymore.
All my life I've watched this movie because I shipped Keith and Watts SO MUCH, and I always LIKED Amanda and was happy that Amanda does what she does at the end of the movie. But I had never contemplated that character's place in the annals of film history; John Hughes gets all kinds of accolades for his brilliant portrayals of adolescents, as well he should. I think The Breakfast Club is as timeless as any film can ever hope to be with regard to The Issues of the Day, but Amanda's journey in SKoW is without a doubt the one that empowers girls -- if they're paying attention. If they're like me they are no doubt too caught up in Keith and Watts to comprehend the impact, but maybe it gets in there subliminally.
I just wanted to talk about it, so that's why I made this post. If any of you have thoughts and feelings about it, I'd love to hear it!