Mark Palermo reviews.... CURLY SUE!!

[nutmegalomaniac]

The last entry in my overdue project of watching every movie John Hughes directed in order, CURLY SUE is also the only one I hadn't seen before. Warmer and less crass than its reputed to be, the film is mainly hindered by its attempts at overdone slapstick, cashing-in on the previous year's Hughes-penned monster HOME ALONE. But there's a 1930s comedic sensibility to the telling of the capitalist-grooming of a homeless girl (Alisan Porter) and her con-artist caretaker (James Belushi). It's in many ways an update of the social class collisions in Chaplin's oeuvre--namely THE GOLD RUSH and A WOMAN OF PARIS. Were it viable in 90s Hollywood, one suspects Hughes would have made CURLY SUE a silent film. There's a notable lack of pop hits that characterize his other soundtracks, and Ira Newborn's synth heavy music is replaced by Georges Delerue's grand concerto score. The old style template permits Hughes to put more care into his shot compositions than the sloppy UNCLE BUCK (a movie I thought I liked until I watched it again). CURLY SUE's feel for urban wintertime outside of California (Chicago, of course) has an authenticity missed by many films. It's lack of big laughs are made up for by its overriding heartfelt nature. CURLY SUE is liberal in ways that most movies which promote their liberalism never are.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

I'm also willing to bet I'm the only person within a 100 mile radius who held a midnight screening of this tonight.