Scarface (1983)

Scarface is the story of Tony Montana, a poor Cuban immigrant who uses violence fuelled by material greed to build a multi-million dollar Miami drug ring. Tony starts off as a runner, and eventually makes his way to the top with his only two things he has in this world; his heart, and his balls.
Although it was made over 20 years ago, it is not only still relevant, but Tony Montana has become a cultural icon for many young men. He represents greed, power, and the lust for money in a dog eat dog world. I think many people are quick to judge and say that Montana is a miserable role model, one who promotes violence and drug use. Yes, obviously he does promote these things, but he also has a symbolic meaning beneath the surface. Tony represents a young man who came from nothing who wants to make something of himself, and who will stop at nothing to do so. The film itself also teaches us a valuable lesson, that too much greed can certainly be a fatal flaw. This is illustrated not only in Tony’s violent downfall but also foreshadowed in a conversation with another dealer;
Frank Lopez: You know what a chazzer is?
Tony Montana: No, Frank, you tell me. What is a chazzer?
Frank Lopez: It's a Yiddish word for "pig." See, the guy, he wants more than what he needs. He don't fly straight no more.

Not only does this movie provide, intriguing characters, tons of action and a profound message, it is a crime-film classic that has solidified Tony Montana’s spot pop culture

How I got into College

How I got into College

Yeah even cover sucks.

Let me say this first, this film was possibly the most painful movie watching experience since Gigli. Yes that was a Gigli reference; hopefully I’m not the only one that was tricked into seeing one of the worst movies in the twenty first century.

The film was directed by Steven Holland the same guy who directed Better Off Dead, a movie I couldn’t recommend more over this movie. Of all the teenage movies of the 80s I dare you to find a worse one. Interestingly enough I decided to see how much this trophy was selling for at Amazon which was just under five dollars, so it’s safe to say that this movie is in the bargain bin at Wal-Mart.

The story follows the life of two particular individuals, one the helpless romantic who decides that since he is madly in love with an uninteresting girl that he should do the only rational thing and try to follow her to college. The movie has a constant theme that teenagers are stuck in a world far too complex, confusing and demanding. Our star Marlon is so dull and vague it makes me wonder what the script writer was thinking. He does exactly as he is told and can barely speak for his self. He can’t pick a college, and when asked what activities he’s involved with he replies with a original “I don’t know, I played some ping-pong.” He has almost no relationship with his father and step mom. The movie never expands on the story and doesn’t tell us where his real mom is. It shows his parents focusing on their new child, but Marlon is unaffected. The movie pokes fun at the college entrance process, especially the SAT exam. The questions on the test are made into real live fantasy situations, as Marlon’s way of coping with his failure to be able to come up with an answer. Jessica, Marlon’s love interest, is supposed to be the attractive unattainable girl that Marlon is unable to speak too. Rather she ends up kissing Marlon without much effort on Marlon’s part. She is supposed to be an individual but every thing about her screams average. She's also is supposed to be the intelligent, good grade girl, as all her friends are making bad grades and are crying while taking the SAT. They are both worried about getting into their number one choice Ramsey. Ramsey is another part of the movie’s story. The combination of all these traits just don't work for this character. It shows the college’s struggle to attract great kids, not just focusing on the numbers and grades. The climax of the movie is the letter opening of both Marlon and Jessica to see if they have been accepted.

This movie could have been great, the teenage struggle to get into choice schools is one that affects most of the youths today. The film attempted to have a wacky, semi zany and almost hallucinogenic sense of humor, but in my honest opinion it failed in every aspect. Everything about this movie is 80s, the clothes, the music, the actors, and setting. Unfortunately none of this helps the movie, it only adds to the fact that the failure that is this movie is old enough to be an excuse. Stay away from this movie, if you want 80s teens there are many other choices.

National Lampoons: Vacation (1983)

First off, let me start by saying I am a huge Chevy Chase fan, and of course the 80’s was his prime and his time to shine. In this 80’s classic, Chevy plays Clark W. Griswold, a father who doesn’t as much time with the family as he would like to. Clark has a brilliant idea to take the family on a cross-country road trip to “Wally World” to see the kids’ favorite cartoon character “Marty Moose.” The vacation Clark plans however, does not turn out how he expects. Along the way, they encounter many hilarious hurdles such as picking up grumpy Aunt Edna and the mysterious woman in the red Ferrari (Christie Brinkley.)
I thoroughly enjoyed Vacation because it is a classic comedic tale of the family going on a wacky trip to come closer to each other. As Clark so gently puts it during a time of crisis; “I must be crazy. I’m on a pilgrimage to see a moose. Praise Marty Moose. Holy *Beep*” Clearly, all that time with the family can get a bit stressful. It runs along very smoothly and you will find yourself laughing till it hurts at Chevy’s antics. Because it deals with family issues and human nature, it is still relevant (and completely side-splitting) today. The fashion and hair in this movie make it distinctly 80’s, but you do not pay much attention to it because you are too busy laughing. I would strongly recommend this movie to any fans of comedy and especially those who enjoy the likes of a Caddyshack, or other 80's classics.

Big

(even the picture is big)

I think i first saw Big when I was around seven years old, and all I remember about it is that I watched it at my aunt's house and that I liked it a lot. So, I decided to watch it again and see what I liked about it so much. After I started watching it I remembered: it's like the original 13 going on 30. It's magically fun, you can relate, and makes you feel like anything is possible.

The story begins with a young boy named Josh Baskin (David Moscow) who is unhappy being treated like a little boy. On top of this, he goes to a carnival and is too little to ride the adult rides. Because of this, when he sees a fortune telling machine called the Zoltar which is a genie in a booth. Josh asks the genie to make him big and a card pops out that says "Your wish is granted." Josh eerily realizes that the Zoltar machine wasn't even plugged in, so he decides to go home, assuming nothing about himself has changed.

The next morning, however, Josh wakes up to find that he has transformed into an adult version of himself (Tom Hanks). The only person that will help him is his best friend Bill Kopeche (Jared Rushton), and they decided that they have to get Josh a hotel room in New York city so he can stay there until they can change him back into a little boy.

Josh and Billy soon find out that they can't go back to the Zoltar machine for another six weeks, so in the meantime Josh gets a job at a toy company called Macmillan Toys. The rest of the movie shows how Josh has to deal with living in an adult world and how it is a lot harder than he thought it would be. By the end he realizes that he just wants to go home and be a little boy again, so he goes back to the Zoltar machine to get changed back, even though it means giving up an adult female love interest in the process.

Maybe it's just me, but I love 13 Going on 30 and I loved Big, so I highly recommend them both. If you're not sure about either here is the trailer for Big:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J62jciQ1PbY
and here's the trailer for Thirteen Going on Thirty:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAeY2uRiOt4

St. Elmo's Fire

St Elmo’s Fire is a classic 80s teen film, incorporating the famous Brat Pack cast each with their separate issues. This film has stood the test of time in that it is still relevant today. As with The Breakfast Club the theme of this movie is friendship, and this idea carries the movie. The idea that your friends will be there for you no matter what. With that said here’s an introduction to the diverse group of friends:

Alec – From “Criminal” to “Savior” Judd Nelson now portrays a serious and hard-working college graduate whom his friends turn to for help in bad situations. He is not without his secrets; however, he is unable to be faithful to his longtime girlfriend and has many affairs, all the time using the fact that she won’t marry him as an excuse for his infidelity.

Leslie – Here we have our beloved “Basketcase” who is now a normal college graduate. She has been dating Alec throughout college, but is afraid to marry him. She’s right out of school, wants to find security in a job, and isn’t sure that she’s ready for the life-long commitment of marriage.

Kevin – This story line can be heard blaring out of a radio in the form of Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl”. Kevin is best friends with Alec and is in love with Leslie. The complications to this already messed up tale comes when Leslie finds out about Alec’s other love interests and has an affair with Kevin, which then Alec finds out about, and in the end she is unable to choose between them deciding to take time away for herself.

Jules – Demi Moore plays the gorgeous girl with a wild side. She is unable to cope with the world after college, looses her job, does coke, and entwines herself in a web of lies to keep up a strong image to her friends. She is afraid to let them know how much trouble she’s in, but after a breakdown is able to let them in and admit she needs to change her lifestyle.

Billy – With hard partying Jules a male counterpart is needed. Here Rob Lowe fits this category as the musician who is out for a good time and can’t keep a stable job. On top of this he has a wife whom he married after getting her pregnant, they both cheat on each other and know the relationship won’t work, but he can’t let her go. He doesn’t want to admit that he’s screwed up his life and needs to move on and make changes. He finally manages to grow up when he decides to let her go and realizes he can’t live in the past.

Wendy – To counteract the partiers we have Wendy. She’s from a rich family, conservative, still lives at home, and a virgin. She is in love with Billy, and is attracted to his carefree demeanor. As is foreshadowed many times, she looses her virginity to him. This occurs in the apartment she moves into and shows how she is growing up.

Kirby – Emilio Estevez here is not the cool “Jock” we saw before, but a bit of a geek who is in love with an older woman. She of course ends up having a boyfriend, but he gets up the confidence to kiss her which gives him the satisfaction he needs.

While not as good as The Breakfast Club I like this movie and believe in its message. It doesn’t pretend that life right out of school is easy, and shows that everyone will hit a bump or two. It also shows though, that it’s important to get back up, and to have good friends who will always be there for you when you need it most. As is stated on the front of the movie box, “You can always count on your friends. Don't ever let the fire go out.”

Beetlejuice

"Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!"

Beetlejuice - the name in laughter from the hereafter - is the star role in this morbidly funny movie by Tim Burton, which was released in 1988. If you've seen it, you have to admit the plot is a little off-the-wall, the story line revolving around two recently deceased people and everything, but there's just something about it that just pulls you in.

The centers around the lives - and afterlives - of Adam Maitland (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis), who live in a small town in Connecticut. One day, on their way to hardware store, everything takes a turn for the worst when a dog runs out in front of their car while they are crossing a bridge. They swerve to hit the dog and end up falling into the river to their demise. They do not realize this, however, until they return to their house and there is a book sitting on the table called The Handbook for the Recently Deceased, and their yard and turned into a giant desert.

To add insult to injury, the Maitlands soon find out that a new family, called the Deitzs, is moving into their home. Adam and Barbara immediately discover that they are completely different from them and want to completely gut the house because Delia Deitz (Catherine O'Hara) is a modern sculptor.

The Maitlands realize that they are in a severe predicament and therefore, when Adam sees an ad for

"Betelgeuse the Bio-Exorcist," which reads, "Troubled by the living? Is death the problem and not the solution? Unhappy with eternity? Having difficulty adjusting? Call Betelgeuse Betelgeuse Betelgeuse!"

They decide first, however, to draw on the walk and knock three times, something they read in the book they found. The door opens and they are in a kind of waiting room with other recently deceased people, some of which did not meet their ends in as pleasant a fashion as Adam and Barbara did. When this gets them nowhere, they decide to call Beetlejuice, and when he appears they realize he is more of a nuisance than a help. In the meantime, the Maitlands had befriended the Deitz' daughter named Lydia (Winona Ryder) because she is the only one that can see them, and when Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) arrives, among other obnoxious things, he decides he wants her as his wife.

The rest of the movie shows the Maitlands playing various tricks on the Deitz's, such as the famous scene when they possess Delia and her family and make them sing "Day-O" by Harry Belefonte. After this encounter, the Deitz's want to meet the Maitlands and when doing so they steal the afterlife book from them.

In the end the two families reconcile, and decide to share the house with each other, and Beetlejuice gets eaten by a giant sand worm. I personally really like these movie, even though it does have kind of morbid undertones. If you want to check it out for yourself, click here to see the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRMcC8FAw44

Grease 2

We all have seen Grease, its a classic! Now two years later there is a new set of students at Rydell High School. We still have the T-Birds, whos leader is Johnny Nogerelli. And there are still the Pink Ladies, lead by Stephanie Zinone. The two used to be an item, however Stephanie has decided she didn't want to be anyone's chick anymore. Now that they are broken up clearly there needs to be a new guy in the picture. That new guy is Micheal, who happens to be Sandy (from the original)'s cousin from England. And we still have Frenchi, who after dropping out has decided to come back to the high school scene. Frenchi informs new-guy Micheal that all Pink Ladies are off limits to only t-birds. Johnny has moved on to Paulette, another Pink Lady. He can forget about having any control over Stephanie and she shoes tthis by kissing the next guy who walks into the bowling alley. That guy happens to be Micheal. He hurries after her and asks her out, but she goes into her song, "Cool Rider", and shows she isn't interested. After this Micheal tries to become this guy she sings about. He goes and buys a motorcycle, which he spends all his time trying to learn to ride. And how can we leave out the reproduction scene. In an attempt to teach "the birds and the bees" Mr. Stuart is interrupted by the kids singing their own type of lesson.

Meanwhile, the annual talent show is coming up and the T-Birds and Pink Ladies are all preparing for it. Micheal has been preparing for his debut as this new "cool rider". One night at the bowling alley he reveals himself to everyone. He shows up all the T-Birds, and surprise surprise he impresses Stephanie. But as he rides off, Stephanie doesn't know who he is because he had kept his helmet on the whole time. No one is aware of the fact that it is Micheal. In a creepy way, Micheal keeps his disguise and continues to romance Stephanie. After Johnny sees this, he threatens her spot as a Pink Lady. Micheal and Stephanie grow closer as he tutors her, yet she still doesn't know he was the cool guy with the motorcycle skills. The night of the talent show they meet up again, and still not knowing who her guy is, the t-birds chase him over a cliff. Heartbroken, Stephanie goes into the talent show and sings about the guy she believes to be dead titled "Turn Back the Hands of Time". She wins the talent show, and later is crowned queen of the school's summer luau. The Luau in interrupted by a gang, however, "Cool Rider" saves the day by chasing the gang away. This is when he reveals to the school who he really is. Stephanie is shocked to see him still alive. Johnny comes around to his senses and makes Micheal a T-bird and this gives him the right to date Stephanie. The movie ends with them singing "We'll Be Together", making a vow to stay together as they graduate high school.

This film clearly could not be better than the original Grease. The songs seem a bit cheesy, and I didn't get into the "Let's Do It For Our Country" scene which is totally out there. Overall its what you would expect to come as a sequal to one of the most recognizable films in America.

Annie

When given the choice of an 80's movie to watch, OF COURSE i chose Annie for obvious reasons. I find it ironic however that my sister, who was born in 1975 was obsessed with Annie when she was a little girl, owning an Annie dress and a red curly wig. Little did she know what would come along in the next few years. Because of this, I figured I owed it to my sister, Sarah, to discern her fascination with this little orphan. She did however have an obsession with Strawberry Shortcake dolls also, so we'll see where this goes.

Annie which was released as a musical film in 1982, however, it was based on its musical version that showed on Broadway in 1977. The Broadway musical ran for nearly six years, but was originally based on a popular comic strip called Little Orphan Annie, which was written by Harold Gray.

In the story, Annie is one of several girl orphans that live in an orphanage run by a drunken lady by the name of Miss Hannigan (Carol Burnett). Burnett is hilarious as her love to hate character and provides most of the comedic relief for the film. Miss Hannigan forces the girls to scrub the orphanage clean, and a scene depicting this is where the well-known song "It's a Hard-Knock Life" originated. I'm sure most of are familiar with the scene from Austin Powers Goldmember where Dr. Evil does a remake of it in the prison. Or if you're not, you can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDJ1Z5DuuF8

Things begin to look up however, when a billionaire named Oliver Warbucks (or Daddy Warbucks as Annie calls him) decides he wants an orphan to come live with him for a week as a publicity stunt. He sends his secretary, Grace, to the orphanage to pick out an orphan, and grace falls in love with Annie. Miss Hannigan vehemently objects however because she realizes that Annie isn't just an ordinary little girl, and Mr. Warbucks (Albert Finney) protests at first too because he says that he wanted a boy orphan. Annie eventually wins over the cold-hearted Mr. Warbucks but Miss Hannigan is still so opposed to the idea that she gets her brother and her girlfriend to pretend to be Annie's parents so that they can fake-adopt her and get the money Mr. Warbucks is promising Annie's biological parents if they come forward. The crooks are exposed just in time, however, and Annie dog Sandy are allowed to go and stay with him. During her stay, Annie gets to do exciting things she never thought were even possible like going to see a movie.

At the end of the film "Daddy" Warbucks ends up adopting Annie, much to the chagrin of Miss Hannigan and everyone lives happily ever after. I'm not quite sure was my sister was utterly obsessed with this movie, but it was pretty good and I would recommend it. Who wouldn't want to watch an hour and a half of this adorable redhead singing catchy songs like "Tomorrow?" It did make $57,000,000 at the box office in 1982. If you're still not sure, here's a sneak preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLIsgxV7-xw

Beaches

CC Bloom is an outgoing young child performer in Atlantic City. Her mother is always nagging her bragging about her daughter trying to make her into a bigger star. Hilary Whitney is a very rich and proper young lady. She is on vacation in Atlantic City. She finds her self lost and runs into CC. CC is hiding under the boardwalk and helps Hilary find her way back to her resort. CC is in a very flashy outfit and clearly doesn't fit in with Hilary. However, this doesn't phase Hilary and she offers to buy CC a milkshake. When her relative discovers Hilary, she is very displeased to find her with someone like CC. The two make a vow to stay in touch and do so through letters as they grow up. Hilary goes onto Stanford Law, while CC's burlesque career is becoming stronger. They continue to keep in touch through letters.

Out of the blue, hilary shows up at a dive bar where CC is performing for very few guests. It is clear though it seems Hilary has so much more than CC she is not at all happy. Soon the two become room mates. CC continues to vie for life in the limelight. Hilary's life takes a downfall, as her father becomes ill and soon passes away. After this happens, both women eventually get married. Hilary marries her father's lawyer, and CC marries John, her producer. This major change forces the two women to become distant and almost breaks their friendship into pieces. Their biggest fight comes later, when Hilary quits her job as a lawyer, and CC tells her how disappointed she is that she has given up on her dreams. Hilary comes back with calling CC a pretentious social climber. This forces the women to part ways, which puts them both into deep depression.

The women soon reunite after Hilary gets a divorce. And they both com clean about their jealousy towards eachother. Hilary finds out she is pregnant and her ex had been cheating on her. CC being the loyal friend she is, makes a vow to always be there for her and help raise her daughter, Victoria Cecilia. Hilary's hardships do not stop there, as her daughter grows up she finds herself not feeling herself. she is easily exhausted and collapses at work. She is diagnoses with a cardiac illness. And soon comes to terms with the fact she will most likely die. This brings back Hilary's depression. After collapsing again, she tells CC she doesn't want her daughter to see her in that state, and CC arranges for her final hours to be spent at home saying goodbye to her daughter. The major part of the movie is their move to the beach house where the friends must say goodbye. The movie ends with Victoria and CC leaving a concert which launches CC's career into the star she dreamt to be. CC tells Victoria of how the two friends met. The movie is very much a tear jerker and chick flick. It is a memorable film on the hardships and trivial periods of friendships and through those times you find out who your real friends for life are.

Girls Just Want To Have Fun

Because of my love for Sarah Jessica Parker as Carrie Bradshaw in the popular TV show Sex and the City, I found it necessary for me to take advantage of the oppertunity to watch her film, Girls Just Want to Have Fun for this assignment. Though it is hard to watch her as a different character I enjoyed this movie. After watching Dirty Dancing, Girls Just Want to Have Fun is very similar except set in the 80's.

The movie starts out with Janey (SJP) at her first day of school at a new catholic school. She has recently moved to Chicago, and at this point had no friends. She is in class acting very nervous, but who wouldn't be with those nuns? She talks about her love for Dance TV. She grabs the attention of another rebellious student named Lynne. Both of them are huge fans of the TV show and become instant friends. That day while watching the show together, they learn that there will be auditions for new "DTV" regulars. To her father's dismay she goes to the audition anyway and tries out along with Lynne. Also auditioning for the spot is another classmate, Natalie. Natalie is the typical rich girl in school who gets everything she wants. Natalie will do anything to win, and even goes as far as paying off Lynne's audition partner in order to cut out some of the competition. Natalie and Janey make the cut. Janey is paired with a guy named Jeff. Natalie tries to find a way to eliminate them also. To do so, she invites Jeff to a ball at her father's country club. Janey and Lynne make copies of the invitation and give them out to all types of people (punk, transvestites, and even female body builders.) As the uninvited guests ruin her party, Natalie declares "war" on the girls, who are watching from a window.

Natalie's father is embarressed about the party, and agrees to help his daughter win the contest. He threatens Janey's partner that his father will lose his job if he doesn't drop out of the contest. He goes against him and enters the contest anyway. Meanwhile, Janey has been caught sneaking out to rehearse and is grounded by her father. Yet this doesn't stop her from sneaking out again and Lynne helps her do so. When it is finally time for the DTV finals, it comes down to a danceoff between Natalie and her partner, and Janey and Jeff. Because of the tie, the danceoff is very intense. Surprise Surprise Janey and Jeff win the dance off and named the new DTV regulars. But it doesn't stop there, Lynne rides in on a chariot filling in for Miss DTV who had quit, and she is then named the new Miss DTV. Of course in the end they all get what they want.

This film is alot like Dirty Dancing. The teens just want to do what they love, Dance. The fathers in both movies disapprove of the daughter's choice. The daughters go against them anyway, and in the end everyone is happy! Typical 80's film. Helen Hunt who plays Lynne brings most of the comedy to the movie. SJP's role is rather disappointing as compared to her character in Sex and the City. But it was very much what i expected from an 80's teen film.