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Movies / On DVD / Risky Business
Risky Business

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Risky Business (1983)

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Reviews Counted:42

Fresh:41

Rotten:1

Average Rating:7.4/10

Consensus: Featuring one of Tom Cruise's best early performances, Risky Business is a sharp, funny examination of teen angst that doesn't stop short of exploring dark themes.

Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Joel Goodson is the type of teenager who makes his parents proud: he's nice, handsome, intelligent, and even principled. But when Joel's parents leave town for a few days, a series of events occur... Joel Goodson is the type of teenager who makes his parents proud: he's nice, handsome, intelligent, and even principled. But when Joel's parents leave town for a few days, a series of events occur that will change Joel's sheltered life. For starters, he meets Lana, a hooker who proceeds to deflower our young hero, and then suggests he turn his home into a house of prostitution for one evening. Joel agrees, and just as sexy hookers and randy guys turn Joel's house upside down, a representative from Princeton University arrives, to interview Joel! How Joel handles this and other crises (losing his dad's Porsche, the loss of all his furniture, falling in love with a prostitute) will alter Joel's life forever. [More]

Starring: Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay, Curtis Armstrong, Bronson Pinchot

Starring: Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay, Curtis Armstrong, Bronson Pinchot, Raphael Sbarge, Joe Pantoliano, Nicholas Pryor, Richard Masur

Director: Paul Brickman

Director: Paul Brickman

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Aug 22, 1997

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Risky Business

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A capitalist wet dream; one that we have long since woken up from screaming.

Full Review Source: Clothes on Film | comment 3 Comments
07/16/09
Chris Laverty
Chris Laverty
Clothes on Film

One of the key films of the 1980s, and proof that a teen sex comedy could merit serious consideration.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
08/06/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide

De Mornay does sterling work as the helpful hooker, but this is Cruise's big chance, and he relishes it, putting in a believable and likeable performance.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
04/01/08
Channel 4 Film

This film is deftly made, the humor nicely understated, the leading actors (Tom Cruise and Rebecca de Mornay) smart and appealing.

Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | comment Comment
06/24/08
TIME Magazine

No review available.

comment Comment
10/19/04
Angela Baldassarre
Angela Baldassarre
Sympatico.ca

A taut, bitter, sharp and nearly flawless film.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Brad Laidman
Brad Laidman
Film Threat

No review available.

comment Comment
04/16/04
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

The roots of American Beauty can all be found in this groundbreaking film.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
11/29/01
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

No review available.

comment Comment
11/14/05
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

One of the finest film explorations of the end of innocence.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
08/06/07
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
03/01/08
David Kaplan
David Kaplan
Kaplan vs. Kaplan

It works well as a comedy but one cringes at the thought that it defined, for a while, the social expectations of a generation.

Full Review Source: DVDLaser | comment Comment
06/25/08
Douglas Pratt
Douglas Pratt
DVDLaser

Paul Brickman makes a splashy debut with a stylish youth satire that conveys more vividly Reagonomics and the corrupt and decadent decade of 1980s than serious dramas like Wall Street; it's also a wonderful showcase for Tom Cruise, who became a star.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
04/25/07
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
08/08/04
Eric Melin
Eric Melin
Lawrence.com

A Generation-X classic, and a career-maker for Tom Cruise.

comment Comment
06/13/03
Forrest Hartman
Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette-Journal

No review available.

comment Comment
12/10/03
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

What distinguishes it, however, is that it's hovering permanently on the brink of stark, staring disaster in a way that strangely recalls The Graduate.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out

Still Tom's only convincing performance (apart from Losin' It). And that trainride -- honey!

comment Comment
01/21/04
Gregory Weinkauf
Gregory Weinkauf
New Times

Good '80's teen movie with a suitable soundtrack and the loveable Cruise displaying his new found starry confidence.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
08/06/07
Ian Nathan
Ian Nathan
Empire Magazine

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
04/30/09
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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