Cry-Baby (1990)
Average Rating: 6.6/10
Reviews Counted: 38
Fresh: 29 | Rotten: 9
John Waters' musical ode to the teen rebel genre is infectious and gleefully camp, providing star Johnny Depp with the perfect vehicle in which to lampoon his pin-up image.
Average Rating: 6.2/10
Critic Reviews: 8
Fresh: 5 | Rotten: 3
John Waters' musical ode to the teen rebel genre is infectious and gleefully camp, providing star Johnny Depp with the perfect vehicle in which to lampoon his pin-up image.
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Average Rating: 3.3/5
User Ratings: 191,663
Movie Info
John Waters does a quirky spin on '50s nostalgia in Cry-Baby, his musical homage to Rebel Without a Cause and Romeo and Juliet. Set in Baltimore in 1954 at the birth of rock & roll, the film features Johnny Depp as Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker. Depp is pure charisma as a juvenile delinquent with a permanent tear slithering down his cheek, a reminder of his state-executed parents. In the depths of his despair appears goody-goody girl Allison (Amy Locane), who has a sexual crush on Cry-Baby. But
Apr 6, 1990 Wide
Jul 12, 2005
Universal Pictures
Watch It Now
Cast
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Johnny Depp
Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker -
Amy Locane
Allison, Allison Vernon... -
Susan Tyrrell
Ramona -
Polly Bergen
Mrs. Vernon-Williams -
Ricki Lake
Pepper -
Iggy Pop
Belvedere -
Traci Lords
Wanda -
Kim McGuire
Hatchet-Face -
Darren E. Burrows
Milton -
Steve Aronson
Mean Guard -
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Jonathan Benya
Snare-Drum -
Jeni Blong
Inga -
Phillip Broussard
Cook #2 -
Ken Curtis
Whiffle #2 -
Willem Dafoe
Hateful Guard -
Joe Dallesandro
Milton's Father -
Reggie Davis
Cook #3 -
Troy Donahue
Hatchet's Father -
Drew Ebersole
Whiffle #1 -
Nick Fleming
Cook #4 -
Kelly Goldberg
Pepper's Baby -
Holter Graham
Strip Pokers -
Dan Griffiths
Snake-eyed Hood -
Patricia Hearst
Wanda's Mother -
Joey Heatherton
Milton's Mother -
Robbie Jones
Cook #5 -
Angie Levroney
Dupree's Girl Friend -
Susan Lowe
Night Court Parent -
Eric Lucas
Convict #2 -
Stephen Mailer
Baldwin -
Frank Maldonado
Convict #3 -
Robert Marbury
Angelic Boy Friend -
Kirk McEwen
Convict #1 -
Scott Neilson
Whiffle #3 -
Mary Vivian Pearce
Picnic Mother -
Jessica Raskin
Susie-Q -
Vivienne Shub
Mrs. Tadlock -
Skip Spencer
Strip Poker #1 -
Mink Stole
Hatchet's Mother -
Robert Tyree
Dupree -
Craig D. Wallace
Cook #1 -
Robert Walsh
Judge -
Kim Webb
Lenora -
Alan J. Wendl
Toe-Joe -
David Nelson
Wanda's Father -
-
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Patrick Mitchell
Convict
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Cry-Baby Trailer & Photos
All Critics (38) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (29) | Rotten (9) | DVD (21)
Waters' hole card is Johnny Depp, the winsome tough from TV's 21 Jump Street, who radiates big- screen grace and swagger as Cry-Baby -- no easy trick, since he is guying his own image.
John Waters' mischievous satire of the teen exploitation genre is entertaining as a rude joyride through another era, full of great clothes and hairdos.
Waters' finest film to date, a worthy successor to Hairspray which exudes teen angst and young lust from every pore.
Top CriticMr. Depp, who smolders naturally when he isn't trying so hard, acts this role about as well as Elvis would have; under the circumstances, that's fine.
Basically the filmmaker reminds us of his affection for social misfits, but without much conviction. He's simply too hip to commit himself to his beliefs, and a relentless frivolity prevails.
If there is one constant in recent social history, it is that we feel nostalgia for yesterday's teenage badness even while we fear today's.
Johnny Depp is extremely well cast in John Waters' sweet-natured fable about rebellious youth
The film is high on energy, color and camera movement and, as usual in Waters's world, everything is styled within an inch of its life, capturing all the fun and fever of the 1950s.
Cheerfully camp, terrifically enjoyable teen parody that ranks among Waters' best moments. Oh, and world -- meet Johnny Depp!
It's a satire that functions the same way the stuff it's satirizing does.
Great campy fun. How many tears will Johnny shed?
Pink Flamingos fans will find Cry-Baby decidedly tame, but it's one of my favorites.
Waters is just as offbeat as any of his film characters- and he surrounds himself with creative people who wouldn't at all be out of place in a John Waters movie.
Everyone is clearly having a ball in Cry-Baby, and one can only imagine what the nightlife was like on the set
Successfully works in fits and starts.
Johnny Depp is a rockin' revelation
Unhinged and inventive
Tears for fears? Nah, it's Johnny Depp's. When will this Waters gem be adapted for Broadway?
John Waters at his most accessible -- which is still really odd.
Better than Grease. Overlooked but fabulous John Waters' musical.
Waters goes mainstream. Johnny proves he has depth.
Altogether a joyous outburst of Watersian creativity.
Audience Reviews for Cry-Baby
Super Reviewer
Leave it up to John Waters to be responsible for this. I could have guessed he was behind this had I not already known it. That's not a bad thing though. It's probably Waters's tamest film content-wsie along with Hairspray, but that's okay. It still fits in nicely with the rest of his filmography.
Johnny Depp takes the lead amongst a cast of notable names including Ricki Lake, Iggy Pop, Traci Lords, and even Willem Dafoe. It's weird seeing Depp here because he's so youthful and not quite as off the rails as a lot of the characters he's played. Everyone does a decent job, and you can just tell that they had fun making this.
Ok, so look, the film isn't high art, and it is silly and campy, but it has no pretensions surrounding it, and it's just a lot of fun and very watchable. Give it a shot.
Super Reviewer
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- Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker: My mother tried to stop him. She couldn't even spell, for Christ's sake, but they fried her too.
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- Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker: That's right, Allison. My father was the 'Alphabet Bomber.' He may have been crazy, but he was my pop. Only one I ever had.
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- Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker: Kiss me, kiss me hard!
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- Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker: [to Mrs. Vernon-Williams] I may be a drape, but I love your granddaughter. And if that's a crime, I'll stand convicted, ma'am.
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- Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker: You're cool, Allison. You just look square. Underneath it all, I think you're really hip.
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Movie: ID: 10100 Title: Cry-Baby Release Date: 1990-04-06 00:00:00.0 MPAA: 3 Status: 1
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Foreign Titles
- Cry Baby - It Came From Baltimore (UK)
- Cry Baby (AU)
Cool musical movie! The movie at first to me seems a little boring but it gets better and better as it goes on. This is one Depp's earliest roles as an actor and boy did he deliver. The movie is funny and the story is easy to follow, enjoy!
Poor boy meets rich girl. Boy falls for girl. Boy's friends don't approve. Girl falls for boy. Girl's friends and family don't approve. Take one part "Romeo and Juliet", one part "Grease", a little bit of the "Outsiders", and a generous helping of "Mad Magazine" mentality, set it in the 50's and add some cool music and it comes close to "Cry-Baby", John Waters strange and campy homage to the star-crossed lover genre. Bad boy Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker meets good girl Allison Vernon-Williams, and it's love at first sight. It's the quirky characters and brilliant casting that set Water's version of this story (that's been done a million times already) apart from the rest. It's also these same qualities that make it a little inappropriate for younger audiences. Think Grease but with freaks and weirdos surrounding the attractive main characters.