Pretty in Pink (1986)
Average Rating: 6.4/10
Reviews Counted: 32
Fresh: 26 | Rotten: 6
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 6.2/10
Critic Reviews: 5
Fresh: 4 | Rotten: 1
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 211,587
Movie Info
John Hughes crafts an exemplary '80s Brat Pack romance out of the standard Cinderella story in Pretty in Pink. Andie Walsh (Molly Ringwald) is a teenager who lives in the dingy part of town with her terminally underemployed dad (Harry Dean Stanton). She works at a record store with eccentric Ionia (Annie Potts) and is considered a misfit at her uppity high school, but somehow she rises above them all. Her oddball best friend, Duckie (Jon Cryer), is hopelessly in love with her, so he causes
Feb 28, 1986 Wide
Aug 20, 2002
Paramount Pictures
Watch It Now
Cast
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Molly Ringwald
Andie Walsh -
Harry Dean Stanton
Jack Walsh -
Jon Cryer
Phil "Duckie" Dale -
Andrew McCarthy
Blane McDonough -
Annie Potts
Iona -
James Spader
Steff McKee -
Jim Haynie
Donnelly -
Alexa Kenin
Jena -
Kate Vernon
Benny -
Bruno
Talk Back -
Andrew Dice Clay
Bouncer -
Margaret Colin
English Teacher -
Rock Deadrick
Talk Back -
Gina Gershon
Girl Friend in Gym C... -
Bader Howar
Sales Girl -
Christian Jacobs
Boy in Record Store -
Emily Longstreth
Kate -
Melanie Manos
Girl at Party -
Maggie Roswell
Mrs. Dietz -
Kristy Swanson
Duckette -
D. Kevin Williams
Talk Back -
Terry Wilson
Rave-Up -
Dweezil Zappa
Simon -
Jimmer Podrasky
Rave-Up -
Jamison Anders
Terrence -
Tommy Blatnik
Rave-Up -
Jeffrey Hollie
Talk Back -
Audre Johnson
Benny's Mom -
Karen Laine
Girl at Prom -
Kevin D. Lindsay
Kevin -
David Sutton
Talk Back -
Timothy J.
Rave-Up -
Orchestral Manoeuvre...
Prom Band
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All Critics (32) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (26) | Rotten (6) | DVD (23)
Pretty in Pink is a rather intelligent (if not terribly original) look at adolescent insecurities.
Top CriticThis is like every other Hughes film, just a little shoddier.
To be able to give this kind of stuff new and sympathetic twists is a tribute to Hughes' skill with narrative, and to Ringwald's magnetism as a performer.
Miss Ringwald's pouty naturalness remains her biggest asset, and her performance is once again appealing.
Although it is not a great movie, it contains some moments when the audience is likely to think, yes, being 16 was exactly like that.
A grubby and even nasty movie in its understanding of class structure, of culture and counter-culture and the ways that teenagers can destroy one another over the subtle distinctions therein.
Pretty in Pink is clichéd, stereotyped, remarkably sentimental, and sweet as all get-out.
While the script contains trite and unbelievable dialogue, the superbly convincing performances make up for these faults.
Molly Ringwald is appealing, but the film has little else going for it.
...even the notoriously reshot conclusion comes off as genuinely sweet and touching...
It is perhaps too much to ask that a John Hughes film bear the standard for class warfare in the 1980s, especially when the film was so tone-deaf in depicting its subculture's milieu.
John Hughes was born in 1950 but connected deeply with the next generation's cultural brooding.
A guilty pleasure...
As a Gen-X member, I will be flogged for saying so, but this movie sucked.
Unfortunately perpetuates the idea that the ultimate accoplishment is capturing the affection of a jerk.
I got my first date because of this movie so you won't see me giving it any less than three stars.
It's not deep, and it's far from original, but Hughes' word processor apparently still had a little magic left in it.
I wouldn't want to be there when Duckie finally detonates.
It may not be the greatest love story ever told, but it might be the one with the most heart.
Delves into youthful romance and the character required by youth who hurdle high school caste systems.
Audience Reviews for Pretty in Pink
Super Reviewer
The poor girl-rich guy love story rang even falser. Blane and Andie's attraction is just googly-eyed faux-chemistry. What is this "something" that he sees in her? (I'm sure we, the audience, see it cuz Molly Ringwald rocks, but there's no scene in the movie that shows her striking his fancy.) What does she see in him? Is he that different from his richie rich friends, or doesn't he still just get by on his high class looks and sophisticated charm? On the date, he is incredibly naive about his friends' anticipated reception, and he does say some unintentionally condescending things that would rub me the wrong way. The class conflict is also slightly incidental and doesn't come across as a problem until the date. We know that Andie is poor, but it's unclear that she pays to attend a rich private high school with students who bully her for her relative penury. I thought it was just for her independent, free-spirited ways.
I'm also more than a little perturbed that the parody of Andie and Duckie's friendzoniest of friendzones is almost without exaggeration! Everyone is so totally oblivious! Even after Andie comes home and says, "I'm in love," her dad doesn't automatically assume she's talking about Duckie, who earlier confessed his love for her to Jack. Jon Cryer as Duckie is just charming and devoted as all-get-out, albeit embarrassingly silly and slightly clingy. His tell-off speech is probably the best dramatic work I've seen of Cryer's, which is a shame.
That's not to say I necessarily wanted Andie to end up with the friendzoned best friend (because unconditional idolatry bordering on obsession isn't what she wants or needs either), but his prom date savior move and sacrificial all-but-slow-clapping endorsement of Blane's bland non-apology is just too much and too sad.
Super Reviewer
"He's crazy about her. She's crazy about him. He's just crazy."
I finally got around to watching one of John Hughes' classic high school movies, and I have to say Pretty in Pink lived up to the classic Hughes status. I didn't quite like it as much as The Breakfast Club, but Pretty in Pink is something special in its own right. It has a good, if pretty typical story at the heart of it, but what makes it special is Hughes' brilliant writing and the characters, which are all great. The cast also comes through perfectly and Jon Cryer might have stolen the whole show, with an offbeat, but emotional performance as Duckie.
Andie is a poor girl who attends a school that has a lot of rich kids. The rich kids and the poor kids hate each other. When Blane(a rich) starts showing signs of liking Andie, she can't believe it could be true. Then Blane asks her out and then to the prom, she is extremely excited. The only problem is that Blane's friends don't approve because Andie is poor and Andie's friends don't approve because Blane is rich. Well mostly it's just Duckie that doesn't approve, and his love for Andie makes things even more complicated for a girl feeling love for the first time.
There's a lot to like about Pretty in Pink. From the performances to the dialogue to the characters; it's a movie that has beauty in just about everything. At points, the movie gets a little too sappy or corny, but for the most part it gets a good majority of the high school scene and the first feelings of love down pretty good.
This is one of those movies that a lot of guys don't really care to look into. Pretty in Pink doesn't really get too many guys excited, but this really is worth the time. Hughes was, in a way, a genius, in how he explored and pretty much perfected the high school drama/comedy/romance. This is just another perfect example of that.
Super Reviewer
Full review coming to themoviefreakblog.com on 5/26.
Super Reviewer
Movies Like Pretty in Pink
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- Blane McDonough: Andie, you're a bitch!
-
- Phil "Duckie" Dale: May I admire you again today?
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- Andie Walsh: If somebody doesn't believe in me, I can't believe in them.
-
- Blane McDonough: You said you couldn't be with someone who didn't believe in you. Well I believed in you. I just didn't believe in me. I love you... always.
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- Blane McDonough: You said you couldn't be with someone who didn't believe in you. Well I believed in you. I just didn't believe in me. I love you... always.
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- Andie Walsh: You know, it's so insane that someone you've never met, never talked to can be your enemy.
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