On S List of Movie Reviews
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Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
6/21
6/21:
Some Kind of Wonderful is the gender reversal of Pretty in Pink with a
different ending.
With the exception of Craig Sheffer for James Spader, Eric Stoltz is Molly Ringwald, Mary Stuart Masterson is Jon Cryer,
and Lea Thompson is Andrew McCarthy. Both are corny movies, but Some Kind of Wonderful wins out due to quality of
acting.
It'll be easy to rip apart Mary Stuart Masterson's performance for being so gay, but she's the reason for making the
plot work as it centers around her character. Yes, Eric Stoltz is outstanding, but it's not really his movie. To be honest
with you, the high school girls will go after Keith because of his looks, not the other way around. Lea Thompson is
kind of blah.
Why the film succeeded is the way John Hughes developed the characters, no matter how small they may be. Hence,
his movies should be regarded as 80's classics despite the mawkish theme.
Because of the studio interference after receiving a test audience's negative reactions, the ending for
Pretty in Pink was changed, and John Hughes hated it, leading to the making of
Some Kind of Wonderful to right the wrong. In spite of the
strong brother-sister vibe, I have to say it's better for Keith and Watts given how much Mary Stuart Masterson was invested
into her character. By the way, the little girl (Keith's younger sister) is played by Candace Cameron from
Full House, but what happened to her the rest of the way? She was doing well at the dining table.
All in all, Some Kind of Wonderful is much better than Pretty in Pink.