Pretty in Pink

Pretty in Pink
North American film poster
Directed by	Howard Deutch
Produced by	Lauren Shuler
Written by	John Hughes
Starring	Molly Ringwald Harry Dean Stanton Jon Cryer Annie Potts James Spader Andrew McCarthy
Music by	Michael Gore
Cinematography	Tak Fujimoto
Edited by	Richard Marks
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release dates	February 28, 1986
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$9 million[1]
Box office	$40.4 million (domestic)

Pretty in Pink is a 1986 American romantic comedy film about love and social cliques in 1980s American high schools. It is commonly identified as a "Brat Pack" film. The film was directed by Howard Deutch, produced by Lauren Shuler Donner, and written by John Hughes, who also served as co-executive producer. It has become a cult favorite.^[2] The film was named after the song by The Psychedelic Furs.

The film's soundtrack has been rated as one of the best in modern cinema.^[3][4] It features a rerecorded sax-heavy version of the title song by The Psychedelic Furs. Additionally, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark's "If You Leave", which plays prominently during the final scene, became an international hit and charted at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1986.

Plot

High school senior Andie Walsh (Molly Ringwald) lives on "the wrong side of the tracks" with her underemployed working-class father, Jack (Harry Dean Stanton). Andie's best friend, Phil "Duckie" Dale (Jon Cryer), is in love with her, but plays it off as a joke because he is afraid to tell her how he truly feels. In school, Duckie and Andie, along with their friends, are harassed and bullied by the arrogant "richie" kids, specifically Benny (Kate Vernon) and her boyfriend Steff McKee (James Spader), who is secretly interested in Andie.

While working after school at TRAX, a new wave record store, Andie starts talking about her school's senior prom to her manager and mentor Iona (Annie Potts), who advises Andie to go despite not having a date. Blane McDonough (Andrew McCarthy), one of the rich, preppy boys and Steff's best friend, starts talking to Andie at school and at TRAX, and eventually asks her out. Seeing what Blane did, Steff talks to him, telling Blane that Andie is a "mutant" and that there's nothing special about her.

On the night of the date, Andie waits for Blane at TRAX, but he is late. Duckie comes in and asks Andie to go out with him, but she ignores him. Iona gives her a pep talk, while Duckie, still oblivious, asks what's wrong. When Blane arrives, Duckie is upset and starts an argument with Andie, with Duckie trying to convince her that Blane will only hurt her. After a few harsh words, Duckie storms off and Andie goes on with her date. Blane suggests going to a house party Steff is throwing, but Andie is treated poorly by everyone, including a drunk Steff and Benny. Andie, in turn, suggests going to the local club, where they discover Iona sitting with Duckie, who is hostile toward Blane. After another argument with Duckie, Andie and Blane walk out of the club. Andie, feeling that their night didn't go so well, tells Blane that she wants to go home, but when Blane offers to take her home, she refuses, admitting that she doesn't want him to see where she lives. She eventually allows him to drop her off and he asks her to the prom, which she accepts and they share their first kiss. Andie visits Iona at her apartment the next day and they talk about Andie's date, during which she finds Iona's old prom dress and tells her that Blane asked her to the prom. Meanwhile, Blane, pressured by Steff, begins distancing himself from Andie.

Jack comes home one night and surprises Andie with a pink dress he bought for her at a thrift shop. Questioning how he was able to afford it, Andie tells him that she knows he has been lying about going to a full-time job. The two fight until Jack breaks down, revealing that he is still bitter and depressed about his wife having left him. At school, Andie confronts Blane for avoiding her and not returning her calls. When asked about prom, he claims that he had already asked somebody else but had forgotten. Andie starts calling Blane a liar and accuses him of being ashamed of being seen with her because his friends don't approve, to which Blane protests. Andie runs away as a teary-eyed Blane leaves, with Steff criticizing Andie again and Blane shrugging him off. Duckie overhears Steff and attacks him in the hallway. The two fight before teachers break them up and Duckie runs off. Andie goes to Iona, crying and telling her what happened. She then asks for Iona's old prom dress.

Using the fabric from Iona's old prom dress and the thrift shop dress, Andie creates a new pink prom dress. When she arrives at the prom, Andie has second thoughts about braving the crowd on her own until she sees Duckie walk out. Happy to see each other, they hug, reconcile, and walk into the ballroom hand in hand. When a drunk Steff begins mocking the couple, Blane confronts him and finally realizes that Steff resents Andie because she had turned down Steff's advances, something he was not used to. Blane then approaches the two, shaking Duckie's hand and then apologizing to Andie, telling her that he always believed in her and that he will always love her, kissing her cheek before walking out. Duckie concedes that Blane is not like the other rich kids at school and advises Andie to go after him, joking that he'll never take her to another prom if she doesn't. Duckie then sees a girl smiling at him (Kristy Swanson), telling him to come over and dance with her. Andie catches up with Blane in the parking lot and they kiss passionately in front of his car.

Cast

• Molly Ringwald as Andie Walsh, a working class high school girl
• Harry Dean Stanton as Jack Walsh, Andie's father
• Jon Cryer as Philip F. "Duckie" Dale, Andie's friend who has an unrequited love for her
• Annie Potts as Iona, manager of the TRAX record store
• James Spader as Steff McKee, Blane's best friend who attempts to disrupt his fascination with Andie, both due to her lower class status and his own infatuation with her
• Andrew McCarthy as Blane McDonough, a rich preppie boy, and object of Andie's affections
• Kate Vernon as Benny Hanson
• Andrew Dice Clay as Bouncer at CATS
• Kristy Swanson as Duckette
• Alexa Kenin as Jena Hoeman
• Dweezil Zappa as Simon
• Gina Gershon as Trombley, Girl Friend / Gym Class
• Christian Jacobs as Kid in Record Shop

Production

John Hughes wrote the film screenplay early in 1985. Filming began on June 22, 1985 and ended on October 12, 1985.

Casting

Anthony Michael Hall was originally cast as Phil "Duckie" Dale, but turned the role down, fearing being typecast as a "geek". John Hughes thought of casting Robert Downey Jr. for the part of Duckie. Jon Cryer was ultimately cast in the role.

The part of Andie was written with Ringwald in mind. When first asked, Ringwald was reluctant, but after seeing how hard it was for the producers to find a replacement for her, she decided she would indeed portray Andie in the film. Hughes was very happy and knew that the film wouldn't be the same unless Ringwald played the main character.

Anjelica Huston was originally offered the role of Iona, but turned it down to pursue another project. Annie Potts was chosen after Hughes saw her in Ghostbusters.

Alternate ending

Originally, the film portrayed Andie and Duckie ending up together;^[5] however, test audiences disapproved,^[6] and the Andie/Blane ending was produced instead. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark had selected "Goddess of Love" from the album The Pacific Age for the original ending. With only two days before going on tour, OMD wrote "If You Leave" in less than 24 hours for the newly re-shot Andie/Blane ending.^[7]

Novel

The film was adapted into a novel, written by H. B. Gilmour and Randi Reisfield and released in 1986. It was published by Bantam Books (ISBN 0-553-25944-X. ISBN 978-0553259445). The book was written before the last scene was changed, so it has the original ending, in which Andie picks Duckie over Blane.

Release

The film earned US$6,065,870 during its opening weekend and $40,471,663 during its theatrical run. It was the 22nd highest-grossing film in 1986.^[8]

Critical reception

The film was a critical and commercial success.^[9] Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 80% based on reviews from 44 critics.^[10]

Legacy

The main cast of Pretty in Pink was featured in the October 15, 2010 issue of Entertainment Weekly, which centered around cast reunions for landmark films and television shows.^[11]

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

• 2002: AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – Nominated^[12]
• 2004: AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs:
  • "If You Leave" – Nominated^[13]

The film has also been an influence in popular culture over the years, such as:

• In Psych's episode 4.11, "Thrill Seekers and Hell Raisers," Shawn (James Roday) claims that he and Gus (Dule Hill) are "like Andie and Duckie." Also, in 3.2, "Murder? … Anyone? … Anyone? … Bueller?," Shawn identifies a murder victim by relating the victim's situation to Duckie. Also, in the episode "Dual Spires" (a parody of Twin Peaks), Shawn uncovers a secret relationship between the murder victim and the future leader of the town of Dual Spires, Randy Jackson. Randy would inherit the title of leader, so he was forbidden to date anyone that would want to take him away from the town. Shawn comments, "I get it. It's Pretty in Pink. You're Andrew McCarthy." The socially illiterate Randy unblinkingly asks who Andrew McCarthy is. Shawn admits that it is "fair" that Randy does not know the actor. Indeed, the entire town is portrayed as socially clueless (Randy admits later in the scene that the only television series or movie that the town has ever watched is Everwood.)
• According to Glee creator Ryan Murphy, the character Blaine Anderson was named after Blane in Pretty in Pink.
• In the third season episode "To Green, With Love" of TV series Dawson's Creek, Pacey Witter (Joshua Jackson) expresses his love for Joey Potter (Katie Holmes) to Jen Lindley (Michelle Williams), equating his situation to Duckie's:

Pacey: Well I have it on pretty good authority that my rough charms don't really register on her rarefied romantic palate. I mean lets face it, I've got Duckie written all over me.

Jen: Duckie?

Pacey: Yeah. Duckie, Molly Ringwald's best friend from Pretty in Pink. The guy who definitely doesn't get the girl.

Jen: Yes, but he makes the girl feel good about herself. He does...he stands by her through innumerable fashion emergencies, he even humiliates himself by lip syncing in a public place and he takes her to the prom.

Pacey: Where she promptly dumps him for another guy.

• The 2001 parody film Not Another Teen Movie spoofs Duckie with the character Ricky, and the character Janie has some elements of Andie's home life. Molly Ringwald also appears as an airline desk clerk who calls out Jake on quoting it to Janie at the airport to keep her from leaving.
• The Two and a Half Men episode "The Ol' Mexican Spinach" has Alan (played by Jon Cryer) dress as Duckie for Halloween in a meta-referential pseudo-reprisal of the role by Cryer.^[14]

Soundtrack

As with previous films by John Hughes, Pretty in Pink featured a soundtrack composed mostly of new wave music. While director Howard Deutch originally intended the film to primarily contain theme music, Hughes influenced Deutch's decision to use post-punk music throughout the film. The title song by the Psychedelic Furs acted as a bit of inspiration for the film and was re-recorded specifically for the film's opening sequence in a version that was less raw than the original; it was released in 1981 for the album Talk Talk Talk. "Left of Center" was remixed by Arthur Baker. The first track, "If You Leave", by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, was written in 1985 in advance specifically for the film. In addition to their song "Shellshock", New Order also had an instrumental version of "Thieves Like Us" and the instrumental "Elegia" appear in the film but not on the soundtrack. The Rave-Ups, who do appear in the film performing "Positively Lost Me" and "Rave-Up/Shut-Up" from their Town and Country album, do not have any songs on the soundtrack album. Nik Kershaw's "Wouldn't It Be Good" appears as re-recorded by former Three Dog Night vocalist Danny Hutton's band, Danny Hutton Hitters. Also noteworthy is the inclusion of Echo & the Bunnymen's "Bring On the Dancing Horses", which, according to the liner notes of the CD release of the band's compilation album Songs to Learn & Sing, was recorded specifically for the film.

The film also includes Otis Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness", which actor Jon Cryer's character "Duckie" lipsyncs to in the film, The Association's "Cherish", and Talk Back's "Rudy". These three tracks do not appear on the official soundtrack.

The soundtrack was released on vinyl in 1986. It was re-released in 2013 as a limited edition pink colored vinyl.

The album was listed among "Best Movie Soundtracks: The 15 Film Music Compilations That'll Change Your Life" in The Huffington Post,^[3] and "The 25 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time" in Rolling Stone.^[4] Allmusic rated it four stars out of five.^[15]

Singles released

References

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Pretty in Pink

• Pretty in Pink at the Internet Movie Database
• Pretty in Pink at AllMovie