The 80s Club

Not sure what got me thinking of this movie tonight. Maybe it’s because my head is stuck in the 80’s. Maybe it’s because the crisp autumn air is reminding me that we’re just on the cusp of basketball season (woohoo!).

Whatever the reason, my thoughts are trapped tonight in a small town in Indiana where Gene Hackman and Barbara Hershey are trying not to admit their fondness for each other while standing divided on the necessity of basketball in a young man’s life. And I love Dennis Hopper in this film. He played the role of the drunk, desperate, passionate father so well. My heart broke for him and his son.

I really do enjoy this movie. I think it’s one of the best sports movies of all time, though I’m open to discussion on that. Is it one of your favorites?

The second in our weekly pick of the best of the worst of the 80’s movies goes to Weekend at Bernie’s. You remember it, right? The one where Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman lug a dead guy (that they’re pretending is a live guy) around paradise so they can stay out of trouble or something. Gee, how did that plot not inspire Oscar-winning performances?

This pick was submitted by Laura who writes on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome over at CFS Squared. Here’s her thought on the film:

i have seen it lots and lots. but everytime i watch it, it feels like i have never seen it before.

Probably because you try to forget every time. ;) Maybe not, maybe that’s just me. Though I really wish someone would find a good staying role for Andrew McCarthy. I liked him in his single episode role on Monk, but still waiting to see him star in a a series that succeeds.

So, there you have it. Week two of the best of the worst. What are your memories of Weekend at Bernies?

Did you know that Fraggle Rock is now on DVD? I had no idea!

I used to be so jealous of all of my friends who had HBO because they would always come to school talking about the latest funny episode of Fraggle Rock. We would excitedly await the next free HBO weekend so that we could catch up on a few episodes.

And we were never disappointed when we finally got around to seeing them, which wasn’t any big surprise. Who doesn’t love any Muppet-filled Jim Henson production? Except for The Dark Crystal. I never did really get into that one.

What was your favorite Muppets feature?

Chevy Chase (Cornelius Crane Chase–who knew?) is set to appear on an upcoming episode of Law and Order (the regular one, no special letters here).

I think Caddyshack is still one of Bald Man’s favorite movies. He’s shocked that I’ve never actually seen it. I’m shocked that he could actually sit through the whole thing. We often have different ideas of what’s funny. Annoying gophers? Not so much for me.

However, it should be fun to see Chevy Chase on L&O. I think I’ve seen every other 80’s star appear on it at some time or another. Even if I didn’t like the show (which I DO), it would be a fun game of, “Who’s the 80’s actor/actress appearing in this week’s episode?” to play.

I know nothing about Madonna’s recent attempts (or not) to adopt. Nothing more than you can probably read on hundreds of sites whose writers are speculating on the latest developments. So, I won’t waste any time on that here.

I do, in the midst of all the ubiquitous Madonna news, keep coming back to this movie, and to all the songs that I bellowed out to as a pre-teen/teen, sung by a way hip one-named superstar with big bows and earrings who was slithering across a stage. Man, was she cool.

When Desperately Seeking Susan was released, Madonna was in her late twenties. Not too far off of where I am today (I said not TOO far off….). It seems like just a blink since the early Madonna craze. Really.

I’m curious to know what that young 20-something girl would have thought of her life as it is now. Could she have imagined the impact that she would have on our culture? Was she already planning out the shock factor that her book and concerts would have on legions of people? Would she have seen herself as a mother? What kind of mother? Did she ever imagine that she would be trying to adopt a child from Malawi? Had she ever heard of Malawi?

My life is pretty much what I thought it would be 20 years ago. Not a bad thing, just a fact. Will my life in 20 years be what I expect it to be now? What impact will I have on the world? What choices am I making now that will impact my life, and the lives of others, for better or worse? Had I ever heard of Malawi before these last few weeks?

No answers today, just questions.

Oh, and I remember Rosanna Arquette in the film (duh), but Aidan Quinn and Laurie Metcalf? No memory of them at all in it. I’m gonna have tons of movies to catch up on, again!

And here begins the first in a series of the best of the worst in 80’s movies. I’ve begged, pleaded, and charmed my way into receiving submissions for this series from my fellow b5media writers. Starting Monday, I’ll share a weekly post featuring those great bad flicks, and introducing you to the blogs of those who love to hate them.

You know which movies I’m talking about, right? Those bad, bad movies that you just can’t walk away from when they’re marathoning for the zillionth weekend on cable. Those movies that you might not dish out well-earned dollars (or quid) for, but that you’d zone out in front of for about a week’s worth of your life.

We’ll start just a day early so that I can share mine with you. Better Off Dead starring John Cusack has to be one of the best of the bad movies. It’s been years since I’ve seen it, but I don’t think much more than a week goes by that either Bald Man or I don’t say, “Fronch fries, Fronch bread, and to drink—Peru!” Also popular in our home are, “I want my two dollars!!!!!” (That’s usually me yelling when somebody has taken my last dollar our of my wallet.) And, of course, “Riiiiiiicccckkyyyy” and “Chriiiiiiisssstmasssss” while squeezing each other’s cheeks together. Good times.

Dang, I’m gonna have to go out and get this one again. In the meantime, you can check out some other great quotes from the movie here. Enjoy!

I’m not sure why, but as I was thinking about sneezing, my thoughts turned to Galaxy Glue. (I don’t understand my thought patterns anymore than I expect you to, just sharing pertinent information). And then just a flood of memories from the movie The Incredible Shrinking Woman starting coming to my head.

For those of you who only know Lily Tomlin at the Secretary to the POTUS on the West Wing, let it be known that she had a successful and fun career long before she sat outside of the (on set) Oval Office. One fun moment in that career was the film The Incredible Shrinking Woman. Bald Man’s never seen it (no idea how he escaped viewing this classic!), and I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to know that I’ve requested it from the library. Run out and get it yourself if you’ve not seen it yet!

By the way, does any body have any Galaxy Glue?

I loved watching Lou Diamond Phillips as Ritchie Valens in La Bamba. Dad was an oldies junkie, and so the music was familiar and fun. Mom’s family is Mexican, and so maybe I thought I was getting a taste of some of their struggles being first generation immigrants trying to fit in to mainstream America. You know, without all the fame and stardom and such. Whatever the case, I love that movie.

I’ve been excited to see Phillips recently appear as Special Agent Ian Edgerton on the CBS drama Numb3rs, which stars Judd Hirsch, David Krumholtz, Rob Morrow, and a few other wonderful actors. Phillips guest stars as a sniper, and reprised his role in this season’s premiere. It’s a great show, and he seems a good addition to it.

As I’m researching for this post, I see all of the articles about Phillips’ recent arrest on charges of domestic abuse against his girlfriend. How sad. If it’s true, let’s hope he gets some help, and hope that she will heal.

One of my favorite movies of all time is Some Kind of Wonderful. Love it! Eric Stoltz, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Lea Thompson in a love triangle for all the ages. Why don’t I own this movie?

Anyway, I’m flipping channels tonight and come across Celebrity Duets. Crazy little show hosted by Wayne Brady. I didn’t much like Wayne’s (can I call you Wayne?) talk show, but he does still crack me up.

Where was I? Oh yeah, Lea Thompson. So, there she is on my TV singing her little heart out, bare belly and all. I could make some comment about “at what age should you stop showing your belly,” but, since I’ve NEVER had that flat a belly, I’ll leave it to those of you who have room to talk. So, there she is, and it’s an odd moment seeing her singing up there with Cheech Marin, Alfonso Ribeiro (Hello, Carlton), Carly Patterson, Jai Rodriguez and others. Odd.

Two things I’ve learned from watching a bit of this show (Sorry. Not even for you, my readers, can I sit through the whole show.):

1. I’d still rather watch Lea Thompson in Some Kind of Wonderful or Back to the Future.
2. Celebrities look just as goofy as us regular folk dancing while they karaoke.

Okay, so I lied. I ended up watching the whole darn thing. After performing with Belinda Carlisle, Lea got kicked off the show. But it was way cute seeing her kids in the audience cheering for her.

Bit of Trivia: Lea Thompson, Eric Stoltz, and Mary Stuart Masterson have all appeared in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Am I the only one noticing the Flashdance inspired shirt making a comeback? Crazy.

Did we learn nothing from our fashion mistakes of the 80’s? Of course, the college freshman I recently spotted sporting this fashion wasn’t yet conceived when this style was born.

Yikes! I’m starting to sound like one of those old fogies.