by FilmInk staff
We put on the 1983 Valley Girl the other night – let’s pretend the remake doesn’t exist, shall we – which made us reflect on female roles in the much-maligned 1980s teen comedy genre. Were they exploitative? At times, definitely. But they were often better than roles going for older actresses during that period. And some have stood the test of time. Here is a list of our top ten – chip in with your own thoughts below.
1) Mary Stuart Masterson as Watts in Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)
This list isn’t in numerical order except for MSM at number one – as the iconic, short-haired, funny, adorable drummer in the last John Hughes teen film. No one was ever as heartbreaking or watchable and it’s an indictment on Hollywood that the studios did not know how to use Masterson’s potential as a star afterwards. We should also give an honourable mention to Lea Thompson’s excellent performance in the same movie, and Masterson’s dream girlfriend role (she smokes, she puts out) in Catholic Boys (1985).
2) Deborah Foreman in Valley Girl (1983)
A movie that has aged quite well, except for that “romantic stalking” bit around the two-thirds mark. And a lot of that is due to Foreman’s extremely winning performance in the lead: natural, fresh and engaging. It helped that she and Nicolas Cage were an item during the shoot – their chemistry is off the charts. We miss blonde villains in movies. Watching this movie, it kept bugging us who Foreman reminded us of and we realised it was Zoey Deutch, which is high praise.
3) Molly Ringwald in Sixteen Candles (1984)
Yes, not all the film has, ahem, aged well, but Ringwald’s performance remains great – fresh, natural, engaging… Oh we’re using the same words as we did in describing Deborah Foreman. We can’t help it. Ringwald was terrific in this and the next two Hughes movies and everyone thought she was going to be what Julia Roberts turned into – Ringwald was on the cover of Time – but she struggled with less sympathetic directors and material (The Pick Up Artist, Fresh Horses, For Keeps), and the momentum of her career derailed. Let’s be honest – would Pretty Woman have done as well with Ringwald rather than Julia Roberts? Apparently, Ringwald turned down that part – along with the lead in Ghost. She “met with directors” but did not get Silence of the Lambs or Working Girl. Those films found the right stars, just as Sixteen Candles did.
4) Ione Skye in Say Anything (1989)
This film feels more like a ‘90s movie than an ‘80s movie, but we’re including it anyway – gorgeous, warm (yes, again, a bit stalker-y), nerd positive. Shout out to the three gals who played John Cusack’s besties in this movie, by the way. This would make a better musical than Almost Famous. Skye never became a big star – in her case, we think it’s mostly because she was having too good a time. She’s an Aussie now.
5) Jennifer Jason Leigh in Fast Times at Ridgemount High (1982)
Yes, Phoebe Cates was amazing (a good actor as well as doing the famous scene) but Jennifer Jason Leigh is even more so – kind, warm, relatable, heartbreaking. She even makes us believe that she’d go for Brian Backer. It’s a fantastic part and she knocked it out of the park. Immortalised, in a way, in the biography of Scarlett Johansson’s character in Marriage Story (based on Noah Baumbach’s divorce from Leigh). Probably the most heavy-hitting actor on this list.
6) Daphne Zuniga in The Sure Thing (1985)
Watching this again, one is struck by two things (a) John Cusack wearing an Australian sports jersey in one scene and (b) the excellence of Zuniga’s performance. If the ecosystem of late ‘80s Hollywood had been different – if they made more rom coms/women in peril thrillers, say, like they did in the late ‘90s – she could have been a huge star, but instead Zuniga was in some films that didn’t work for audiences (Modern Girls, Last Rites, The Fly II, Gross Anatomy). We could say the same for her co-stars in 1986’s Modern Girls: Virginia Madsen and Cynthia Gibb. They’re both fabulous too.
7) Helen Hunt in Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (1985)
A charming movie with a smart script and growing fan base, one of the best efforts from New World during its post-Roger Corman years. Sarah Jessica Parker is very good, ditto Shannen Doherty but we don’t think anyone could deny that Hunt steals the movie.
8) Winona Ryder in Heathers (1988)
Again, this feels more like a ‘90s movie than an ‘80s movie – indeed, Heathers helped create the concept of the ‘90s movie – but it did fall within the decade, so it gets on this list. Heathers established Ryder as the dream girl for EMO-inclined boys (who then moved on to Samantha Mathis after Pump Up the Volume). It remains a charming performance. Screenwriter Daniel Walters wanted Jennifer Connelly and the role was offered to and turned down by Justine Bateman – how’s that for a parallel timeline? Heather Graham turned down one of the other Heathers (her mum turned it down, rather).
9) Jennifer Grey in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
Grey is so blindingly funny and brilliant in this movie, it makes you wish that she had done a whole swag of comedies playing bitches. What happened to Grey’s career after Dirty Dancing? Well, look at the movies Hollywood turned out in 1988-89… not a lot of great parts for young women. What could she have starred in?
10) Rae Dawn Chong in Soul Man (1986)
The film is problematic, all these movies are, but she’s very likable and you can substitute it for Beat Street if you want… Break it down!
