Rant of the Week

Andie Duckie Blane

 

At the end of "Pretty in Pink", Andie (Molly Ringwald) forsakes the rich kid, Blane, and finally reciprocates Duckie's long, anguished crush.

No she didn't.  That is what John Hughes wanted originally.  The alternative was, according to IMDB:  "forced upon him by the studio...".   Andie goes with Blane.  This was complicated and required the actors to be flown back to location and refilmed.

In this excruciating scene-- "I always believed in you.  You just didn't believe in me..." (Blane) gratifies the ambiguous feelings Americans have towards wealth.  They want to hate the rich.  Then they want to be the rich.  Then they want to hate the rich.   That whacky Ron "Duckie" Paul had a crush on her but in the end, she's got to go with Mitt Romney.  And Duckie must be forced to be party to his own emasculation.  But then, Kristy Swanson smiles that intoxicating, unnerving, mesmerizing smile and it's almost worth it.

Another trivia item contradicts the claim that the studio was the culprit:  it says that director/writer John Hughes didn't want to imply that poor kids couldn't make it with rich kids.  He didn't want to leave you with the idea the class matters.  As if it didn't.

Another note mentions that test audiences wanted Andie to end up with Blane.

Test audiences?

I have a solution for that problem.  Let's round up a test audience, give them a notebook, a camera and a microphone and a recorder and some lights and make-up, and tell them to go make a film.  They can make the exact film they want.  Then they can watch it over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.  See how they like it. 

It doesn't make any sense.  If movie producers need a test audience to tell them how to end a movie, why not have them create the story as well?  Well, I guess they kind of do. 

Test audiences would never have approved of the ending of "The Graduate", the most original and compelling minute of the movie.  They would have had Ben and Elaine laugh, kiss, and "Feelin' Groovy" would have played in the background.  

 
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