Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)

It’s only after I watched Some Kind of Wonderful for the umpteenth time recently that I realised how much it had in common with Pretty in Pink, the John Hughes penned movie that had been completed the year earlier.

They have the same director, same writer – even the same basic plot structure. In fact, these two movies are so similar in concept and execution that they could have been separated at birth, only with Some Kind of Wonderful being the child that has been (unfairly) abandoned at the side of the road never to be spoken about. It’s an unpopular opinion, I know, but this is the more enjoyable film.

Watts: Don’t mistake Paradise for a pair of long legs.

Eric Stoltz is Keith, the working class boy who falls for Amanda, the most popular girl in school, played by Lea Thompson. She is, of course, gorgeous and going out with a rich tool. Mary Stuart Masterson is Keith’s best friend Watts who… well, if you’ve seen any eighties high-school based romantic comedies you’ll know where this goes, but it’s a lot of effortless fun along the way. The three leads play well off each other, with Stoltz being the weakest link – there’s just something about him as an actor that I’ve never bought into.

Some Kind of Wonderful is considered a part of the loosely defined Brat Pack canon, and while it is certainly not the best of that bunch, it’s in the top third… and like I said earlier, it’s better than that other one.