"Risky Business" Turns 40 This Month!

By

You're getting older, dear. Or you are if you saw "Risky Business" during its first run in movie theatres in 1983. Like many things reaching middle-age about now, the movie's turning 40 years-old this month. Have you misplaced your glasses yet? Do you groan when you bend down? Do you, God forbid, know your alcohol limit? Then, yes, don't deny it, you not only saw "Risky Business" in the theatre, you probably saw it again on VHS. And don't even dare pretend you don't know what that is. 

"Risky Business," as we know, was a classic teen movie - hypnotically directed by Paul Brickman - about a beautiful, enigmatic Chicago call girl who comes to the aid of a snotty, pampered, suburban teen boy by turning his home into a brothel, enabling him to impress a visiting Princeton recruiter. 


The prostitute, as we know, was played the young Rebecca De Mornay, whose performances earned praise from critics, including the esteemed "New Yorker" critic, Pauline Kael, who wrote, "She's mysterious, supple - a golden blonde with an inward-directed smile, like Veronica Lake, but with a greater range of expressiveness. This actress has an original way of a playing a prostitute." 


"I wanted to maintain her dignity," said De Mornay in a recent interview celebrating the movie's 40th anniversary (pictured above with writer/director Paul Brickman and producer Jon Avnet), "regardless if she was having sex for money. She maintained some integrity and soul. I wanted to present her as the underdog exploited by the capitalist system, trying to get by as best she could without the cushion of money or family connections." 


De Mornay, of course, has had a stellar career since, with notable highlights including "The Trip To Bountiful," "The Hand That Rocks The Cradle," and my favorite role of hers, as a harried locomotive driver in Andrei Konchalovsky's action-thriller, "Runaway Train." 

As for "Risky Business," it also featured an early performance by Bronson Pinchot, who later noted that De Mornay's male co-star was, "The biggest bore on the face of planet Earth. He was tense and made constant - constant - unrelated homophobic comments. I thought it was very weird. Some people are so nasty and I don't know why." 

Photo Credits: Getty Images, Associated Press, Geffen Pictures/Warner Bros, AMPAS

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

OPEN POST: How Do You "Lazy" On Sunday? Plus Dee-licious Turkey Moussaka!

By
Image
Is Sunday a day of rest for you? How do you lazy? During the summer, me and the hubs sometimes pop gummies and float in the pool or meet friends for brunch. In the winter, brunch is still on, and since it doesn't get too cold here, we'll go for hikes or meet friends for afternoon-to-evening cocktails. Or occasionally, no matter the season, I just refuse to get up and cuddle with Elder Cat. This is pure bliss, I assure you.  I know some people use Sunday to work out at the gym, run errands and clean like demons, but really, that's what Saturday is for. For me, Sunday means no effort, maximum chill. If there's even a chance that something might cause me stress or require exertion, I avoid it. The most I'll do, in terms of effort, is make my signature "Bree Daniels Dee-licious Turkey M oussaka." It's easy to do, it's very relaxing and it's so good you'll scream. I've mentioned it before, but in case you didn't see it, the recipe is bel
Read more

OPEN POST: Happy Friday the 13th!

By
Image
Happy Friday the 13th, superstitious hors! Here at the Manor, we don't consider it an unlucky day. Instead, we use it as an excuse to celebrate black cats, snake eyes, and various other forms of magic bitchery! Therefore, in honor of this devilish day of cosmic schadenfreude, we're hosting a gathering in the courtyard where we're bringing all the hits - salt for spilling, mirrors for breaking, and ladders to dance beneath all night long. Join us as we tempt fate with wild abandon!
Read more

OPEN POST: Start Your Week With Cher! Hoooooooooo!

By
Image
It's Monday, which is harsh enough. But everything's better with one simple ingredient: Cher. See? Just reading that made you feel good.  Did you know? She was almost cast in "Thelma & Louise." No, for reals.  Before Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis were cast, she was offered one of the lead roles, but turned it down. Why? We don't know. Cher will be Cher. She also turned down the Sarah Connor role in "The Terminator." Can you imagine Cher opposite Ah-nold? Yeah, that's a "no" for me, dawg. Also, for better or for worse, her 1998 hit “Believe” was the first major pop song to use autotune so prominently, a style which is still widely used and abused today. The only upside is that "Believe" really pissed off Madonna, since she was experimenting with autotune in the studio for her forthcoming "Music" album and Cher beat her to the punch.  Why? Because she's Cher. Because Cher has always been unapologetically herself,
Read more