There's no doubt that any film from the 80s starring John Cusack is a classic. <I>Better Off Dead</i> ranks high on the list (after the incredible <I>Say Anything</i>, maybe <I>One Crazy Summer</i>), due to its weird humor, character cast, and an <A HREF="https://youtu.be/YDsKGyu0F98?si=cFiTs_RqCjtGgBFi">animated hamburger dancing to Van Halen</A>.
(<A HREF="https://boxd.it/4TG7yP">Originally published on LG OLED's Letterboxd</A>)
Better Off Dead...
Insanity doesn't run in the family, it gallops.
Rating
5.0 (1)
Release Date
8/23/1985Runtime
97 minsOverview
High school student Lane Meyer sinks into suicidal depression when his girlfriend dumps him for jock Roy Stalin, the high school ski racing champion. Meanwhile, he has to deal with his eccentric family, a tenacious paperboy and an obnoxious neighbor whose mother is hosting a beautiful French exchange student named Monique.
Status
ReleasedOriginal Language
EnglishBudget
$3,500,000Revenue
$10,297,601Homepage
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How It Feels
Read from this film's synopsis, keywords and credits, and used to work out what it sits beside.
A deadpan comedy that treats teenage heartbreak with surreal, almost cartoonish absurdity: the film finds genuine pathos in its protagonist's despair while surrounding him with wonderfully weird side characters and non-sequiturs that never let the mood stay heavy.
Mood
WhimsicalAbsurdMelancholicHopeful
Themes
Coming of ageLoveFamilyRedemption
Tone
Comedic
Pacing
Brisk
Look
NaturalisticStylized genre
Structure
Linear
Heads up
Suicide and self-harm
Reviews
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