Better Off Dead

If you are of a certain age/generation (mostly likely Generation X-which I am a member of) than you’re probably a John Cusack fan. This fandom is mostly due to 3 films- The Sure Thing (1985), Better Off Dead (1985), & Say Anything...(1989). I would like to take a closer look at each film.                                                           Up next is Better Off Dead (1985). I like this film. Its just a lot of fun. The story is a variation of the standard love story. Boy has girlfriend, they break up, he’s depressed until he meets a new girl who likes him & eventually they get together. What makes this film so much fun is the film’s skewed logic which is supplied by the film’s writer/director Savage Steve Holland.  He got his start in animation & that’s the kind of logic this film has.  Here are a few examples of that logic- a few guys ask the guy (Lane Myer) if its ok to go out with his ex-girlfriend, there’s a paper boy who is terrorizing Lane because he wants his monthly fee of $2, Lane’s dad sets him up on date with his Law Partners daughter Joanne Greenwald. Lane doesn’t want to go out with her because she wears head gear because she wears braces. She comes over to his house & informs Lane that she doesn’t want to go with him either. She then pulls out a calculator and figures out how much he would have spent on their date. She prints a receipt & says if he pays the total they don’t have to go out. He writes her check (if only you could do this in real life!)   And two Japanese brothers who are always challenging Lane to drag races, one doesn’t speak English & the other speaks English as Howard Cosell. What makes this gag really fun is the car the brothers drive has a loud speaker attached to the roof so everyone can hear the brother talking like Howard Cosell. As I mentioned Lane is depressed so attempts to kill himself but is never successful. He attempts to hang himself but he uses the door that leads to the kitchen from garage and doesn’t use a particular strong item to hang himself. He tries to throw himself off a bridge that has a road underneath it but he falls into a garbage truck. He then he wants to light himself on fire with a jar of gasoline. He is interrupted before he can do so because he is called to diner. So he takes this jar to the dinner table where a neighbor (Mrs. Smith) sees it & mistakes it for homemade liquor. She drinks it, then lights a cigarette & which results in her face being burned. The neighbor unintentionally supplies Lane with his next love interest. She has son named Ricky & they are housing a female French exchange student named Monique (Diane Franklin) which is how Lane meets her. Monique is the ideal girlfriend-pretty, smart (she does speak two languages), handy (she helps Lane fix up his 1967 Camaro), & she loves sports (particular the Dodgers). She doesn’t like the Smiths so she pretends that she can’t speak English.  This is the leading lady Cusack has had the most chemistry with. I wish they had made more films together. The rest of the cast is also strong. The two who particularly stand out are Curtis Armstrong as Lane’s best friend Charles De Mar who wants to get drunk or high, & David Ogden Stiers as Lane’s dad Al Myer who can’t figure out Lane & tries to talk to him in the lingo of the 80’s but gets it wrong. Further proof of the film 80’s setting is the reason Lane’s girlfriend breaks up with him is to go out with an athlete-the captain of the school’s ski team- Roy Stalin. Roy has a huge claim to fame in their town (the fictional Greendale in "the state of Northern California”) he’s the only person to have skied the most dangerous ski course in the town the K-12. If you’re thinking that going to be play an important part of the film’s plot you would be correct. Before the film’s climax at the K-12 Lane gets back at the Japanese brothers by beating them at drag racing with his Camaro. As for the climax at the K-12 Lane has to take on Stalin by sking the K-12. You should know the outcome. What makes the outcome more remarkable is Lane does it one ski! This is where the film’s skewed logic makes some more welcomed appearances. After the outcome the Japanese brother who sounds like Howard Cosell interviews Lane. Lane has to rush off because Monique is being carried away by Ricky. Lane stops him &they commence to dual with ski poles! Lane wins & he carries her off. They end up at Dodger stadium where they are last seen making out.  However the films skewed logic makes one last appearance because the paperboy is seen riding up on them on his bike. A fitting end to a film that is able to balance an 80 cliché (the ski challenge), a love story, & skewed logic. Truly enjoyable!