if you were to ask me what my favorite 80s teen movie is, i would probably bypass the usual john hughes fare and say some kind of wonderful. directed by howard deutsch (who also directed pretty in pink) and written by hughes, it starred eric stoltz, lea thompson, mary stuart masterson, and craig sheffer. the movie played in similar themes as pink, but instead of poor girl falling in love with rich guy, it’s arty keith (stoltz) falling in love with it-girl-but-not-rich-girl amanda jones (thompson). her boyfriend hardy (sheffer) is a tool, but she isn’t confident enough in herself to dump him. meanwhile keith’s tomboy best friend watts (masterson) seems ambivalent, but deep down she loves keith and wants to be with him. by the end, everything is how it should be: keith is with watts, amanda jones is “alone for the right reasons,” and hardy gets his butt kicked.
i related to watts, the tomboy who harbored a crush on the arty kid. my first boyfriend was a bit like keith; he was an artist and skateboarder who happened to also be a distance runner and was on the track team with me. and like watts, it took a while for me to get him to see me as more than a friend. maybe it was because my wardrobe was mostly pulled from the guy’s section, like watts. oversized graphic tees, baggy jeans (now called boyfriend), and my trusty doc martens and the occasional vintage blazer were part of the look back then. now, you can look like watts, but in a cooler, sexier, chic-er way—check out some watts-approved pieces below. was there a teen movie that inspired your style when you were younger?
photos via katealexandramcleish.blogspot.com strangeways radio, fanpop, thepurpleclown, franspatrick, thomaspluck.com, unpopular culture
