Plot: What’s it about?
Bill Dancer (James Belushi) is a homeless man, one who uses scams to keep his next meal within reach. He uses some questionable methods, but no one is hurt by his scams and he only tries to get enough to survive. As skilled as he is at getting these plots to work, without his companion Curly Sue (Alisan Porter), he wouldn’t have much luck. Curly Sue is a young girl with an adorable face, though she is tough as can be, at least on the outside. So if the victim doesn’t fall for Bill’s sympathetic presence, then Curly Sue can turn on the tears and without fail, the two have a meal and sometimes more. The next plan is to fake an accident, as Bill is going to pretend he is hit by someone’s car and then Curly Sue will work her magic. The target drives a Mercedes, so the two are hoping their next meal with be a nice one. The woman driving the car is Grey Ellison (Kelly Lynch), who is stunned when she thinks he hit Bill and when she hears Curly Sue’s stories, she is moved and wishes to help the two unfortunate souls. Much to the dismay of her stuck up boyfriend, she insists the two spent the night, so as to sleep in real beds and have a couple of real meals. As time passes, Bill begins to wish Curly Sue could leave behind the ways of the street to live this lifestyle, but Curly Sue has other plans in mind…
As of this review, John Hughes hasn’t directed a picture since this one, a tale of a spunky little girl named Curly Sue. But after his immense success with such films as The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Hughes left his director’s chair on a low note, as Curly Sue wasn’t up his to his usual standards. In fact, all of his other movies have become mainstays, not to mention numerous hits as a writer & producer, but Curly Sue simply failed to have the same kind of magic as his other efforts. The storyline is cute and offers decent family entertainment, but it can’t measure up to the kind of insightful work we expect from Hughes. I do like the exploration of the father-daughter relationship, but Hughes is often able to go more in depth, instead of using broad strokes and stereotypical moments. A few genuine scenes do surface in this movie, but we’ve seen most of this material time and again. Of course, its hard to resist Alisan Porter as the cute, but tough Curly Sue, though she vanished from the industry after this picture, perhaps because of the lukewarm reception. But I have to say, Curly Sue is a passable option to waste away ninety minutes, if you’re looking for a film of this kind. And since Warner’s disc is quite good, I can offer a decent recommendation for Curly Sue.
He might not have the title role of a cute, obnoxious little girl, but James Belushi is the base this film is grounded on. At its heart, Curly Sue is a romantic comedy and Belushi is asked to shoulder much of that content. Yes, Curly Sue herself is the focus of the film, but Belushi is given a full plate thanks to his established skills, since his costar is a young, inexperienced performer. I’ve always liked his work and even in this picture, he manages to push out a solid effort. He doesn’t always have the best lines to work with, but he makes it all come together well and in the end, is the main reason Curly Sue turns out to be so decent. If he hadn’t been on his game, this one would have stunk to high heaven, as he is often the sole saving grace. Of course, he has done better turns in better movies, but all things considered, he is quite good here. I have to think his casting was the best choice involved in this production. Other films with Belushi include Taking Care of Business, Joe Somebody, Who’s Harry Crumb?, Red Heat, and Mr. Destiny. The cast also includes Kelly Lynch (Charlie’s Angels, Drugstore Cowboy), Alisan Porter (I Love You to Death, Parenthood), and Fred Dalton Thompson (Cape Fear, Die Hard 2).
Video: How does it look?
Curly Sue is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. This is a fine visual presentation, one which is much better than previous editions. The print used seems to be in fine condition and I found no hiccups in the compression process, even the snow laden scenes look sharp and well defined. The colors stream across the screen in bright, natural hues, but I never detected any smears or bleeds. The flesh tones also look good, with warm shades and no distortion. Just as solid is the contrast, which displays complex shadow patterns and no visible detail loss. So Curly Sue has never looked better and of course, that is sure to delight fans.
Audio: How does it sound?
This is a comedy, so don’t expect a speaker shattering experience, but this is an adequate audio track. The main track is a 2.0 surround offering which gives the dialogue a sharp, crisp sound and isn’t hampered by harshness or volume problems. This is very much vocally driven and so the audio is usually in the front channels, but some decent surround use also comes into play. A few sequences provide some nice atmospheric sounds, but for the most part the sound effects and music reside as background audio. This isn’t a problem at all though, since this is a dialogue driven comedic movie. This disc also includes French, Spanish, and Portuguese language tracks, as well as subtitles in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.
Supplements: What are the extras?
An introduction with star Alisan Porter starts us off, then we have a feature length commentary track with the young woman. Of course, its great to hear Porter’s comments, but perhaps another star of crew member could have joined her. Even so, its cool to hear the thoughts of Curly Sue herself, so I won’t complain much. This disc also includes some talent files, as well as the film’s theatrical trailer.
