Can't Buy Me Love (film)
Encyclopedia
Can't Buy Me Love is a 1987 teen comedy
feature film
starring Patrick Dempsey
and Amanda Peterson
in a story about a nerd
at a high school in Tucson, Arizona
who gives a cheerleader $1,000 to pretend to be his girlfriend for a month. The film was directed by Steve Rash
.
Ronald then trades his nerdy-but-loyal friends for the shallow popular students and undergoes a complete clothing and hair makeover at Cindy's direction. Over the month, the two discover each other's individuality and are drawn closely together. Cindy soon starts to genuinely like Ronald. She gets to know him better as he opens up to her with his beliefs about astronomy, and how when he's his "dad's age, people will be working there and living there...maybe even us.", talking of the moon while looking at Cindy. She opens up to him as he washes her car at her house. She goes inside to get a poem that she'd written that meant the world to her, and lets Ronnie read it. It was a special moment for the two of them. When the month has ended, Ronald and Cindy dramatically "break up" in front of a crowd at school, as an act to solidify peoples' beliefs that they actually were a couple. Later, Cindy becomes jealous when she sees him going out with her girlfriends Barbara and Patty.
Ronald continues playing "cool" by hanging out with the jocks and hot chicks. At a New Year's Eve party, Ronald gets pretty drunk, goes into the bathroom with a girl and has sex with her. Cindy walks by and hears Ronald reciting the very poem that she (Cindy) had written, to this girl. She's completely devastated, so she starts drinking heavily. As a surprise, Bobby shows up at the party from the University of Iowa, as he still has strong ties with most of the athletes. After he learns about her relationship with Ronald through a few of the athletes, Cindy is brutally dumped in front of a lot of people. In anger and frustration, Cindy tells the party-goers the truth about her relationship with Ronald and his "cool" pretenses. She scolds her friends for falling for his act, and for being "a bunch of followers".
"Our little plan worked, didn't it, Ronald?" Cindy says as she effectively puts Ronald back at square one with not only the popular crowd (who now are back to teasing him and throwing food at him), but the nerdy crowd as well. Ronald suffers much emotional distress at being socially ostracized, especially after a transfer girl (Corissa Miller) walks up to him and remarks, in front of a lot of people during lunch that he took economics, and that he could've had her for $49.95.
However, a moment comes to redeem himself when he defends his best friend Kenneth against the onslaught of Quint (Cort McCown). Ronald points out that they were all friends at one time. Quint had fallen out of their tree-house and broke his arm when they were 9. They carried him 12 blocks to the hospital as he cried all the way. Now they are divided into cliques.
Cindy recognizes Ronald's worth after that, and the two reconcile when Cindy opts to hop on the back of Ronald's riding lawn mower instead of hanging out with her popular friends. The two share a kiss as the title song plays and closing credits roll, while the two of them ride off into the sunset...on a lawnmower.
, at Tucson High Magnet School
(then known as Tucson High School). The choreography
is by Paula Abdul
, who makes an uncredited appearance as a dancer. When the filmmakers decided to make this a non-union shoot, the Screen Actor's Guild protested the filming, going so far as to send representatives to the school to discourage students from appearing on camera. Because of this, none of the school's drama students chose to appear as extras in the film.
The film ranked number 41 on Entertainment Weekly's
list of the 50 Best High School Movies in 2006.
, Can't Buy Me Love was remade as Love Don't Cost a Thing
starring Nick Cannon
and Christina Milian
.
Teen film
Teen films is a film genre targeted at teenagers and young adults in which the plot is based upon the special interests of teenagers, such as coming of age, first love, rebellion, conflict with parents, teen angst, and alienation...
feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
starring Patrick Dempsey
Patrick Dempsey
Patrick Galen Dempsey is an American actor, known for his role as neurosurgeon Dr. Derek Shepherd on the medical drama Grey's Anatomy. Prior to Grey's Anatomy he made several television appearances and was nominated for an Emmy Award...
and Amanda Peterson
Amanda Peterson
Amanda Peterson is an American actress. Peterson gained fame during the late 1980s when she portrayed Cindy Mancini, a Tucson, Arizona high-school student, in the movie Can't Buy Me Love.-Career:...
in a story about a nerd
Nerd
Nerd is a derogatory slang term for an intelligent but socially awkward and obsessive person who spends time on unpopular or obscure pursuits, to the exclusion of more mainstream activities. Nerds are considered to be awkward, shy, and unattractive...
at a high school in Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
who gives a cheerleader $1,000 to pretend to be his girlfriend for a month. The film was directed by Steve Rash
Steve Rash
Steve Rash is an American film director and producer best known for directing such films as The Buddy Holly Story, Can't Buy Me Love, and Queens Logic.- External links :...
.
Plot
Ronald Miller (Dempsey) is a typical high school nerd. He spent all summer mowing lawns, to save up for a telescope. However, at an opportune moment, he makes a deal with popular cheerleader Cynthia "Cindy" Mancini (Peterson) to "rent" her for $1,000. She agrees so that she can afford to replace a suede outfit that Quint, a baseball jock, spilled red wine on while wearing at a party. The outfit belonged to her mother and Cindy hadn't received permission to borrow it. Having few options, except telling her mom the truth, Cindy reluctantly agrees to help him look "cool" by pretending to be his girlfriend for a month, even though she already has a boyfriend named Bobby, who is away at college. Both agree never to reveal the pact.Ronald then trades his nerdy-but-loyal friends for the shallow popular students and undergoes a complete clothing and hair makeover at Cindy's direction. Over the month, the two discover each other's individuality and are drawn closely together. Cindy soon starts to genuinely like Ronald. She gets to know him better as he opens up to her with his beliefs about astronomy, and how when he's his "dad's age, people will be working there and living there...maybe even us.", talking of the moon while looking at Cindy. She opens up to him as he washes her car at her house. She goes inside to get a poem that she'd written that meant the world to her, and lets Ronnie read it. It was a special moment for the two of them. When the month has ended, Ronald and Cindy dramatically "break up" in front of a crowd at school, as an act to solidify peoples' beliefs that they actually were a couple. Later, Cindy becomes jealous when she sees him going out with her girlfriends Barbara and Patty.
Ronald continues playing "cool" by hanging out with the jocks and hot chicks. At a New Year's Eve party, Ronald gets pretty drunk, goes into the bathroom with a girl and has sex with her. Cindy walks by and hears Ronald reciting the very poem that she (Cindy) had written, to this girl. She's completely devastated, so she starts drinking heavily. As a surprise, Bobby shows up at the party from the University of Iowa, as he still has strong ties with most of the athletes. After he learns about her relationship with Ronald through a few of the athletes, Cindy is brutally dumped in front of a lot of people. In anger and frustration, Cindy tells the party-goers the truth about her relationship with Ronald and his "cool" pretenses. She scolds her friends for falling for his act, and for being "a bunch of followers".
"Our little plan worked, didn't it, Ronald?" Cindy says as she effectively puts Ronald back at square one with not only the popular crowd (who now are back to teasing him and throwing food at him), but the nerdy crowd as well. Ronald suffers much emotional distress at being socially ostracized, especially after a transfer girl (Corissa Miller) walks up to him and remarks, in front of a lot of people during lunch that he took economics, and that he could've had her for $49.95.
However, a moment comes to redeem himself when he defends his best friend Kenneth against the onslaught of Quint (Cort McCown). Ronald points out that they were all friends at one time. Quint had fallen out of their tree-house and broke his arm when they were 9. They carried him 12 blocks to the hospital as he cried all the way. Now they are divided into cliques.
Cindy recognizes Ronald's worth after that, and the two reconcile when Cindy opts to hop on the back of Ronald's riding lawn mower instead of hanging out with her popular friends. The two share a kiss as the title song plays and closing credits roll, while the two of them ride off into the sunset...on a lawnmower.
Cast
- Patrick DempseyPatrick DempseyPatrick Galen Dempsey is an American actor, known for his role as neurosurgeon Dr. Derek Shepherd on the medical drama Grey's Anatomy. Prior to Grey's Anatomy he made several television appearances and was nominated for an Emmy Award...
as Ronald Miller - Amanda PetersonAmanda PetersonAmanda Peterson is an American actress. Peterson gained fame during the late 1980s when she portrayed Cindy Mancini, a Tucson, Arizona high-school student, in the movie Can't Buy Me Love.-Career:...
as Cindy Mancini - Courtney GainsCourtney Gains-Life and career:Gains achieved success during the 1980s with a variety of roles in films such as Children of the Corn, Hardbodies, Lust in the Dust, Back to the Future, Can't Buy Me Love, Colors,Wing Commander III, The 'Burbs and Memphis Belle...
as Kenneth Wurman - Seth GreenSeth GreenSeth Benjamin Green is an American actor, comedian, voice actor, and television producer. He is well known for his role as Daniel "Oz" Osbourne in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as Dr. Evil's son Scott in the Austin Powers series of comedy films, Mitch Miller in That '70s Show, and the voice of Chris...
as Chuckie Miller - Sharon FarrellSharon FarrellSharon Farrell is an American television and film actress.-Career:Born as Sharon Forsmoe in Sioux City, Iowa, she made her acting debut in the 1959 film Kiss Her Goodbye...
as Mrs. Mancini - Tina CasparyTina CasparyTina Caspary is an American actress, dancer and choreographer. She gained moderate attention in the late 1980s with Can't Buy Me Love.-Early life:...
as Barbara - Darcy DeMossDarcy DeMossDarcy DeMoss is an American film and television actress whose credits include Eden, Erotic Confessions, Can't Buy Me Love and Vice Academy 3.-External links:...
as Patty - Cort McCown as Quint
- Eric BruskotterEric Bruskotter- Career :Bruskotter started acting in the mid-80's appearing in television shows like Mr. Belvedere and Amazing Stories. He gained notoriety when he appeared in the film Can't Buy Me Love in 1987...
as Big John - Gerardo MejíaGerardoGerardo Mejía , better known as simply Gerardo, is a Latin rapper and singer who later became a recording industry executive. Born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, he has based his career in Los Angeles, California since his family moved to Glendale, California, when he was 12 years old. He became known for...
as Ricky - Dennis DuganDennis DuganDennis Dugan is an American director, comedian, and actor. He is most famous for his partnership with comedic actor Adam Sandler, with whom he directed the films Happy Gilmore, Big Daddy, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, You Don't Mess with the Zohan, Grown Ups, Just Go With It, and Jack and...
as David Miller - Cloyce Morrow as Judy Miller
- Devin DeVasquezDevin DeVasquezDevin Renee DeVasquez is an American model and actress. She was chosen as Playboy's Playmate of the Month in June 1985. Her centerfold was photographed by Richard Fegley...
as Iris - Ami DolenzAmi DolenzAmi Dolenz is an American television and film actress and producer.- Early life and career :Born in Burbank, California into a show business family, Dolenz is the daughter of Micky Dolenz of the 1960s group the Monkees, and British television presenter Samantha Juste...
as Faur
Production notes
The film was shot on location in Tucson, ArizonaTucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
, at Tucson High Magnet School
Tucson High Magnet School
Tucson High Magnet School , commonly referred to as THMS, THS, Tucson High, and Tucson Magnet, is a 2009 Performing Plus Tucson public high school and is part of the Tucson Unified School District with magnet programs in Science, Mathematics, Technology, Visual Arts, and Performing Arts...
(then known as Tucson High School). The choreography
Choreography
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
is by Paula Abdul
Paula Abdul
Paula Julie Abdul is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, choreographer, actress and television personality.In the 1980s, Abdul rose from cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers to highly sought-after choreographer at the height of the music video era before scoring a string of pop music-R&B hits...
, who makes an uncredited appearance as a dancer. When the filmmakers decided to make this a non-union shoot, the Screen Actor's Guild protested the filming, going so far as to send representatives to the school to discourage students from appearing on camera. Because of this, none of the school's drama students chose to appear as extras in the film.
Critical reception
Caryn James in the New York Times wrote that the film missed its mark and traded its potential originality for a bid at popularity by writing, "Michael Swerdlick, the writer, and Steve Rash, the director...waste a chance to make the much deeper, funnier movie that strains to break through. [The film]...has an identity crisis that's a mirror-image of Ronald's own. He thinks he wants popularity at any price, though he's really a sincere guy. The film thinks it wants to be sincere, when all it truly wants is to be popular, just like the other kids' movies, so it sells off its originality."The film ranked number 41 on Entertainment Weekly's
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
list of the 50 Best High School Movies in 2006.
Awards
Young Artist AwardYoung Artist Award
The Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist...
- Won: Best Young Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy, Patrick DempseyPatrick DempseyPatrick Galen Dempsey is an American actor, known for his role as neurosurgeon Dr. Derek Shepherd on the medical drama Grey's Anatomy. Prior to Grey's Anatomy he made several television appearances and was nominated for an Emmy Award...
- Nominated: Best Young Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy, Amanda PetersonAmanda PetersonAmanda Peterson is an American actress. Peterson gained fame during the late 1980s when she portrayed Cindy Mancini, a Tucson, Arizona high-school student, in the movie Can't Buy Me Love.-Career:...
- Nominated: Best Young Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy, Tina CasparyTina CasparyTina Caspary is an American actress, dancer and choreographer. She gained moderate attention in the late 1980s with Can't Buy Me Love.-Early life:...
- Nominated: Best Family Motion Picture - Comedy
Remake
In 20032003 in film
The year 2003 in film involved some significant events. Releases of sequels took place with movies like The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, Pokémon Heroes, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,...
, Can't Buy Me Love was remade as Love Don't Cost a Thing
Love Don't Cost a Thing (film)
Love Don't Cost a Thing, stylized as Love Don't Co$t a Thing, is a 2003 teen comedy film written and directed by Troy Beyer and starring Nick Cannon and Christina Milian It also stars Steve Harvey, Kenan Thompson and Kal Penn...
starring Nick Cannon
Nick Cannon
Nicholas Scott "Nick" Cannon is an American actor, comedian, rapper, entrepreneur, record producer, radio, and television personality. On television, Cannon began as a teenage sketch comedian on All That before going on to host The Nick Cannon Show, Wild 'N Out, and America's Got Talent...
and Christina Milian
Christina Milian
Christine Flores , better known by her stage name Christina Milian , is an American singer-songwriter, actress, dancer, and model....
.
External links
- Can't Buy Me Love trailer at You Tube