Better Off Dead | |
---|---|
Directed by | Savage Steve Holland |
Written by | Savage Steve Holland |
Produced by | Michael Jaffe |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Isidore Mankofsky |
Edited by | Alan Balsam |
Music by | Rupert Hine |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 97 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $3.5 million |
Box office | $10.3 million |
Better Off Dead is a 1985 American teen black comedy film written and directed by Savage Steve Holland. It stars John Cusack, David Ogden Stiers, Diane Franklin and Kim Darby. The film was released in August 1985.
Initially met with mixed reviews on release, it has since developed a cult following[ citation needed ] for its unconventionally surreal and absurdist humor.
In the town of Greendale [a] in Northern California, high school student Lane Meyer's two main interests are skiing and his girlfriend of six months, Beth. Shortly before Christmas, Beth dumps Lane for the handsome and popular captain of the ski team, Roy Stalin. Roy is an arrogant bully who unfairly rejects Lane at ski team tryouts. Beth also criticizes Lane's car, an old station wagon. Although Lane also owns a 1967 Camaro, he has not been able to get it running and it sits in the driveway in a dilapidated state.
Lane lives in a suburban development with his mother, Jenny, a ditzy housewife who routinely concocts creepy (and creeping) family meals; his genius little brother, Badger, who never speaks but at the age of "almost 8" can build powerful lasers and attract trashy women from "How-to" books; and his lawyer father, Al, who daily tries to stop the menacing paperboy, Johnny, from breaking his garage door windows with thrown newspapers. Furthermore, Johnny claims that the Meyers owe him two dollars for newspapers, and persistently hounds Lane, yelling "I want my two dollars!" Lane also regularly encounters two Japanese drag racers, one who only speaks in Japanese and the other who learned to speak English by listening to Howard Cosell.
Lane cannot get past Beth's rejection and decides that death is the only way out of his misery. He makes several half-hearted attempts at suicide, which all comically fail. With the help of his best friend, Charles de Mar (who in lieu of not being able to get "real drugs" in their "bodaciously small town," constantly inhales everyday substances like Jell-O, snow, and nitrous oxide from a whipped cream can), Lane tries to ski the K-12, the highest peak in town, in hopes of getting Beth back, but wipes out. Lane is further embarrassed when he gets fired from his humiliating fast food job at Pig Burgers in front of Roy and Beth, who are there on a date. To top it all, he increasingly begins to suffer from neurotic hallucinations owing to the mounting frustrations in his life.
As Lane attempts to either end his life or win back his ex-girlfriend, he gradually gets to know a new girl: a French foreign-exchange student named Monique, who has a crush on him. She is staying with Lane's overbearing neighbor Mrs. Smith, who continually tries to force Monique into being a girlfriend for her socially awkward son Ricky. The pair are so annoying that she pretends she cannot speak English. Monique, a Los Angeles Dodgers fan, turns out to be an excellent auto mechanic and skier who helps Lane fix his Camaro and tries to build his confidence. When Roy insults Monique, Lane challenges him to a ski race down the K-12, with the winner to be captain of the ski team. Monique helps Lane prepare for the race, which he ultimately wins despite losing a ski and being pursued by Johnny. Beth rushes to embrace Lane at the finish line, but he rejects her and after besting Ricky (who attempts to keep Lane from rescuing Monique from the restraints of his mother) in a ski-pole swordfight, drives off with Monique in his Camaro. Lane and Monique are last seen kissing on home plate at Dodger Stadium, with Johnny bicycling towards them, while in a mid-credit scene Badger launches a homemade space shuttle from his room through the roof of the house.
Parts of the film were shot in Alta, Brighton, and Snowbird in Utah. [1] The Meyers home is located at 1636 Virginia Avenue, in Glendale, CA. Across the street, at 1633 Virginia, is the home of the Smith family and French exchange student Monique Junot. Lane's high school is Hollywood High School, located at 1521 North Highland Avenue, in Los Angeles, CA. Pig Burgers was filmed at Sandy's Char Burger at 6223 Lankershim Blvd. The restaurant has since gone out of business, but the building still sports the burger signage. The exterior of the school dance sequence was shot at Anderson W. Clark Magnet High School in La Crescenta, CA. The street on which Lane is consistently challenged by the Japanese drag racers is located near the foothills of Monrovia, CA. Several other driving scenes were shot in the Los Angeles suburbs of Duarte and Sierra Madre. [2] [3] [ better source needed ]
The hand-drawn animation in the movie was animated by Savage Steve Holland's collaborator Bill Kopp, who would later work with him on One Crazy Summer (1986) and Eek! The Cat . A dream sequence where hamburgers and fries come to life was produced in stop motion. [4]
According to an interview with Diane Franklin on the RetroZest Podcast, actor Yano Anaya, who played one of Johnny Gasparini's paperboy gang members, also looped all of Demian Slade's dialogue as Johnny the paperboy. Anaya also played bully Grover Dill in A Christmas Story (1983) and young Michael Anthony in the music video for Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher" (1984). [5]
Better Off Dead was one of the few films critics Siskel & Ebert featured on their weekly television show At the Movies while bypassing entirely in their respective Chicago newspapers. They gave the film "two thumbs down". [6] [7] Bill Cosford of The Miami Herald wrote, "Better Off Dead has the body of a tired teen comedy but the soul of an inspired student film; it's the first movie in a long time to interrupt itself periodically with flights of animated fancy." [8]
According to Holland, Cusack did not like the film and walked out of a screening during the filming of Holland's One Crazy Summer (in which he also starred), later confronting Holland, saying Better Off Dead "was the worst thing I have ever seen. I will never trust you as a director ever again, so don't speak to me." Holland claimed that Cusack felt he had been made to look foolish and that his comments "made me not care about movies anymore". [9] However, in a 2013 Reddit "Ask Me Anything" chat, Cusack was asked if he hated filming Better Off Dead, and responded, "No, I just thought it could have been better, but I think that about almost all my films. I have nothing against the film.... Glad people love it still." [10]
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 77% based on 26 reviews, with an average rating of 6.90/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Better Off Dead is an anarchic mix of black humor and surreal comedy anchored by John Cusack's winsome, charming performance." [11] On Metacritic, the film received a score of 51 based on 7 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [12]
This section needs additional citations for verification .(August 2023) |
Better Off Dead: Original A&M Soundcrack [sic] | |
---|---|
Soundtrack album by Various artists | |
Released | 1985 |
Genre | Rock |
Length | 39:45 |
Label | A&M |
Producer | Rupert Hine, Steve Goldstein |
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | link |
The film's soundtrack was produced primarily by Rupert Hine.
The opening track, "With One Look (The Wildest Dream)", was produced by Hine and features Cy Curnin and Jamie West-Oram of the Fixx on lead vocals and guitars, respectively. Hine had previously worked with Curnin and West-Oram, and also contributed vocals to the song. The following track, "Arrested by You", as well as "Better Off Dub (Title Music)" and "Race the K-12 (Instrumental)", were performed solely by Hine. "Arrested by You" was covered by Dusty Springfield on her 1990 album, Reputation .
"Dancing in Isolation" features Terri Nunn of Berlin on lead vocals. Hine produced the song and was reportedly under consideration to produce an album for Berlin.
"Come to Your Rescue" was performed by Thinkman, a group formed by, and including, Hine for the purpose of restoring his solo career without the music press knowing about it. West-Oram also provided guitar work to this song, as well as the instrumental "The Falcon Beat".
The only two tracks on the CD without Hine's involvement are "A Little Luck" and "One Way Love (Better Off Dead)". Elizabeth Daily, credited on the soundtrack as E.G. Daily, sang lead vocals on both songs and also performed them in the film during the high school dance scene.
A number of songs that appear in the film do not appear on the CD soundtrack, including Howard Jones' "Like to Get to Know You Well", Van Halen's "Everybody Wants Some!!", Neil Sedaka's "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do", Paul Simon's "Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover", Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady", Frank Sinatra singing "A Man Alone" by Rod McKuen, Hall & Oates' "She's Gone", and Muddy Waters' "Mannish Boy". [13] [ better source needed ]
Credits adapted from CD liner notes. [14]
Side one
Side two
Musicians
Technical
Private Dancer is the fifth solo studio album by American singer Tina Turner. It was released on May 29, 1984 by Capitol Records and was her first album released by the label. After several challenging years of going solo after divorcing Ike Turner, Private Dancer propelled Turner into becoming a viable solo star, as well as one of the most marketable crossover singers in the recording industry. It became a worldwide commercial success, earning multi-platinum certifications, and remains her best-selling album in North America to date.
Shuttered Room is the debut studio album by the British band the Fixx, released on 14 May 1982.
Walkabout is the fourth studio album by the English new wave band the Fixx, released in 1986. The first single, "Secret Separation", spent two weeks atop the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart in July 1986; it was the band's second No. 1 single on the chart.
React is the first official live album, and fifth album overall, by British new wave band the Fixx, released in 1987. It was recorded during three concerts in Canada in 1986 in the band's tour in support of their album Walkabout. The album contains three new studio tracks: "Big Wall", "Rules and Schemes", and "Don't Be Scared", which was released as a single. Also included is a re-recorded studio version of "Red Skies".
Calm Animals is the fifth studio album by British band the Fixx, released on February 7, 1989. The single "Driven Out" gave them a No. 1 song on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in early 1989, and reached No. 55 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single "Precious Stone" reached the top 25 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart later that year. Calm Animals was the Fixx's only album to be released on RCA Records.
Ink is the sixth studio album by British new wave band the Fixx, released in 1991.
The Fixx are a rock band from London, England, founded in 1979. The band's hits include "One Thing Leads to Another", "Saved by Zero", "Are We Ourselves?", and "Secret Separation", each of which charted in the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100, as well as Mainstream Rock chart hits "Red Skies", "Stand or Fall", "Driven Out" and "Deeper and Deeper", which was featured on the soundtrack of the 1984 film Streets of Fire.
Halfway to Sanity is the 10th studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, and their last album to feature drummer Richie Ramone. It was produced by Daniel Rey and released on September 15, 1987, by Sire Records. Recording sessions began that April at Intergalactic Studios in New York City, with the band recording instruments before vocals in order to learn songs more quickly. It fared well on charts outside the United States, but peaked at No. 172 on the Billboard 200.
Rupert Neville Hine was an English record producer and musician. He produced albums for artists including Rush, Kevin Ayers, Tina Turner, Howard Jones, Saga, the Fixx, Bob Geldof, Thompson Twins, Stevie Nicks, Chris de Burgh, Suzanne Vega, Underworld, Duncan Sheik, Formula and Eleanor McEvoy. Additionally, Hine recorded eleven albums, including those billed under his own name, the pseudo-band name Thinkman, and as a member of the band Quantum Jump; with the latter, he achieved a number 5 hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1979, "The Lone Ranger". Additionally, he composed for film and television soundtracks, including the 1989 Ian Fleming biopic Goldeneye and the black comedy Better Off Dead.
What's Love Got to Do with It is the first soundtrack by American singer Tina Turner, released on June 15, 1993, by Parlophone. It served as the soundtrack album for the 1993 Tina Turner biographical film of the same name, which was released by Touchstone Pictures that same year. It mostly consists on re-recorded versions of her greatest hits during her period with the Ike and Tina Revue. In celebration of the 30th anniversary of What's Love Got to Do with It, the album was re-released on April 26, 2024 with remixes, single edits and rarities.
"One Thing Leads to Another" is a song by English new wave band the Fixx, from their album Reach the Beach. It is one of the band's most successful singles, reaching number four on the US Billboard Hot 100 in November 1983. It also peaked at number two on the Billboard Rock Top Tracks chart and became a number-one hit in Canada. Vocalist Cy Curnin has described the song as an indictment of dishonest politicians.
Break Every Rule is the sixth solo studio album by Tina Turner. It was released on September 8, 1986, through Capitol Records. It was the follow-up to Turner's globally successful comeback album, Private Dancer, released two years earlier. The lead single "Typical Male" peaked at number two for three consecutive weeks in October 1986, while "Two People" and "What You Get Is What You See" reached the top 20. "Back Where You Started" earned Turner her third consecutive Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female in 1987. It was Turner's first solo album of original songs.
Boom Chicka Boom is the 76th album by American country music singer Johnny Cash, released in 1990 on Mercury Records. The title refers to the sound that Cash's backing band, the Tennessee Three, were said to produce. It includes a cover of Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle", and a song written by Elvis Costello for Cash, "Hidden Shame". "Don't Go Near the Water" is a re-recorded version and its original had been recorded for Ragged Old Flag. It discusses the issue of pollution of the environment. In 2003, Mercury released Boom Chicka Boom paired with Johnny Cash is Coming to Town on a single compact disc, though the bonus track "Veteran's Day" was left off. "Farmer's Almanac" and "Cat's in the Cradle" were released as singles, but failed to chart; the album itself, however, reached No. 48 on the country charts. The album has backing vocals by Elvis Presley's old backing group The Jordanaires, and Cash's mother.
"Better Be Good to Me" is a song written by Mike Chapman, Holly Knight, and Nicky Chinn, recorded by singer Tina Turner for her solo studio album Private Dancer (1984) and released as a single in early September 1984. The song was originally recorded and released in 1981 by Spider, a band from New York City that featured co-writer Knight as a member. Turner's version was successful in the United States and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 6 on the then-Hot Black Singles charts. At the 27th Annual Grammy Awards in 1985, it won Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female, one of four Grammys awarded to Turner's Private Dancer album at that ceremony. The song was also included on the Miami Vice soundtrack, and the 2024 Paramount Pictures film IF, during which the main characters sing and dance to the track inside the official music video.
The Mystery of Life is the 77th album by country singer Johnny Cash, released in 1991, and his last for Mercury Records. The songs featured are culled from both recent sessions and from leftovers from Cash's first Mercury session in 1986 for the album Johnny Cash is Coming to Town.
The Wildest Wish to Fly is a solo album by Rupert Hine. It was originally released in 1983 on A&M Records and Island Records and re-released on CD in 2001 on VoicePrint. The album peaked at #31 on the Swedish album chart.
"Break Every Rule" is a song by recording artist Tina Turner. It was the title track to both Turner's 1986 album of the same name and the name of her 1987–88 world tour. It was released as a single in April 1987 to support the album and the tour. The song found limited success on the US and UK singles charts, although reached as far as #21 on the Austrian Top 40 Charts. The music video shows Turner performing on stage as well as behind-the-scenes footage of Turner and her band from the tour. The song was written by British composer and singer Rupert Hine and his then girlfriend Jeanette Obstoj, who had previously composed "I Might Have Been Queen" which was featured on Turner's Private Dancer album. The "Break Every Rule" 12" single included both an Extended Dance Mix and an Extended Rock Mix.
Cyril John Curnin is an English singer-songwriter who serves as the lead vocalist for the new wave band, the Fixx. He has released five solo albums: Mayfly (2005), The Returning Sun (2007), Solar Minimum (2009), The Horse's Mouth (2013) and Lockdown (2020). His Cinema for the Blind EP (2012) explored ambient music, containing no vocals.
"Saved by Zero" is a song by English new wave band the Fixx. Released in 1983, it was the lead single off their second studio album, Reach the Beach, and is one of the group's best known hits. Their signature song is the follow-up single "One Thing Leads to Another".
Power of Ten is the tenth studio album by British-Irish singer Chris de Burgh, released in 1992 on A&M Records.