February 2016 marks the 30th Anniversary of the release of the film Pretty In Pink. It opened on the last day of the month back in 1986 along with the horror film House. By the following Monday, it had outgrossed House by just $141K to be the Number One grossing film that weekend, knocking the previous champ Down And Out In Beverly Hills all the way down to the third spot. I saw the film with my future wife that weekend, probably on Saturday during the afternoon as I was working Friday and Saturday nights back then. I liked the film a lot but was especially drawn to the music which I thought was the strongest soundtrack yet featured in a John Hughes film, an opinion I still hold four decades on. In honor of the film's anniversary, Pretty In Pink is being shown in select theaters around the country this year. Fortunately for us, it is playing at 2:00 this Valentine's Day and the wife and I are going to see it again. It's playing at the same location where we saw it originally but that four screen theater in the mall was demolished and rebuilt as a twenty screen megaplex in 2001. I'm tempted to watch the film again on DVD before we go but have resisted - we did watch it almost exactly a year ago on the Sunday after Valentine's Day 2015 - but have made due watching clips on YouTube and listening to the soundtrack. I've rounded-up a few Pretty In Pink images to share in honor of this special occasion.
 |
| An alternative movie poster conveying a more romantic tone than the too serious staring at the camera original black & white poster with a pink tint. |
 | |
The soundtrack cassette j-card. A marketing opportunity was missed when the cassette was not manufactured using pretty pink plastic. Even the tape case could have been tinted pink.
 pink marbled vinyl when they opened their albums though most got basic black like the rest of us. |
 |
| Picture sleeve for "If You Leave" used in the climatic prom scene. Originally, the group's "Goddess Of Love" was used in the scene but when it was changed and reshot, the actors danced to playback of "Don't You (Forget About Me)" so OMD was asked to write a new song at the same tempo of 120 BPM so the filmed dancing scenes would match up. "If You Leave" is the result of that commission, written and recorded in less than 24 hours but an editing sync error is noticeable while watching the scene. |
 |
| Paperback novelization of the film featuring the film's original scripted ending with Andie (Molly Ringwald) ending up with Duckie (Jon Cryer) instead of Blaine (Andrew McCarthy.) That ending was filmed but tested poorly with preview audiences so the ending we all know was filmed months later and if you watch closely you can tell McCarthy has lost weight and is wearing a wig as he had already undertaken his next role. The book now fetches more than 25x its original $2.50 price on the collector's market. |
 |
| A unique promotional twelve inch single was sent to radio stations in 1986 containing "If You Leave" on one side and the re-recorded expressly for the film version of The Psychedelic Furs 1981 song that inspired the film on the flip side. Molly Ringwald had asked John Hughes to write a script based upon the song. He wrote it with her in mind as the lead but she initially turned down the role before coming around after several other young starlets had auditioned. |
 |
| The soundtrack album's release in Australia featured a huge obi-style wrap that is a little more than half as wide as the album itself. |
 |
| In celebration of both A&M Records 50th Anniversary and Record Store Day 2012, 5,000 pressings of a Limited Edition, individually numbered pink colored vinyl version of the Pretty In Pink soundtrack was released alongside a white vinyl edition of The Breakfast Club soundtrack and an orange vinyl pressing of the soundtrack for Empire Records. |
 |
| An unofficial minimalist movie poster featuring Blaine's iconic Wayfarers and Duckie's Sixties-inspired shades. |
John Hughes Teen Movies (1984-1987)
Read reviews of the Pretty In Pink
soundtrack album by
my friends Mark and Martin.
Thanks for the plug. You know how much I love this movie and soundtrack. I need to pull out the DVD and rewatch. From the trailer, Cryer clearly was featured prominently - which makes sense given the original ending. Boo for them changing it.
ReplyDelete