The Sure Thing
1985 Directed by Rob Reiner
Synopsis
A sure thing comes once in a lifetime... but the real thing lasts forever.
Gib, a beer-guzzling slob, and Alison, an uptight Ivy-Leaguer, are an unlikely duo stuck together on a cross-country trip during Christmas break. At first they get on each other's nerves but, as time passes, they find their divergent natures complement each other. Now they need to realize what they've already found before it's too late.
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Rob Reiner these days is known for repulsively corny, “life-affirming” films, supposedly aimed at all audiences but personally I think they should be banned from ever being shown to anyone. He hasn't made a good movie in a very long time but in the 80's and into the early 90's he made a streak of films that are absolutely wonderful and although The Sure Thing is the weakest I've seen out of them it is still a very enjoyable watch. Starring the charming John Cusack and the lovely Daphne Zuniga on a road trip that reminds me of the beginning of When Harry Met Sally, meaning it is full of biting humor and a winning chemistry between the leads. It's…
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"Hi, I'm Gary Cooper, but not the Gary Cooper that's dead."
Rob Reiner is the man when it comes to good 80's movies. The Sure Thing oozes of 80's in the very best way. Filled with the right amount of youthful jokes, brilliant dialogue, a stupid but utterly charming story and last but not least; some laughably loveable characters.
Boy, do I love the 80's!
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"The Sure Thing" can't match the very best John Hughes fare of the 80s, but it's a charming and entertaining teen romance all the same. John Cusack is in impeccable form, pulling out the sort of witty, half-caddish routine which still serves him in Hollywood today. He makes for an infectious presence, which is helpful considering love interest Daphne Zuniga's lack of spark. Their chemistry is patchy but the movie boasts a nice moral code, organic humour and a narrative that whilst generic, also engages. Funny, heartfelt and helmed tastefully by a then buzzing Rob Reiner, "The Sure Thing" is a forgotten genre piece worth getting reacquainted with.
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Although they weren't made and released in order, if you watch Reiner's 80s output beginning with Stand by Me, followed by The Sure Thing and When Harry Met Sally they form a nice coming-of-age trilogy, where each film leads quite logically into the next. The films cover ages 10-12, 19-21 and 20-middle age. (Put fairy tale Princess Bride before Stand By Me and you've got yourself a quadrilogy.) All of them deal with events that are typical for a given period of time and work best with audiences that are the same age or younger than the characters portrayed.
Watching The Sure Thing at age 30+ I feel, like I felt when I recently rewatched Stand By Me, that it…
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This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
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Wacky 80s relic that actually succeeds in charming us until it blasts a classic set of deal-killers from the time period: The Overheard Shallow Guytalk and the Honesty Through a Well Timed Essay. The latter may not even have been reoccurring in these films. I just think its a shamelessly easy way to solve the problem of reconciliation. Because its episodic, there are more highlights than continuity and Cusack's bar pals, Cusack's roommate and Zuniga's stiff boyfriend all create colorfully wonderful hilarity.
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One of the better John Cusack roles. He is so funny in this. Yeah, it is one of those films were you know how it will end when the party guy that needs to settle down goes on a road trip with the prude who needs to loosen up. But like I said, Cusack is so good and has amazing chemistry with Zuniga.
Nicolette Sheridan, aka the Sure Thing, is pretty much used to show some skin. I believe she's in a bikini almost every scene. She was super cute back then...pre-plastic surgery.
Also a great soundtrack as well.
Tim Robbins has a smaller role, but maybe the best part in the film.
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Cusack,80s,hornball
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Although they weren't made and released in order, if you watch Reiner's 80s output beginning with Stand by Me, followed by The Sure Thing and When Harry Met Sally they form a nice coming-of-age trilogy, where each film leads quite logically into the next. The films cover ages 10-12, 19-21 and 20-middle age. (Put fairy tale Princess Bride before Stand By Me and you've got yourself a quadrilogy.) All of them deal with events that are typical for a given period of time and work best with audiences that are the same age or younger than the characters portrayed.
Watching The Sure Thing at age 30+ I feel, like I felt when I recently rewatched Stand By Me, that it…
-
Rob Reiner these days is known for repulsively corny, “life-affirming” films, supposedly aimed at all audiences but personally I think they should be banned from ever being shown to anyone. He hasn't made a good movie in a very long time but in the 80's and into the early 90's he made a streak of films that are absolutely wonderful and although The Sure Thing is the weakest I've seen out of them it is still a very enjoyable watch. Starring the charming John Cusack and the lovely Daphne Zuniga on a road trip that reminds me of the beginning of When Harry Met Sally, meaning it is full of biting humor and a winning chemistry between the leads. It's…
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Watched this over and over when I was a kid. Still just as funny as ever. A massively underrated 80s comedy if ever there were one.
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"The Sure Thing" can't match the very best John Hughes fare of the 80s, but it's a charming and entertaining teen romance all the same. John Cusack is in impeccable form, pulling out the sort of witty, half-caddish routine which still serves him in Hollywood today. He makes for an infectious presence, which is helpful considering love interest Daphne Zuniga's lack of spark. Their chemistry is patchy but the movie boasts a nice moral code, organic humour and a narrative that whilst generic, also engages. Funny, heartfelt and helmed tastefully by a then buzzing Rob Reiner, "The Sure Thing" is a forgotten genre piece worth getting reacquainted with.
-
"Hi, I'm Gary Cooper, but not the Gary Cooper that's dead."
Rob Reiner is the man when it comes to good 80's movies. The Sure Thing oozes of 80's in the very best way. Filled with the right amount of youthful jokes, brilliant dialogue, a stupid but utterly charming story and last but not least; some laughably loveable characters.
Boy, do I love the 80's!
-
Wacky 80s relic that actually succeeds in charming us until it blasts a classic set of deal-killers from the time period: The Overheard Shallow Guytalk and the Honesty Through a Well Timed Essay. The latter may not even have been reoccurring in these films. I just think its a shamelessly easy way to solve the problem of reconciliation. Because its episodic, there are more highlights than continuity and Cusack's bar pals, Cusack's roommate and Zuniga's stiff boyfriend all create colorfully wonderful hilarity.
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Easily one of the funniest movies I've ever seen, which is odd because everything about it seems forgettable. Cheesy plot, some pretty bad acting, yet it's so well written it's hard to say I didn't have a perpetual grin throughout the whole thing.