Mannequin (1987)

Whoa!!!! What an unintentional hiatus happened!! I've had most of my time dominated by craft making and lots of korean drama (if your curious, I was obsessed with "mischievous kiss" and "boys over flowers"), a road trip for camping and bridal shower, and oh yeah, school starting.

But to be really honest, I haven't felt a passionate need to write about movies for quite awhile. None of the movies I was watching stirred enough interest to even think about. I watched two Cary Grant movies that made yawn and cringe. Some movies with Doris Day that was heart achingly boooooooooring. And some other crap that I can't remember.

Then admist all my craziness, I was bombarded by movies that made me sit up and cheer!!! Of which I shall write about another day. Tee-hee, I'm such a tease.

No. I have more passion to write about a nostalgic movie. A movie that I LOVED when I was younger. I remember feeling that this movie was oh so romantic! I haven't seen it until I just bought it off of Amazon. Oh man. Oh man.

This is why I should never burst my childhood happiness bubble. I was delighted to watch hideously bad movies (what kind of bad movies? try..."Double Dragon"....."Drop Dead Fred"....just to name a few). Some movies that I have revisited still awaken that childish glee somehow. Some movies just have me grasping my head in shock, wondering if I was drugged as child. At best, my head would be cocked to the side in utter confusion at what I'm watching. I should just not revist nostalgic business and move on. But I can't. When I need an excuse to procrastinate, I watch movies. Any movies. Especially ones hiding in my desk drawers.

I've had "Mannequin" in my possession for a few months. I watched about ten minutes of the beginning before I shut it off. I forgot how the movie began. Yeah. That beginning is DUMB.

Then I rewatched it a couple nights ago. I forced myself to finish the movie. Ok. deep breathe. here I go.

Seriously it was hard to keep watching this movie. It is just so dumb....yet.....I still enjoyed it....

Andrew McCarthy plays Jonathan Switcher. He's a pretty good guy who just can't seem to hold a job. He's impulsive, accident-prone, dreamy but he has a big heart. Awww. He somehow has a girl friend who wears alot of shoulder pads and is very career driven. After Switcher loses his job again, he somehow meanders in front of a declining mall. He miraculously saves an elderly woman who is the owner of the mall. Grateful and charmed by Switcher, she gives him a job.
Blah, blah, hijimks.

Meanwhile, on the evil side of the metropolis, a successful mall is attempting to buy out the declining mall. They even have a mole at the declining mall. Why???? Why would you send a mole if the business is declining at a rapid rate. You can just wait....ok whatever.

Switcher constructs a beautiful mannequin (which I thought was too stern-looking to even be pleasant). One...magical....night, the mannequin comes to live as "Emma", played by Kim Cattral (ahh yes....she's part of the 'Sex and the City' squad....hmm yes).

The only explanation for this ties in the lame intro. Emma was a person in Egypt about to be married to a camel dung dealer. She makes a wish and lights off somewhere. Now, only in front of Switcher, she becomes human. For his love of her. For love. AWWW

I could write until my fingers turn blue on how many story points just blows!!There really is no reason for geniune love to blossum between the two. How is this love even growing? What are they basing their love foundation on? Their montage? Are montages the way to love?

No, hold up your screehing.

This movie is BAD. Very BAD. Yet it's lovable. By the end of the movie, you can't help to love this movie. Switcher and Emma are so cute that it manages to over look the horror of the story. The only thing you can connect for their love for each other is that they're very silly and dreamy. Unstable but strong.

It's Andrew McCarthy. I just loved how he played his silly character. It was so endearing and sweet. There are alot of messed up parts in this movie. Very dark and disturbing parts. I'm not too sure if intended to do so, but like his character Switcher, he just breezes on by. A mannequin just came to life. Raise some eyebrow but don't go tearing off into the night screaming. Now the mannequin is running around naked. Sweet.


Hollywood played by Meshach Taylor made the movie even more enjoyable. He plays the over-exaggerated gay man. How his character is played would probably make alot of people cringe and cry foul of the horrible sterotype. I honestly don't feel that his character was insulting. It was pretty bad-ass how he hosed down the cops.

Kim Cattrel's over acting bothered me at first. Really bothered me. I already have it against her for her future involvement with "Sex and the City". Then I just did what I should have done when the movie opened. Relax. It was made in the 80s. Then her over-acting made sense. If I thought about it character-wise, she was just born in the new world. She's overly excited like a child.


Which leads me one thing that has bugged an eensy-weensy bit. It's great how they go off, get married. But. She was a mannequin. How did she know of sex? Did her first life in Egypt teach her that? Will she cook for him? Clean the house? Work? Does she even know what state she is in? Sorry Switcher, you gotta lemon. A pretty lemon though.

The final shiny cherry of this nostalgic movie are the songs. Two songs pop up in my mind as being my favorite. One is played during the montage. The second is the ending song which everyone adores. And for good reason. It holds all the whimsy and love that the movie had going. So it was a great end.


Song during the montage:



Ending song:

At 1 am in the morning, I sat in front of my desk with a goofy smile in my face. I was happy.This movie could have been a really dark comedy. If made now, this would probably be a dark indie movie. Actually, this does remind me of "Lars and the real girl".

But this was made in the 80's where everything was fun and whimsical amid all the dark stuff going on. This movie made me happy then, and it made me happy now.