Cry-Baby (1990)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

John Waters

Writer (WGA):

John Waters (written by)

Release Date:

6 April 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Too young to be square... Too tough to be shocked... Too late to be saved

Plot:

"Drape" (or Greaser) Wade Walker, also known as Cry-Baby for his ability to shed a single tear, falls...

Plot Keywords:

Tears | Juvenile | John Waters | Girl | Water

Cast

Johnny Depp	...	Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker
Amy Locane	...	Allison Vernon-Williams
Susan Tyrrell	...	Ramona Rickettes
Polly Bergen	...	Mrs. Vernon-Williams
Iggy Pop	...	Uncle Belvedere Rickettes
Ricki Lake	...	Pepper Walker
Traci Lords	...	Wanda Woodward
Kim McGuire	...	Hatchet-Face
Darren E. Burrows	...	Milton Hackett
Stephen Mailer	...	Baldwin - Allison's Boyfriend
Kim Webb	...	Lenora Frigid
Alan J. Wendl	...	Toe-Joe Jackson
Troy Donahue	...	Hatchet's Father
Mink Stole	...	Hatchet's Mother
Joe Dallesandro	...	Milton's Father

Runtime:

85 min | USA:91 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Iceland:L | Spain:13 | Chile:14 | Peru:14 | Sweden:15 | Puerto Rico:PG-13 | Venezuela:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:13 | Finland:S | Netherlands:AL | USA:PG-13 | UK:12 (original rating) | UK:15 (video rating) (1990) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (2005) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

To find a young actor for the role of Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker, director John Waters bought $30 worth of teen magazines, all of which showed Johnny Depp of "21 Jump Street" (1987) on the cover. Depp thought the script was funny and strange, and took the offbeat role to avoid being typecast as a TV teen idol.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the opening of the film we see Wanda from a far with the girl in red that she growls at behind her. Yet when the camera comes closer the girl in red is in front of Wanda.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Wanda's mother: Hi Kids. Remember, always look both ways before crossing.
Wanda: [embarassed] Mother!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in L'appât (1995)

Soundtrack:

GEE!

John Waters forever!

No doubt you well know that John Waters does everything possible to trash the rules in his movies. And he sure does here! "Cry-Baby" has a familiar plot - a good girl attracted to a hoodlum boy - but everything about the movie is a hoot. Johnny Depp once again shows himself to be possibly the greatest actor of his generation as Wade "Cry-Baby" Walker, a "drape" who falls for "square" Allison Vernon-Williams (Amy Locane). Naturally, her conservative family and acquaintances don't approve of this one bit, so trouble ensues.

Probably the funniest scenes in the movie are as follows: an air-head mother (Patty Hearst) tells her daughter to stop and look both ways before crossing the street - this to a girl who prefers to hang out with the "drapes"; at a "square" party, some boys sing the most mind-numbing, idiotic song imaginable (it just goes to show what dorks they are); and the scene in jail, where a cop (Willem Dafoe) makes everyone repeat "God bless Dwight Eisenhower! God bless Roy Cohn! God bless Richard Nixon!" - in case anyone had any doubts as to which side the police were on.

All in all, this is a movie that's impossible not to like. The truth is, I've never seen a John Waters movie that I didn't like. Just great.