Some Girls (1988)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Michael Hoffman

Writer:

Rupert Walters (written by)

Release Date:

9 September 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Plot:

Michael, a college student, visits his girlfriend Gabriella and her family for Christmas in Canada. When he gets there...

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Female Nudity

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Patrick Dempsey	...	Michael
Jennifer Connelly	...	Gabriella
Sheila Kelley	...	Irenka
Lance Edwards	...	Nick
Lila Kedrova	...	Granny
Florinda Bolkan	...	Mrs. D'Arc
Andre Gregory	...	Mr. D'Arc
Ashley Greenfield	...	Simone
Jean-Louis Millette	...	Father Walter
Sanna Vraa	...	Young Granny
Cédric Noël	...	Porter 1 (as Cedric Noel)
John Cuthbert	...	Porter 2
Harry Hill	...	Uncle Danny
Renée Girard	...	Lady Patient (as Renee Girard)
Claude Préfontaine	...	Doctor (as Claude Prefontaine)

Also Known As:

Sisters

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | West Germany:12 | Argentina:13 | USA:R | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Quotes:

[After the telephone interrupts Michael and Gabriella's foreplay, Michael starts talking to his penis]
Michael: I don't believe this. Do you believe this?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

Soundtrack:

Comfort of Strangers

An overlooked gem of a romantic comedy

France is famed for its romantics, but Quebec? In the winter? Well, perhaps it should be. A love-struck college student named Michael (Dempsey) has too many naive theories about women. Then he is invited, by his mysterious girlfriend Gabbie (Connelly) to visit her family over Christmas, in Quebec. Ah ha, he thinks; major progress. The first thing Gabbie tells Michael in Quebec, however, is that she no longer loves him. Yet, she wants him to stay for the holidays. The bewildered Michael is then introduced to Gabbie's truly bizarre family, including Gabbie's father (Gregory), a writer who can work effectively only in the nude; a priest (Milette) who is hopelessly in love with Gabbie's over-protective mother (Balkan); Gabbie's sensual sister Irenka (Kelley) and her boorish boyfriend (Edwards); and a clock-stealing sheepdog, among others.

Poor Michael continues to try to woo Gabbie, and almost succeeds, but is mightily distracted by Irenka and her younger sister, Simone (Greenfield). Then he meets Granny (Kedrova), the crazed and dying matriarch, who mistakes Michael for her long-dead husband of the same name. The film shifts tone as Michael discovers that love and sex need not be the same thing. The final lines of the movie sum it up well, as Michael muses that all his theories about women are bulls**t.

The few professional critics who saw this film gave it very low marks, and certainly there were things to criticize. The lead actors (Demsey, Connelly) were sometimes unconvincing, and the plot was erratic and almost non-existent. These were minor flaws, however, in an otherwise fascinating film. For the most part, the acting was enjoyable, the character development was fascinating, and the film filled with unexpected humor. The sexual tension was kept high, with very little actual sex, and the ending was satisfying.