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Visitors Review

watzdabigdeal 2012-05-20 05:40:49

My favorite Tom Cruise picture.

(possible spoilers)Tom Cruise made a lot of good films, but RISKY BUSINESS is his best. TomCruise is excellent as Joel, a seemingly responsible teen who becomes theman of the house after his parents leave town for the weekend, but findstrouble at every turn. Rebecca De Mornay is sexy as Lana, a prostitute whostays at Joel's house and turns it into a brothel.My favorite moment from RISKY BUSINESS is when Tom Cruise struts his stuffto Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock 'n' Roll." It's a fun film. If you haven'tseen it, you don't know what you have missed.

Scarecrow-88 2012-05-19 22:37:50

Risky Business

RISKY BUSINESS was the first film to communicate the meaning of sex tome. I snuck a viewing of it fairly young, too young to fully understandthe traps and pleasures sex could bring to someone inexperienced, yetinquisitive and vulnerable enough(as teenagers often are). Tom Cruisewas the epitome of cool to me as a kid. I wanted to have that presence,that look, to wear Ray bans and carry myself with that kind ofconfidence. I wanted to have that kind of charisma, star wattage, toappear on screen and smile with all the charm to melt the hearts ofpractically any girl. The film itself, rises beyond just Cruise's starpower, his young man really has a lot of pressure put on him. He wantsso desperately to appease his wealthy parents who "trust him" butdemand much out of him. He's given the "keys to the castle" so tospeak, the parents leaving him all alone while they go on a momentaryvacation at his aunt's. The Tangerine Dream score equates the alreadystriking allure of the film's subject matter. Rebecca DeMornay was avision of the perfect fantasy "danger girl", a sultry, seductiveprostitute who enters into Cruise's life and turns it upside down andinside out. He is just a boy before meeting her and after their "twodays" together, he becomes a man. I think many will consider theresults of the various crises which accompany his time with DeMornayrather preposterous or unrealistic, the way he somehow manages toescape certain doom(maybe this is a bit over the top, if anything hisparents would've grounded him or punished him in some unsevere way).But from the perspective of a teenager, to let your parents downthrough nefarious behavior would be the ultimate horror..we build theseterrifying scenarios of what they will do to us, but it's never asawful as we would be led to believe. Anyway, getting involved with aprostitute and finding yourself caught between her and a pimp, Cruisefinds himself knee-deep in a situation he shouldn't have been in tostart with. It really starts with a phone call, not being able to paythe girl after she provides you with great service, a stolen diamondegg that belongs to Cruise's mother, becoming a for-one-night-onlypimp, accidentally sinking your dad's porche in the river, missing animportant test, allowing your Princeton representative to see yournightly activity as a "businessman", and losing all of your parents'personal belongings and furniture because you took girls away fromGuido(an excellent Joe Pantoliano, rather intimidating despite his sizeand receding hairline). It's casting that makes this filmpurr--DeMornay as quite the sex kitten, Masur as Rutherford, the manwho can make or break Cruise(he is a friend of Cruise's father andagrees to meet with the young man over going to Princeton), BronsonPinchot and Curtis Armstrong as Cruise's buds(Pinchot is Cruise'spartner in a business project for class and Armstrong is the one whogets Cruise in the whole mess by calling a transvestite hooker from asex ad), and Nicholas Pryor and Janet Carroll as Cruise's suburbanparents who expect much from their son regarding his future. The "loveon the train" scene still smokes and the first sex scene between Cruiseand DeMornay is really steamy(they just have that chemistry becauseboth are beautiful people). It's that aspect about this woman whorepresents everything a teenage boy of 18 considers attractive and hardto resist, she looks at you with her eyes and moves across a room withlittle effort and it's instant and immediate awe. It's a tightrope youare willing to walk across because she casts her wicked spell andthere's no turning back--you are hooked, line and sinker. DeMornay wasthe epitome of what I desired and longed for as a teenager..perhaps shewasn't the one you'd marry or have a long term relationship with, butshe is the woman you can't get off your mind, staring at the ceilingimagining what it'd be like to grope every part of her body, ever soslowly.

2012-05-10 03:32:50

One of the worst movies that I've ever seen!

I sometimes think that I'm the only person in the world that hates this film, but I detest it thoroughly. I had no idea what I was in for when I saw it during its theatrical run. One of my main objections is that the film minimizes, if not glamorizes, the impacts of prostitution. Prostitution is a very ugly, exploitative scene in real life, not the lighthearted fun that the film portrays. Not the best moral message, to be sure.Aside from that, the other problem I have is with the characters. EVERYONE is a jerk in this movie. Nobody is appealing or likeable. Not even Cruise's Joel, who I found to be as much of a self-centered @#$%&*/ as everyone else. Unfortunately, he followed up by playing the same kind of obnoxious characters ("Top Gun", "Days of Thunder"). It took "Jerry Maguire" and "Rain Man" for me to gain any respect for him.Anyway, the combination of a creepy, amoral theme and obnoxious characters in what is supposed to be a comedy is a total turn-off. Keep the kids away!

2012-05-09 16:34:38

Sometimes you just have to say what the heck

I thought it was a terrific movie. I felt like I had every one of Cruise's phobia's when I was his age. And when he's frantic to get out of class and the clock somehow goes back a minute--I've been there, too. Besides Cruise's charm, Curtis Armstrong is funny as his friend who worries about his midterm while being chased by Guido, the killer pimp. I lived in Chicago then and a photographer friend told me that the hookers at the party were Chicago fashion models. One of the models was Candace Collins, who did some work for Playboy before an interviewer asked her if it was sexist and she answered yes. Then the magazine dropped her like a rock.

2012-05-02 07:09:29

'Risky Business' (Warner Studios) Runiing time: 99 minutes

I remember seeing this movie when it first came to the theaters on Labor Day weekend '83.Saw the flick with two of my elderly aunts.I mean,how tacky is that?Loved seeing/watching this sex comedy again and again.Straight A student Joel(Tom Cruise)tries to avoid his annoying friend's advise on how to 'get lucky' with a hot girl from the newspaper's personal ads.But Miles(Curtis Armstrong-we know him as Booger from 'Revenge Of The Nerds')won't easily give up until he gets Joel a woman.Several twists and situations occur before Joel meets his dream girl,Lana(Rebecca De Mornay)and gets his first lay(memorable scene,by the way).Joel,Miles and Lana later end up in a car chase scene being pursued by Guido,the killer pimp(Joe Pantoliano)who turns out to be Lana's pimp.Just watch the movie,you'll be glad you did.If you can believe it,I still run into people who've NEVER even scene this or several other 'Blockbuster' movies.

2012-05-01 23:26:05

Excellet Tom Cruise Film

This review is from: Risky Business [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) The best thing about this film is that all of the leads were in their prime and the casting was perfect. The story is original and keeps you entertained to the last scene. Tom nails his role. This is a DVD you will watch at least once every 6 months.

Rich Cline 2012-05-01 04:50:48

involving and entertaining

Mino 2012-04-30 17:27:32

There is an upside to being a bad actor in America

The upside to being a bad actor, in America, is that that the movieindustry is structured as a business. And like any business there is aproduct they want to sell to you. In order to sell the product theyneed advertising, and this is where the star-system steps in. In orderto sell a movie to the American target audience you need a "typicalAmerican looking" leading actor, which will be quoted like acommodity(this quote will determine the further use of him to endorseanother product). And this explains why a not so good looking, nextdoor looking guy like Tom Cruise, who can't act, gets the lead inmovies. He is backed up in his performance by other, talented, notnext-door material actors, but with strong personality(in this caseBronson Pinchot, Curtis Armstrong and Joe Pantoliano). The Americanmovie business calls them "comic relief" characters, but in fact thatmeans they are not destined to make it big in the business. Well, theonly comic thing I find about all that is that luck (because the wayyou look is destiny) can put a bad actor on top of the pyramid. Only inAmerica.

j-caulkett 2012-04-26 20:36:36

I think most of "Risky Business" was another fantasy of Joel's.

In the same way that the opening with the babysitter was a fantasy, Ithink that most of the movie, from Lana's entrance, was one extendedfantasy, and the trick is to figure out what really happened. Joel is aworrier, with a fixation on getting into Princton. He may have had aparty while his parents were gone (or not), & the Princeton rep mayhave showed up while his friends were there (or not). Lana is probablyreal, a girl from a lower socio-economic class; Guido might have beenher boyfriend, or just Joel's paranoid creation. It really changesthings when you take all that into consideration. I really wonder howJoel & Lana ended up.

Sean Axmaker 2012-04-26 13:25:49

It's sexy, smart and funny, but also stylish and filled with social satire and commentary on the culture of money.

roig27 2012-04-24 06:28:44

Think you will like Sigmund Freud? Think again.

This is a movie that I never understood, perhaps because I am an openlygay adult. Why should Truman Capote be converted into a fussy Britishintelligence-Air Force-spy? He spies you all over the place: thememorable stair scene with a Savanah-look-alike is a contender of thebest F/X I have seen. Thsi is not Dumbo over Shangri-La or Bacon overVer Meer. This is a really hot-blooded bimbo of a movie. You shouldleave it open and keep it in the closet if you will ever can. Thesyntax of the movie is happy: a guy, Tom Cruise, invites people tostart a business: in a Andy Warhol-turnaround into Truman Capotedisaster, Cruise sets his Alaskan marvels and start a career as a pimpor prostitute. He is not a male prostitute though: he has one or twogirlfriends who pose as accomplices so they can accomplish their"risky" business. Not a fake though: the cinematography is acceptable,and his "solo" in-his-underwear scene is for a gay male who is not inthe closet, respectable.

carolyn-epps 2012-04-23 13:18:49

Great Movie

This movie is one of my all time must see classics. Paul Brickmanshould do a remake of this one.I rent the DVD every year around the Fall of the season (somethingabout falling leaves). Every actor in this film contributed greatly tothis film. But the two most memorable for me were Cruise and Demornay.The chemistry they had together in this movie was palpable.Tom Cruise gets my vote for ALL TIME FAVORITE MALE ACTOR. I was a highschool graduate and remember seeing this film at the theater thatsummer. The 80's was definitely a great decade.

2012-04-16 09:29:48

RISQUE'

I LIKE THIS MOVIE THIS IS A MUST HAVE MOVIE WITH TOM CRUISE I LOVE THIS MOVIE THIS SHOWS YOUNG TOM CRUISE TAKING CARE OF HIS PARENTS HOUSE WHILE THEY ARE AWAY AND HE LEARNS HOW TO MAKE MONEY THE OLD FASHIONED WAY AND HAS TO BE SURE TO PUT HIS MOM'S PLACE BACK INTO SHAPE BEFORE THEY RETURN THIS IS A MUST HAVE FOR ANY TOM CRUISE FAN.

Richard-211 2012-04-15 18:56:50

Nice surprise

I was annoyed that I missed the first ten minutes, as the film turned outtobe a nice surprise. It doesn't seem that dated and manages to avoidbecomingtoo corny or cliched. Not many belly laughs, but it put a smile on my facemost of the way through and Tom Cruise shows something of what made him astar.I will have to watch it again to see the beginning!7/10

Richard 2012-04-12 01:41:59

"Princeton could use a man like Joel"

I saw this movie on the big screen and witnessed a young Tom Cruise deliver a first rate performance. Expressions, delivery and varying moods, Cruise was acting far ahead of his years. Joel, at home with arms crossed, lets Guido the Pimp walk all over him. Cut to the scene in DeMornay's appartment after Joel has been expelled. In a matter of days he's grown up. Cruise conducts the transition with deftness. Love on a real train completes his move to manhood. This scene is beautifully directed with rhythm and shadows to the inimitable music of Tangerine Dream.

scribbler51 2012-04-11 13:06:48

Unfair to parents? No ...

The lead review expresses some distaste for how the parents areportrayed, a view with which I must take issue.The basic story (teenage boy has misadventures while his parents areaway) resonated very strongly with me because during the '70s, onseveral separate occasions when our parents were away, my brother and Ihosted week-long, sustained parties that were only a little smaller andmore restrained - and with only the hookers missing. We grew up in theChicago suburbs where Risky Business was filmed, where such parties,while by no means common, most definitely occurred.My mother, bless her, could have supplied the line uttered by Joel'smother, because each time, as she and my father departed, Mom wouldsay, in the same tone as Joel's mom, "We trust you, dear."Joel Goodson's parents weren't portrayed as stupid or naive, simplytrusting. They trusted their son - with good reason - and there wasonly the smallest evidence that anything untoward had happened in theirabsence. The same was true in the case of my brother and me.My only regret about Risky Business is that it was not released withthe original, darker ending, which would have added considerableresonance to the story which, in the end, was about the loss ofinnocence.

2012-04-07 11:19:50

Essential 80's "Business"

Rarely will you find a video store without RISKY BUSINESS. Not only is it a contemporary classic, but it was also Tom Cruise's breakthrough film and a major hit. While reputed to be a very good movie, upon watching it, I found it to be something else. It's an excellent movie.Tom Cruise plays Joel Goodson, a high-school kid who is just that - a good son. He's responsible, careful, and trusted. But when his parents leave town for the week, Joel decides to loosen up - but after he nervously invites call girl Lana (Rebecca De Mornay) into his house, everyone goes horridly wrong. With only a few days left to go, Joel must raise his grades, make $8,000, get back stolen furniture, and escape from the clutches of Guino (Joe Pontoliano), the killer pimp. Work is hell. And Joel knows it.This movie is great. It wildly exceeded by expectations, and is much better than it's said to be. Cruise is great - the fact that RISKY BUSINESS is Cruise's first major film is enough to make it worth the watch, anyway; De Mornay is also very good. Paul Brickman's direction has a sort of artistic feeling to it (he also scripted); he has a unique way of creating a film that's funny, erotic, and occasionally suspenseful. Another wonderful aspect of the film is its terrific soundtrack. It features rockin' songs from such popular artists as The Police, Bob Seger, Talking Heads, Muddy Waters, Phil Collins, and Prince. It also features new music by the hit-making band Tangerine Dream, whose techno, futuristic-sounding score gives the movie an occasionally nightmarish, occasionally unpleasant mood to it - and, of course, the film is about every teenager's nightmares come true.All in all, RISKY BUSINESS is essential viewing from the 1980's, and it works just as well now as it did then. Tom Cruise's first hit, a terrific soundtrack, and a cult classic - this is RISKY BUSINESS.

2012-04-07 01:37:24

Are You Ready For Risky Business?

Oh my gosh, I can't even begin to describe how fun the movie Risky Business is. The movie is all about Joel (Tom Cruise) who is in his senior year of high school, and really wants to get into Princeton. While his parents are away and Joel is home by himself, he calls up a prostitute named Lana and kind of falls in love with her. Joel is intrested in business, so he and Lana start up a one night brothel @ his house. All through the movie you are left with the same question running through your mind - Does he get into Princeton? The only way you can find out is if you see the movie that started Tom Cruise's acting spree ~ Risky Business!

Devin 2012-04-03 21:42:08

Ferris Buehler's Day Off with Tom Cruise

This is my favorite Tom Cruise movie, he has the best character that heever played. In 1983 this was original but by todays standards it lacksany special qualities that would make it stand out. The plot issimplistic: A suburban Chicago teenager's parents leave on vacation,and he cuts loose. An unauthorized trip in his father's Porsche means asudden need for lots of money, which he raises in a creative way. Butthis is very unbelievable: A hooker as beautiful a DeMornay wouldn'tjust show up and give you the kind of greeting Joel gets. Then becomeyour girlfriend. The jealous pimp wouldn't steal all your householdbelongings and then sell them back to you to wipe out all your profitsfrom the house party. The Porsche dumped into the lake wouldn't havefish come out with the water, after all the windows were up, that's whyhe couldn't get in and stop the locked car. The college recruiter fromPrinceton changing his mind after a night at Joel's probably wouldn'thappen.This is a feel good movie that like all feel good movies it puts asmile on your face. For a newer version of this type of movie try "TheGirl Next Door"

grahamsj2 2012-04-03 11:18:05

Good teen flick

One of Cruise's first films, his acting is surprisingly good. Not quite"natural" yet, but still pretty good. The basic story is quite funny andthewhole cast pulls it off quite nicely. The music works beautifully and thewhole thing comes together well. Tom Cruise dancing around in hisunderwearhas become an icon. Pretty good flick and well worth awatch!