Valley Girl Blu Ray Review (Warner Bros/MGM)
Valley Girl is a 2020 musical romantic comedy film directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg (Unpregnant, Playing Dead, A Deadly Adoption, & Grimm’s Snow White). It is a remake of the 1983 film of the same name. It was written by Amy Talkington (Number One Fan, Undercover, Avalon High, & The Night of the White Pants). It was produced by Steven J. Wolfe (Hellbent, Miss March, 500 Days of Summer, & Baggage Claim). The project was first announced in 2012 by MGM. Nicolas Cage actually turned down this movie. A major theatrical release was originally planned but it was cancelled due to Covid-19. It was released on Video on Demand & select Drive-In theaters instead for it’s release!
In present day, Ruby Richman (played by: Camila Morrone from Mickey and the Bear, Death Wish, & Never Goin’ Back) arrives home, upset about breaking up with her boyfriend that night over her plans to participate in a study program in Japan. Her mother Julie (played by: Alicia Silverstone from The Babysitter, The Crush, Clueless, Excess Baggage, & Blast from the Past), sits her down & recounts to Ruby her own final semester of high school plus her relationship with her own mother Diana (played by: Judy Greer from the Halloween franchise, Playing with Fire, Ant-Man 1/2, & Jawbreaker). In the early 1980s, Julie (played by: Jessica Rothe from Happy Death Day 1/2, Mary + Jane, Utopia, & La La Land) is a Valley girl who lives in Los Angeles. She frequents shopping malls with her friends which include Stacey (played by: Jessie Ennis from Better Call Saul, Veep, & Slash), Karen (played by: Chloe Bennet from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., 5 Years Apart, & Abominable), & Loryn (played by: Ashleigh Murray from Riverdale & Katy Keene). She is dating Mickey (played by: Logan Paul from Foursome) who is very popular in her school. She also aspires to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York & wants to change her life up. She meets Randy (played by: Josh Whitehouse from Alleycats, Poldark, & The Knight Before Christmas) at the beach, the lead singer of the band Safety Recall. Julie & her friends attend a costume party at Mickey’s house. Randy with his bandmates Sticky (played by: Mario Revolori from Killer App, Weeds, & Rhett and Link’s Buddy System) & Jack (played by: Mae Whitman from Good Girls, Parenthood, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, & Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) crash the party. Randy convinces Julie to leave the party with him. Julie steps out of her comfort zone & starts hanging out with Randy. They start to fall in love despite their different lifestyles. Karen begins dating Mickey after this. This all causes problems between the close friends. Julie is now considered an outsider & she’s no longer popular because of her new relationship. This causes a rift between Randy & his band also, both of their lives drastically change over their new love. Both feeling the pressure of all this, they distance themselves & start to fight. Julie tries to go back to her old life, she is crowned prom queen with Mickey but it just doesn’t feel right anymore. Is it too late to fix everything? or Will they just become a memory from the past????
The Valley Girl remake was much better than expected & I don’t even like musicals. The soundtrack was top notch & it had all kinds of familiar songs. That’s the best thing about this production & all the musical performances were great here. If you are not a fan of musicals, it still has plenty of normal moments here so you can still enjoy it. This is definitely a time capsule for the 80’s & it brings you back to those days. I will say this remake does capture a similar vibe to the original feature but honestly it feels like it’s own stand alone movie because it’s very different. I am huge fan of Jessica Rothe so that’s what sold me on reviewing this one. She is great in this, it’s cool to see her doing something different from the horror comedies that she’s known for. She actually has a nice singing voice also. She carries this one & she proves that she can be the lead in any genre. She had amazing chemistry with the entire cast. Valley Girl has a strong supporting cast that includes Alicia Silverstone, Judy Greer, Chloe Bennet, Mae Whitman, Ashleigh Murray, Camila Morrone, Thomas Lennon, & Jessie Ennis. One of the coolest things about this new version was the cameos by the original Valley Girls that included Deborah Foreman, EG Daily, & Heidi Holicker. This remake was very fun & entertaining. It had a little bit of everything in it like drama, comedy, romance, & music. I wasn’t expecting much from this at all but I ended up enjoying it so much, RECOMMENDED!!!!
Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Warner Bros! This 1080p (1.85:1) transfer looks amazing on blu ray. It’s a very colorful feature with a variety of locations. It really shows off the 80’s in California. The English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track takes advantage of Valley Girl’s top notch soundtrack. The music has a great boost to it & it pounds through your home set up. All of the dialogue is crystal clear here. It has English SDH subtitles. It has no extras on it besides a few “Trailers”. It also has a slipcover & a digital code. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!
