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Movies / On DVD / Something Wild
Something Wild

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Something Wild (1986)

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Reviews Counted:28

Fresh:24

Rotten:4

Average Rating:7.1/10

Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Melanie Griffith and Jeff Daniels star in this quirky road movie from director Jonathan Demme (MARRIED TO THE MOB, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS). Charlie Driggs (Daniels) is a timid New York investment... Melanie Griffith and Jeff Daniels star in this quirky road movie from director Jonathan Demme (MARRIED TO THE MOB, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS). Charlie Driggs (Daniels) is a timid New York investment broker who lets himself be abducted during his lunch hour by an attractive nut named Lulu (Griffith). While drunk, she drives him to a New Jersey hotel for some kinky sex and petty thievery, and later convinces him to accompany her to Pennsylvania and pose as her husband at her high school reunion. More misadventures ensue, and Charlie gradually finds himself loosening up and falling in love, but then the film makes a sudden left turn with the appearance of Ray (Ray Liotta), Lulu's real husband--a violent ex-convict. As the film's tone oscillates from lightheartedness to darkness, Demme's affection for his characters never wavers, and he keeps things moving with a jubilant soundtrack of global music and a roster of cameo appearances that include directors John Waters and John Sayles, and musicians the Feelies and Sister Carol. It's a comedy, it's a drama, it's a look at the pleasures and dangers of stepping outside the norm, in life and in film. [More]

Starring: Jeff Daniels, Melanie Griffith, Ray Liotta, Margaret Colin

Starring: Jeff Daniels, Melanie Griffith, Ray Liotta, Margaret Colin, Tracey Walter, Su Tissue, Charles Napier

Director: Jonathan Demme

Director: Jonathan Demme
Screenwriter: E. Max Frye
Producer: Kenneth Utt, Edward Saxon
Composer: John Cale, Laurie Anderson

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Something Wild

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Demme observes the human eccentricity that underlies the corner-store banalities of Middle America with warmth and loving detail; while a magnificent rock soundtrack and faultless performances from Daniels, Griffith and Liotta ensure pleasures galore.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A load of fun.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Paul Attanasio
Paul Attanasio
Washington Post

An offbeat comedy with an appreciation for the seductions and dangers of sexual thrill-seeking.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/26/04
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

The film's principal difficulty is E. Max Frye's original screenplay, which is better thought out in terms of its narrative than of the characters.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/20/03
Vincent Canby
Vincent Canby
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Demme is a master of finding the bizarre in the ordinary.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Jonathan Demme's picaresque joyride across the American landscape is still arguably the best thing he's ever done.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
12/26/06
Pat Graham
Pat Graham
Chicago Reader

Despite the quirky trappings, Something Wild is often as tame as its star couple, a pair who scream Ivory soap and plenty of Miracle Whip.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rita Kempley
Rita Kempley
Washington Post

A vestige of hope for your inner geek yearning to rebel.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Brad Laidman
Brad Laidman
Film Threat

The third film in Demme's Small-Town America trilogy (the other two are Handle With Care and Melvin and Howard) centers on a new screen type, the yuppie (played to perfection by Jeff Daniels); change of tone from comedy to horror is tough but well-earned

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
02/08/07
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Demme never loses sense of his destination and, more the point, is always willing to take a detour, convinced that something unexpected and exhilarating is available at the end of the road.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
08/16/01
David Sanjek
David Sanjek
PopMatters

Demme keeps his quirky narrative twisting and turning so that the viewer can never predict what will happen next.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
12/26/06
TV Guide's Movie Guide

[The] pinnacle of the yuppie-in-peril cycle.

Full Review Source: Movieline | comment Comment
04/17/01
Movieline
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
01/02/07
J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
Village Voice

Something wild this way comes!

comment Comment
12/23/02
Spyder Darling
Spyder Darling
NY Rock

One of Demme's most engaging films.

comment Comment
01/22/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

A cool, crazy cack!

comment Comment
03/11/05
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Film Threat

An expert and truly unpredictable blend of comedy and menace.

comment Comment
08/09/06
Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

Melanie Griffith looks hot in that dark wig; too bad she ditches it so quickly.

comment Comment
02/27/04
Luke Y. Thompson
Luke Y. Thompson
New Times

No review available.

comment Comment
12/05/03
Michelle Alexandria
Michelle Alexandria
Eclipse Magazine

No review available.

comment Comment
06/04/04
Sarah Chauncey
Sarah Chauncey
Reel.com
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
all

Latest News for Something Wild

March 17, 2009: Five Favourite Films with Greg Kinnear
How do you describe the career of a guy who started as the host of Talk Soup on E! and within five years was Oscar nominated for a role opposite Jack Nicholson? Greg Kinnear is... More...

September 18, 2007: QT Talks Death Proof: What's Different In the DVD Release?
At a press conference at Cannes, the Death Proof gang talked about the differences between the stand-alone version and the Grindhouse cut, as well as Tarantino's influences, his... More...

December 08, 2005: Jeff Daniels Does "Lookout" Duty for Disney
Well-admired character actor Jeff Daniels will star in a thriller entitled "The Lookout" for Disney and Spyglass, a project that will mark the directorial debut of an... More...

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