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The Sure Thing (1985)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
1 March 1985 (USA)
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Tagline:
He's onto a sure thing . . . but ends up on the funniest journey to romance you've ever seen. more
Plot:
A college student plans a cross-country trip to get laid, but ends up traveling with a young woman. They hate each other, so naturally... full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
College
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Cross Country
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California
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Road
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Road Trip
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NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Chin Han Survives the Year 2012
(From MovieWeb. 2 November 2009, 6:03 PM, PST)
The Blu-Ray Review: Miss March
(From The Hollywood News. 12 August 2009, 5:50 AM, PDT)
(From MovieWeb. 2 November 2009, 6:03 PM, PST)
The Blu-Ray Review: Miss March
(From The Hollywood News. 12 August 2009, 5:50 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
One of the best romantic comedies ever made....
more (63 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | John Cusack | ... | Walter 'Gib' Gibson |
 | Daphne Zuniga | ... | Alison Bradbury |
 | Anthony Edwards | ... | Lance |
 | Boyd Gaines | ... | Jason |
 | Tim Robbins | ... | Gary Cooper |
 | Lisa Jane Persky | ... | Mary Ann Webster |
| Viveca Lindfors | ... | Professor Taub |
 | Nicollette Sheridan | ... | The Sure Thing |
| Marcia Christie | ... | Julie |
| Robert Anthony Marcucci | ... | Bobby |
 | Sarah Buxton | ... | Sharon |
| Lorrie Lightle | ... | Lucy |
| Joshua Cadman | ... | Jimbo |
| Krystal Richards | ... | Girl in Photo |
 | John Putch | ... | Mastin |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
100 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Iceland:L |
Canada:PG (Canadian Home Video rating) |
Australia:M |
Finland:S |
Sweden:11 |
UK:15 |
USA:PG-13 (No. 27534) |
West Germany:12
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The scene where Gib teaches Alison to shotgun a beer was added to the script after John Cusack told Rob Reiner it was something he knew how to do.
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Goofs:
Continuity: After Gary throws them out of the car, Gib jumps onto the car and slides off onto the street. THe next time we see him, he is sitting on another place, some 50 meters back, clearly visible by the skid marks on the street.
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Quotes:
Gib:
What the hell's wrong with being stupid once in awhile? Does everything you do always have to be sensible? Haven't you ever thrown waterballoons off a roof? When you were a little kid didn't you ever sprinkle Ivory flakes on the living room floor 'cause you wanted to make it snow in July? Didn't you ever get really shitfaced and maybe make a complete fool of yourself and still have an excellent time?
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Movie Connections:
References E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
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Soundtrack:
Dance Hall Days
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (63 total)
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Rating: ***1/2
Review: I know I've seen this more than 100 times, and chances are I'll see it a 1000 more times until I die. One of the most underrated films of the 1980s, this film not only marked the second directorial effort by Rob Reiner (THE PRINCESS BRIDE, WHEN HARRY MET SALLY...), but also the starring debut of John Cusack, one of my all-time favorite actors (even if he wasn't, I'd still feel the same way about this film). Even after 15 years, this film remains fresh, funny and wonderfully romantic, with a tenderness and innocence that's missing in so many teen films. It still offends me how so many teen films put it out today (with CAN'T HARDLY WAIT leading the pack) could become hits with their target audiences and films like this are left on the video shelf being forgotten. Their excuse may be simply that "it's old," but considering how cliched teen films are today, I can't believe they are smart enough to realize that. It's a shame that THE SURE THING hasn't recieved the DVD treatment, so that it could be re-discovered by today's audiences. THE SURE THING stars Cusack as Walter "Gib" Gibson a guy who loves junk food, beer, and life in general but feels lost for the first time in his life in terms of love when he completes high school. While having a beer with his best friend Lance (Anthony Edwards), he recalls all the women he's been with and how's he's changed. We now find out that they are about to depart to seperate colleges: Lance is going to California, and Gib is going to an Ivy League school up in the Northeast. Gib discovers that college is not all it's cracked up to be, and soon starts to flunk English. This is when we meet Alison Bradbury (Daphne Zuniga) a straight-A, education committed young woman who is too uptight, to say the least.
Gib tries, but fails, to win Allison and finds himself back to Square One when he gets a call from Lance. Since Christmas is coming soon, Lance invites Gib to travel cross country to spend the holidays with him. Gib declines, until Lance mentions that there is a "very special person...who loves sex" who would very much like to meet him. After seeing a picture of this "sure thing" that Lance sends him, he immediately makes plans to travel to California. He soon realizes that he's not travelling alone, but with Alison, who's also journeying to CA to see her boyfriend (calling him uptight would be much too kind). The majority of the films shows them on the road trying to get to California, though they soon learn not only tolerate but also respect each other, and soon their goals become dimmer, but not forgotten. There are so many wonderful moments on this little trip! Instead of using cliches, director Reiner likes to poke fun at them like in a near-rape scene where Gib becomes a real actor, or when Alison is learning to shotgun beer (one of Gib's favorite hobbies) and finally discovering the last thing you'd expect to be sticking out a car window while driving by. Finally, when they both arrive in California, Alison learns of Gib's reason for coming and the climactic scene is at a dorm party where unions are forged, words are passed and feelings are finally looked at by the two main characters. The film's final sequence is quite unusual and different, which is all the more reason for you to forget the film's only negative element. That element that THE SURE THING seems to get attacked by is predictablity, though most people shouldn't care, considering how charming and funny the film is. Sure, you know that Gib and Alison are going to end up together but the trip to that point is something to a grab a seat for. Writers Steven Bloom and Jonathan Roberts make every character real and believable and manage to give nearly every one of them an unforgettable line. Saying just one of those lines would spoil a lot for the person who hasn't watched this movie yet. All I'm saying is, if there is a film that shouldn't be missed it is this one, because like a lot of critics said "It's a genuinely special love story."