Cry-Baby (1990)

In 1950s Baltimore, a bad boy with a heart of gold wins the love of a good girl, whose boyfriend sets out for revenge.

Director:

John Waters

Writer:

John Waters

Stars:

Johnny Depp, Ricki Lake, Amy Locane

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Depp	...	Cry-Baby
Amy Locane	...	Allison Vernon-Williams
Susan Tyrrell	...	Ramona Rickettes
Polly Bergen	...	Mrs. Vernon-Williams
Iggy Pop	...	Belvedere Rickettes
Ricki Lake	...	Pepper Walker
Traci Lords	...	Wanda Woodward
Kim McGuire	...	Mona 'Hatchet-Face' Malnorowski
Darren E. Burrows	...	Milton Hackett
Stephen Mailer	...	Baldwin
Kim Webb	...	Lenora Frigid
Alan J. Wendl	...	Toe-Joe
Troy Donahue	...	Hatchet's Father
Mink Stole	...	Hatchet's Mother
Joe Dallesandro	...	Milton's Father

Storyline

Allison is a "square" good girl who has decided she wants to be bad and falls hard for Cry-Baby Walker, a Greaser (or "Drape" in John Waters parlance). Spoofing Elvis movies and Juvenile Delinquency scare films of the '50s, this movie follows the adventures of Cry-Baby who, though he is sent to juvie, is determined to cross class (and taste) boundaries to get Allison back.

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Plot Keywords:

1950s | forbidden love | dysfunctional family | greaser | teen movie | 

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Taglines:

He's a doll. He's a dreamboat. He's a delinquent.

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

The newspaper that announced Cry-Baby's release has a paragraph that is repeated several times.

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Goofs

Allison's hair changes length during the film. In the final scene at the end her goes from shoulder length to past her collar bone when she is singing.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Wanda's mother: Hi Kids. Remember, always look both ways before crossing.
Wanda: [embarassed] Mother!

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Crazy Credits

The film begins with an old-fashioned 50's style Universal logo. It's also accompanied by 50's doo-wop music. A stage curtain opens up the movie.

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Alternate Versions

To avoid a 15 certificate for its UK cinema release, some uses of the word 'fuck' were bleeped. The cinema release was rated 12, but the video release was still rated 15 (because the 12 certificate wasn't used for video recordings until 1994). The current UK DVD release has all uses of 'fuck' unbleeped, and is rated 15.

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Connections

Featured in MsMojo: Top 10 Weirdest Movie Musicals (2018)

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Soundtracks

The Flirt
Written by Leonard Lee and Earl Palmer
Performed by Shirley & Lee (as Shirley and Lee)
Courtesy of Capitol Records Inc.

User Reviews

Brill!

I first saw this movie on TV and then just HAD to get it on video. It's a brilliant send-up of the Grease story and Johnny Depp is perfectly cast in the James Dean-type role as a juvinile dilinquent who falls for a square. It's very funny and all the songs are great! Turn up the volume especially on 'Cry Baby'!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 April 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cry-Baby

Filming Locations:

USA

Box Office

Budget:

$11,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,004,905, 8 April 1990

Gross USA:

$8,266,343

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,266,343

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min 91 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1