No Small Affair

Those of you who read this blog, yes, I'm talking to you three, remember the brat pack. The creme dela creme of young, 80's actor's/party animals who graced us with their presence in films like The Breakfast Club or St. Elmo's Fire. And then there were those just on the edge of brat pack greatness. Those who might have appeared in a John Hughes film or alongside Judd Nelson but didn't get the keys to the brat pack kingdom. For every Emilio Estevez, there was a Craig Schaefer. For every Andrew McCarthy, a C. Thomas Howell. Jon Cryer was one of those just on the cusp. He was in Pretty In Pink and even headlined in some pretty great vehicles before finding his true calling in television. If anything, he was kind of a poor man's Mathew Broderick. I don't mean that as an insult. His films just didn't find the audiences that War Games and Ferris Bueller did. This week, I'm looking back at three of those movies. The first is No Small Affair.

Cryer stars as Charles Cummings, a 16 year old whose only interest is photography. He doesn't have any real friends and hasn't noticed the opposite sex. That is until older woman Laura Victor, yes, that's brat packer Demi Moore, accidentally steps into one of his shots. When he develops the pictures her image has a muse like effect on him and he becomes obsessed with her. After some failed attempts of tracking her down, he see's her performing at a bar. He finds out that she's a struggling musician and tries to convince her that his photo's could help her get her big break. She thinks he's just a silly kid but begins to warm up to him and let's him snap photo's of her with mixed results.

This was made and released right before both Cryer's and Moore's careers took off. The next year, Moore would costar in St. Elmo's Fire, with Cryer appearing in Pretty In Pink the following year.

This a sweet and funny film handled with a delicate touch by director Jerry Schatzberg. Kind of an odd choice to direct since he is known for grittier fare like Panic In Needle Park and Street Smart. Both Cryer and Moore are great in this, especially Cryer. Charles could come off as a brat, but Cryer gives him a nerdy vunerability and humor which I'm sure led to him being cast as Ducky in Pretty In Pink. The supporting cast is great too. The always underappreciated Ann Wedgeworth is really good as Charles' put upon mom. The always dependable Jeffrey Tambor is good as Wedgeworth's boyfriend. The scenes were he tries to relate to Charles are hysterical. Peter Frechette and E.G. Daily steal their scenes as Charles' party animal brother and his fiancee. George Wendt rounds out the main cast, that's not a fat joke, as the sleazy bar owner where Laura works. I guess he's not such a nice guy when he's on the other side of the bar. Also, in a before they made it roles, are Tim Robbins and Jennifer Tilly as two of Charles' classmates.

I think one of the reasons I really enjoy this movie is because I kind of relate to it. Instead of being obsessed with photography, I was obsessed with movies. That being said, I still noticed the ladies though.

No Small Affair is available on dvd. Stay tuned for my look back at Jon Cryer.