There is something unforgettable about good movie cliques. Maybe it’s fun to imagine them somehow staying together after the film or to figure out which of our friends correspond to which character, or maybe they just make for solid Halloween costumes. Whatever the reason, they have a way of leaving their mark on popular culture.
From Space Jam to The Avengers, iconic cliques pop up at any time and in any genre. Here is a rundown of five extremely different movie cliques you should get acquainted with.
The crew: The Greasers
The leader: Darry (Patrick Swayze), unofficially
The enemies: The Socs
The Outsiders (1983)
The Greasers are a gang of working-class Oklahoma teenagers who wear a whole lotta denim, leather and hair gel, an outfit that has ultimately become iconic. Their already violent rivalry with the wealthier Socs turns real sour when the Greasers start messing with their opponents’ girlfriends, and this leads to sneak attacks, murders, runaways and showdowns.
It’s a pretty grim affair, but director Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now) makes it both entertaining and a definite ‘80s staple, as is clear from its now famous cast list: Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Emilio Estevez, Diane Lane, Ralph Macchio, Tom Waits and a young Tom Cruise.
Heathers (1988)
The Heathers get their name from three eponymous popular girls at Westerburg High. They invite Veronica (Winona Ryder, in her breakout role) to join the group, but the quirky brunette is quickly disgusted by the Heathers’ bullying behaviour. Mysterious outsider J.D. (Christian Slater) soon notices Veronica and tricks her into participating in his anarchistic plans, which include murdering the Heathers and the popular jocks.
This black comedy, with its bloody storyline and campy dialogue, has earned a devout cult following over the years and gone on to inspire a legion of memorable high school flicks, like the much lighter but equally brilliant Clueless and Mean Girls.
The gang: The Heathers
The leader: Heather Chandler (Kim Walker)
The enemies: Outcasts
The crew: Ocean’s Eleven
The leader: Danny Ocean (George Clooney)
The enemies: Casino owner Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia)
Ocean’s Eleven (2011)
About thirty seconds after being released from jail, Danny Ocean visits his partner-in-crime Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) in L.A. and the pair decide to rob three Vegas casinos: the Bellagio, the Mirage and the MGM Grand, all owned by Benedict. They enlist the help of ten quirky specialists played by Matt Damon, Casey Affleck and Don Cheadle, among others – as well as that of Danny’s ex-girlfriend Tess (Julia Roberts) – to try to pull it off.
Thanks to director Steven Soderbergh’s touch, Ocean’s Eleven is one of those rare, electric blockbusters that became both a critical and commercial darling, even eclipsing the equally star-studded original version in many people’s minds.
The crew: The Lisbon sisters
The leader: Lux (Kirsten Dunst), the rebel
The enemies: N/A; they are united mainly by their mal de vivre and their overprotective parents
The Virgin Suicides (1999)
Sofia Coppola may have created a modern classic with 2003’s Lost in Translation, but her 1999 directorial debut easily remains her most shocking piece of work. After the youngest Lisbon sister, Cecilia, attempts suicide, her overprotective parents throw a party to cheer her up and snap her out of her depression.
But they fail: she jumps out of her bedroom window during the party and, this time, succeeds. The already authoritarian parents (played by the great James Woods and Kathleen Turner) then place the four remaining sisters under what amounts to house arrest. The neighbourhood boys, intrigued and hormonal, develop a sort of fascination with them, especially Lux, who manages to engage in various sex acts on the roof of the family house.
No one has or ever will film Kirsten Dunst the way Coppola did, with such light, warmth and mystique. Her acting itself is not particularly memorable, but the image of her as Lux is.
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
When discussing exploitation films, most bring up Russ Meyers’ Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (which, granted, does feature a memorable crew of murderous strippers), but believe me when I say Beyond the Valley of the Dolls is where it’s really at. Its title might not have quite the same ring to it, but there’s better violence, better girls, better boys, better campy dialogue, better sex and better shock in Valley.
The film, co-written by Roger Ebert, tells the trippy, unforgettable tale of a rock’n’roll band’s rise to fame and the twisted L.A. scenes they get into.
Everyone I have forced into viewing this film is, to this day, still traumatized…in the best way possible.
The crew: The Carrie Nations (and entourage)
The leader: Kelly Mac Namara (Dolly Read)
The enemies: Themselves, Los Angeles
There is something unforgettable about good movie cliques. Maybe it’s fun to imagine them somehow staying together after the film or to figure out which of our friends correspond to which character, or maybe they just make for solid Halloween costumes. Whatever the reason, they have a way of leaving their mark on popular culture.
From Space Jam to The Avengers, iconic cliques pop up at any time and in any genre. Here is a rundown of five extremely different movie cliques you should get acquainted with.
The crew: The Greasers
The leader: Darry (Patrick Swayze), unofficially
The enemies: The Socs
The Outsiders (1983)
The Greasers are a gang of working-class Oklahoma teenagers who wear a whole lotta denim, leather and hair gel, an outfit that has ultimately become iconic. Their already violent rivalry with the wealthier Socs turns real sour when the Greasers start messing with their opponents’ girlfriends, and this leads to sneak attacks, murders, runaways and showdowns.
It’s a pretty grim affair, but director Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now) makes it both entertaining and a definite ‘80s staple, as is clear from its now famous cast list: Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Emilio Estevez, Diane Lane, Ralph Macchio, Tom Waits and a young Tom Cruise.
Heathers (1988)
The Heathers get their name from three eponymous popular girls at Westerburg High. They invite Veronica (Winona Ryder, in her breakout role) to join the group, but the quirky brunette is quickly disgusted by the Heathers’ bullying behaviour. Mysterious outsider J.D. (Christian Slater) soon notices Veronica and tricks her into participating in his anarchistic plans, which include murdering the Heathers and the popular jocks.
This black comedy, with its bloody storyline and campy dialogue, has earned a devout cult following over the years and gone on to inspire a legion of memorable high school flicks, like the much lighter but equally brilliant Clueless and Mean Girls.
The gang: The Heathers
The leader: Heather Chandler (Kim Walker)
The enemies: Outcasts
The crew: Ocean’s Eleven
The leader: Danny Ocean (George Clooney)
The enemies: Casino owner Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia)
Ocean’s Eleven (2011)
About thirty seconds after being released from jail, Danny Ocean visits his partner-in-crime Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) in L.A. and the pair decide to rob three Vegas casinos: the Bellagio, the Mirage and the MGM Grand, all owned by Benedict. They enlist the help of ten quirky specialists played by Matt Damon, Casey Affleck and Don Cheadle, among others – as well as that of Danny’s ex-girlfriend Tess (Julia Roberts) – to try to pull it off.
Thanks to director Steven Soderbergh’s touch, Ocean’s Eleven is one of those rare, electric blockbusters that became both a critical and commercial darling, even eclipsing the equally star-studded original version in many people’s minds.
The crew: The Lisbon sisters
The leader: Lux (Kirsten Dunst), the rebel
The enemies: N/A; they are united mainly by their mal de vivre and their overprotective parents
The Virgin Suicides (1999)
Sofia Coppola may have created a modern classic with 2003’s Lost in Translation, but her 1999 directorial debut easily remains her most shocking piece of work. After the youngest Lisbon sister, Cecilia, attempts suicide, her overprotective parents throw a party to cheer her up and snap her out of her depression.
But they fail: she jumps out of her bedroom window during the party and, this time, succeeds. The already authoritarian parents (played by the great James Woods and Kathleen Turner) then place the four remaining sisters under what amounts to house arrest. The neighbourhood boys, intrigued and hormonal, develop a sort of fascination with them, especially Lux, who manages to engage in various sex acts on the roof of the family house.
No one has or ever will film Kirsten Dunst the way Coppola did, with such light, warmth and mystique. Her acting itself is not particularly memorable, but the image of her as Lux is.
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
When discussing exploitation films, most bring up Russ Meyers’ Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (which, granted, does feature a memorable crew of murderous strippers), but believe me when I say Beyond the Valley of the Dolls is where it’s really at. Its title might not have quite the same ring to it, but there’s better violence, better girls, better boys, better campy dialogue, better sex and better shock in Valley.
The film, co-written by Roger Ebert, tells the trippy, unforgettable tale of a rock’n’roll band’s rise to fame and the twisted L.A. scenes they get into.
Everyone I have forced into viewing this film is, to this day, still traumatized...in the best way possible.
The crew: The Carrie Nations (and entourage)
The leader: Kelly Mac Namara (Dolly Read)
The enemies: Themselves, Los Angeles