Review of Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) by Parker M — 19 Aug 2011

3.5 Stars out of 4.

The title, "Peggy Sue Got Married", is the worst choice Peggy ever made. It's 1985 and she is on the verge of divorcing high school sweetheart Charlie, who has become an instant hit on television. Peggy, along with daughter Beth (Helen Hunt), goes to her high school reunion all stewed up that her fellow classmates will ask about the absence of Charlie. But Peggy receives more than she bargained for. After being rewarded queen of the reunion, she faints and then inexplicably wakes up in 1960, her grade 12 year. If you couldn't guess, this is a golden opportunity for Peggy to change her history. Moral of the story: by the end, the title, "Peggy Sue Got Married", is the best choice Peggy ever made.

I'm sorry for spoiling the result, but the beginning and end doesn't drive Peggy Sue Got Married. It's what happens in between, where director Francis Ford Coppola (at the time named "Francis Coppola") just tells a story, sparing his usual aggressive style, and brings out the personalities of the characters. Peggy is played by Kathleen Turner, who - despite being tossed back into adolescence - does not change her appearance. She still looks like the Peggy fortysomething and Charlie looks like Charlie, with a little Elvis.

Now, I assume the high schoolers see Peggy as their age, since no one recognizes her aging. But we don't. This allows Turner to perform, using loose, nimble body language to embody a teenager whose thoughts are, humorously, riddled with life lessons and discipline you only learn in adulthood.

I must talk about Charlie, as his behaviour almost overshadows the shrewd, mature Peggy who seems to have all her priorities sorted out. Charlie is played by Nicolas Cage, the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola, who uses a goofy voice that sounds like Pokey from The Gumby Show. It's a daring choice for an actor who plays the groovy, popular hunk. But with Cage you must remember: he's all about the personality. Note: his quirky looks never hurt though.

Charlie is a good boy, who clearly loves Peggy but in that naive teenage way. He's yet to discover other relationships in the world, so he assumes the first one is the best. Peggy does love Charlie - she did end up being with him for over 20 years. But, with reluctance, she denies Charlie who takes quite a hurting. The real pain is in that Charlie (circa 1960) has no idea that their marriage will go belly up, but Peggy does. She's doing him a favour not a disservice, but kids have the tendency to confuse the two.

There is a love story in the palm of Peggy Sue Got Married's hands. But it also clasps on fond feelings of nostalgia and makes clever jokes with reference to the future. I suspect adults would receive Peggy Sue Got Married with higher regard, because then they would know how Peggy felt, so this film would be personal to them too. In a way I watched Peggy Sue Got Married with a detachment, but Coppola is effective in allowing us to associate with the characters, despite the time period. From the film's opening reunion scene we feel like we've grown up with these characters, so it's not difficult to marinate in Peggy's memories.

Peggy Sue Got Married offers endless delights. There's one sequence with Peggy and Charlie, where the unexpected character wants to go all the way. For 2011, it's not as surprising but if you, like Peggy, travel back twenty years it becomes a real hoot. Other pleasures involve a beatnik writer (Kevin J. O'Connor), a old crush of Peggy's. His dialogue (sparing as it is) is unexpectedly intelligent: "All life is an author's work," he muses when the two debate Hemingway. You'd think this role was written for Coppola.

Peggy Sue Got Married is likely to be criticized for its final moments. In what we assume will be the conclusion, a scene shows Peggy trying to escape the past through a strange seance ritual, which I'm still debating if that scene works or not. Regardless, the final shot consumes any doubts, with Coppola panning out from the mirrors of the past and settling in the present with new eyes. Does the ending reflect the beginning? Not sure. But in Peggy Sue Got Married, Peggy Sue had a chance to look at the past and - in doing so - she reconciled with the present. The only thing left was the future.

Note: The title song was a demo composed by the late Buddy Holly. Like this film, it still dances in my thoughts.