Review: The 80s are Reborn in 'Valley Girl,' a Retro Jukebox Musical From Director Rachel Lee Goldenberg

Like omigod you guys, if you're in the mood for something totally escapist "Valley Girl" is your movie. Don't expect and depth from this retro jukebox musical directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg and written by Amy Talkington, but if you want corny humor and bitchin musical number this fits the bill.

Julie Richman, a character that first appeared in the 1983 film of the same name (played conversely by Alicia Silverstone and Jessica Rothe), recalls her first true love in the early 1980s when she was a "valley girl," a diminutive term for a superficial, materialistic young woman, typically from the San Fernando Valley, with a very distinct colloquial dialect. This is the framing device for a completely superficial flashback to the Regan Era where excess reigned and the rich were massively deregulated.

The original, a teen explotation film starring Nicholas Cage, was created to capitalize on the viral popularity of this socioeconomic stereotype and a the Top 40 Hit, recorded by Frank and Moon Zappa, that named it. This song never appears in the soundtrack of this remake, but it is one of the only hits from the early 1980s that doesn't. And this is what gives this movie all of its charm. It's a singing and dancing medley of nostalgia with spectacular numbers, a formulaic plot line and not much else. But this is nothing new for the musical comedy. This is what made "Grease" an enormous hit and one of the longest running Broadway shows of the 1970s.

Julie lives in a little suburban bubble until a bad boy punk rocker from the wrong part of town (Josh Whitehouse) crashes her friend's party and smashes her world. Unfortunately, she just seriously wants to go to prom. And he's all like, "No way, prom is grody!" Why is it that teenage dreams and monumental life moments can never seem to trickle down?

Whitehouse as Julie's love interest is no Nick Cage, but he's cute and goofy enough to carry the roll even if he can't always carry a tune. And the film has a number of great character actors with which you can't go wrong, like Judy Greer and Mae Whitman.

Making America great again may be harder than anticipated, but the carefree consumerism that typified the 80s is reborn here in vibrant color and sound. And how can you go wrong with a dance off in an aerobics class, featuring a dueling mash-up of Depeche Mode, Madonna and Hall & Oats?

You can so totally own "Valley Girl" on Blu-ray and DVD, available October 6.

"Valley Girl"
Blu-ray $14.99
www.mgm.com/