CRY-BABY

USA | 1990 | 35mm | 85 mins.
Director: John Waters
Cast: Johnny Depp, Amy Locane, Ricki Lake
1950s Baltimore gets torn apart when preppy Allison (Locane) falls hard for juvenile delinquent Wade “Cry-Baby” Walker (Depp, already subverting his heartthrob image in his first major film role). A tongue-in-cheek musical delivered at the hopped-up pitch of its rockabilly soundtrack, this wildly entertaining romp both satirizes and embraces teen movie tropes. Featuring a supporting cast stacked with enough showbiz weirdos to rival Marty Supreme, Waters’s first movie for a major Hollywood studio is a perfect fusion of his outsider attitude and pure pop cinema. (MK)