Released in 1983, "Valley Girl" stars Nicolas Cage as a Hollywood dude named Randy who develops a relationship with a girl from the San Fernando Valley, Julie (Deborah Foreman). Their sub-cultural clash excites them but turns off some of their friends. Julie's three friends are played by Elizabeth Daily (Loryn), Heidi Holicker (Stacey) and Michelle Meyrink (Suzi). Lee Purcell plays Suzi's overheated stepmother while Cameron Dye plays Randy's best friend and Michael Bowen Randy's nemesis. Frederic Forrest and Colleen Camp are on hand as Julie's parents.I don't usually list so many cast members, but I make an exception here because the characters are so notable. Believe it or not, Colleen Camp (Julie's mother) was the 'Indian' playmate in 1979's "Apocalypse Now."The term 'valley girl' is a socio-economic stereotype of a class of young women characterized by the colloquial dialect Valleyspeak and the corresponding vapid materialism. While it originally referred to the upper-middle class girls of the Los Angeles commuter towns of the San Fernando Valley in the early 80s, it later applied more broadly to any woman or girl—primarily in the USA and Canada—typified by ditziness, airheadedness, and greater interest in conspicuous consumption than spiritual or intellectual accomplishment.The movie was quickly thrown together in response to Frank Zappa's 1982 hit "Valley Girl," notorious for 14 year-old Moon Zappa's monologue, which popularized Valleyspeak like "Gag me with a spoon." Whatever the case, the film works well for what it is, a coming-of-age drama about Southern Californian youths. Stacey and Loryn stand out, as far as the girls go, particularly during the quasi-slumber party sequence. The music, however, is disappointing, particularly the so-called rock played at the Hollywood nightclub. It's more akin to new wave pop than anything genuinely rock/metal, which is strange given that this was the era that gave birth to kick-axx Hollywood hair bands like Van Halen, Motley Crue, Dokken, Ratt, WASP and, shortly later, Guns 'n' Roses, not to mention a gazillion more. Other early-to-mid 80's teen movies had the same problem, like "Sixteen Candles" and "Pretty in Pink." If you want an excellent rockin' soundtrack check out 1982's "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and 1993's "Dazed and Confused." The film runs 99 minutes and was shot in the Los Angeles area with the mall scenes shot in Stockton.GRADE: B+

Valley Girl has become one of my favourite romantic comedies to watch because it's funny, classic and stylish. I bought it on DVD from Walmart a few years ago, it's like Romeo & Juliet meets the 1980's but with awesome music and a totally cool story.Nicolas Cage at 19 was handsome and the perfect choice to play Randy a punk from the city who finds love with a girl from the valley,the cast includes Deborah Foreman as the love interest, Frederic Forrest & Colleen Camp as the hippie parents, Michael Bowen as the jock ex- boyfriend Elizabeth Daily, Heidi Hollicker & Michelle Meyrink as Julie's friends, and Cameron Dye as Randy's friend.The story is simple Julie (Foreman) a girl from the Valley fed up with her boyfriend Tommy's (Bowen) attitude breaks up with him and begins to date Randy (Cage) a punk from Hollywood High. That's when the fun & romance takes off as they get to know each other by falling in love, however her friends Loryn, Susie & Stacey are disgusted and pressure her to end the relationship and go back to her ex. The most iconic scene occurs during the junior prom when Randy finally gets his revenge and a fight breaks out that ends with Julie dumping Tommy for the second time and reuniting with her true love. The end scene shows the young lovers departing into the night in a limousine and Modern English's I Melt With You playing during the credits.For fans of 80's movies and romance Valley Girl is for sure to entertain and please anyone who enjoys good times and cool tunes.

It is really hard to decipher the veritable Raison d'Etre of 'Valley Girl' as despite having an important role by Nicholas Cage, it was neither a mainstream Hollywood film with big stars nor was it a product of quirky American independent cinema movement. By choosing to film a difficult love story whose characters took their own time to test the strength of their tender yet whimsical relationship, director Martha Coolidge was able to portray all the essential questions surrounding the 'angst' of class differences which were not so evident in other American films of the time. She succeeded in creating an honest film about confused youngsters especially girls who would try to influence opinions of others around them. It is not a surprise that 'Valley Girl' has entered numerous English language dictionaries as an expression but as a film it advocated good times for young people as their parents were not putting any pressure on them. It is nice to watch how deftly a young Nicholas Cage portrayed the pain of a young boy in love. The major force of "Valley Girl" lies in the fact that it was an effective tool to show how other people's behavior was influential in governing the behavior of their friends. It was this negative quality which prevented them from accepting a 'different' person.

To quote and slightly alter a song from Rancid: "Little Randy was a punk rocker. You know his girlfriend never understood him." What do you do when the perfect guy is from the wrong side of the tracks and doesn't talk or act like your friends? What a dilemma! This has a classic 80's plot, struggles, amount of nudity, and resolution. Watch this if you know what you're getting into and you'll enjoy it immensely. There is plenty wrong with this movie, but don't watch it with a critical eye, rather a nostalgic opportunity to see Nicolas Cage before he had his teeth worked on, an early Elizabeth Daily, and a young 'Buck' from Kill Bill. Rating 24/40