Losin' It (1983)


There isn't much to say about Losin' It outside of what could be expected based off its poster and title. It's another straight-forward 80s teen sex comedy, only this time so stale that the offensiveness of the standard misogyny and racism found in movies like this can't override how humdrum this film really is.




Perhaps this sounds harsh when compared to something like Endless Love, but Losin' It has no interesting broader context nor subtext. Not that one can expect a film about three teenagers trying to have sex in Mexico to be that deep when all is said and done, but it leaves little to reflect upon in a review outside of stating the obvious. Nothing about this movie is funny, unless the mere thought of sex and off-color jokes is amusing.

Reportedly, Cruise took this film to star alongside Jackey Earle Haley, according to IMDb; Andrew Morton's unauthorized biography about Cruise claims that this was simply a paycheck film. Whatever the reason, this film remains the most forgettable of Cruise's career. Even when it came out, it was easily overshadowed by Risky Business, a movie that meant much more for Cruise's career than this one.



Something I do find interesting, though, is that this film is what I consider to be the first in an unofficial trilogy of movies where Cruise losing his virginity is integral to the plot. Also mildly fascinating is how this film portrays him as a clean-cut, polite, somewhat nerdy teenager, a character so starkly different to the image Cruise carved for himself with Top Gun and later roles.

Losin' It is really only worth watching if you're determined to see Tom Cruise in every iteration of his career. Otherwise, it's completely fine to skip it.

Rating: 1.5/5 - January 23, 2020

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Image
Admittedly, it took me a very long time (a year, in fact) to get myself ready to rewatch Eyes Wide Shut . The idea of giving my thoughts on a Stanley Kubrick film when people have already said so much about them was daunting, but it becomes even more daunting when it's his final film -- and one that people absolutely adore to theorize about. Eyes Wide Shut is a peculiar film indeed, one full of motifs and symbolism that can be interpreted in a myriad of ways. So I'll take a swing at it, too.    
Read more

Endless Love (1981)

Image
In 1979, Scott Spencer published his book Endless Love , a novel about 17-year-old David Axelrod and his dangerous obsession with his girlfriend, Jade. Two years later, a film adaptation of the same name came out and disastrously missed the point of its source material. While this is no strange feat in Hollywood, it's difficult to point fingers on who, exactly, is to blame for claiming that David really was in love Jade and vice versa when the novel goes so far to explain that this isn't the case, as there doesn't seem to be much information widely available regarding the production of the film. Part of me feels that it's more likely the fault of studio meddling; after all, the popular love ballad of the same name gained this film its only Academy Award and Golden Globe. And I don't believe that the screenwriter nor director were completely oblivious to the symbolism present in the novel, given an early scene in the film where David and Jade dress similarly to ...
Read more

Brief Update

Long time, no see. With the COVID-19 pandemic, the release for Top Gun: Maverick has been pushed back by six months. While I was disappointed by this, I was also relieved, because my personal life has become extremely busy. When I reworked my movie watching schedule, I found that I was now ahead by a number of months. So, after a three month hiatus, I'm happy to say that I am back. This project is not over yet. We still have 22 years left to cover.
Read more