Desperately Seeking Susan
Release date: 1985-03-29
Votes: 487
Genres: Drama, Comedy, Crime
A bored New Jersey suburban housewife's fascination with a free-spirited woman she has read about in the personal columns leads to her being mistaken for the woman herself and into a chaotic adventure of amnesia and self-discovery.
Reviews
TimtheGiant
I always thought this was one of Madonna's best film performance yet.
Wuchak
***Screwball drama in Manhattan with Rosanna Arquette and Madonna*** Roberta (Rosanna Arquette), a bored housewife in the New York City area, becomes obsessed with a wild child named Susan (Madonna) through the personal ads and inadvertently takes on her persona when she visits Manhattan. Unfortunately a hooligan is after Susan for priceless Egyptian earrings (Will Patton). Mark Blum plays Roberta’s jerk husband and Aidan Quinn a new friend in the city. “Desperately Seeking Susan” (1985) is a quirky drama revolving around mistaken identity in an unlikely story. It’s entertaining enough and also works as a window into mid-80’s New York City. How much a viewer will appreciate it depends on how smitten (or not smitten) they are with Arquette. She’s winsome, for sure, but I can take her or leave her. Madonna is more alluring in the lesser role, but I’m not big on her either; still, there are a couple scenes that nicely spotlight her attractiveness. The film runs 1 hour and 43 minutes and was shot in Manhattan; Manhasset, Long Island; and Atlantic City. GRADE: B-
Movie Recommendation
Filth and Wisdom2008-09-17Filth & Wisdom is a poignant view of the lives of three not quite ordinary friends settled into meaningless jobs that barely keep them afloat while helping to finance their dreams of bigger and brighter futures. Their unique yet universal stories capture their struggles that are at turns funny and tragic but always brutally honest. Their intertwined lives explore the inevitable: a path paved with filth will often end in wisdom and one paved with wisdom will often end in filth.More...
Charlie Chan at the Opera1936-12-04A dangerous amnesiac escapes from an asylum, hides in the opera house, and is suspected of getting revenge on those who tried to murder him 13 years ago.More...
In Pieces2019-05-07A gay love story unfolds at college house party.More...
The Bride1985-08-16Doctor Frankenstein creates a mate for his monster, a woman called Eva, who promptly rejects the male creature. In turn, the doctor becomes obsessed with Eva, and tries to make her a perfect Victorian woman.More...
Blue Valley Songbird1999-11-01Country singer Leana Taylor (Dolly Parton) struggles to escape from her controlling manager/boyfriend Hank (John Terry) as well as her troubled past. After turning to her guitarist (Billy Dean), Leanna finally faces her past, including her estranged mother and the death of her father. Through flashbacks, Leana deals with her past as she attempts to move her life forward and begin a recording career.More...
No Sad Songs1985-06-15Jim Black, a 37-year-old Canadian talks about the AIDS that is killing him. He talks about his life and his friends and how his brother's family has rejected him. Catherine Hunt is a Canadian woman whose brother is dying of AIDS. These personal stories are presented with excerpts from a series of performances by Canadian musicians and performance artists in order to give the viewer a bigger picture of the impact of this disease.More...
A Certain Sacrifice1985-10-01A street-wise teen gets herself in a series of circumstances and mishaps in her meaningless existence.More...
Shanghai Surprise1986-08-29Glendon Wasey is a fortune hunter looking for a fast track out of China. Gloria Tatlock is a missionary nurse seeking the curing powers of opium for her patients. Fate sets them on a hectic, exotic, and even romantic quest for stolen drugs. But they are up against every thug and smuggler in Shangai.More...
Once Upon a Crime1992-03-06On their way to Monte Carlo, Monaco, Marilyn and her husband, Neil, meet several other married couples, including Julian and Phoebe, who are traveling with a lost dog they plan to return to its wealthy owner for a large reward. But, when the dog's mistress is murdered, the travelers become the prime suspects, and Inspector Bonnard is determined to track them all down.More...
The Far Country1954-02-12During the Klondike Gold Rush, a misanthropic cattle driver and his talkative elderly partner run afoul of the law in Alaska and are forced to work for a saloon owner to take her supplies into a newly booming but lawless Candian town.More...
The Outsiders1967-08-17A couple on the verge of getting married gets mixed up with a gang of thugs in this routine crime drama that underscores the Socio-economic disparity in the Mexican culture. The upper-class couple rides along with outsiders who go club-hopping and resort to petty thievery. After their adventure, the couple questions whether or not they are right for each other.More...
Funny Pages2022-08-26A teenage cartoonist rejects the comforts of his suburban life in a misguided quest for soul.More...
Vision Quest1985-02-15After deciding he needs to do something meaningful with his life, high school wrestler Louden Swain sets out on a mission to drop weight and challenge the area's undefeated champion, which creates problems with his teammates and health. Matters are complicated further when Louden's father takes in an attractive female drifter who's on her way to San Francisco.More...
Little Monsters1989-08-25A young boy is scared of the monster under his bed. He asks his 6th grade brother to swap rooms for the night as a bet that the monster really exists. Soon the brother becomes friends with the monster and discovers a whole new world of fun and games under his bed where pulling pranks on kids and other monsters is the main attraction.More...
Who's That Girl1987-08-07An uptight New York City tax lawyer gets his life turned upside down one day when he's asked to escort a feisty free-spirited ex-convict who asks him to help prove her innocence of her crime.More...
Married to the Mob1988-08-19Angela de Marco is fed up with her gangster husband's line of work and wants no part of the crime world. When her husband is killed for having an affair with the mistress of mob boss Tony "The Tiger" Russo, Angela and her son depart for New York City to make a fresh start. Unfortunately, Tony has set his sights upon Angela -- and so has an undercover FBI agent looking to use her to bust Tony.More...
All of Me1984-09-21Just before stubborn millionaire Edwina Cutwater dies, she asks her uptight lawyer, Roger Cobb, to amend her will so that her soul will pass to the young, vibrant Terry Hoskins – but the spiritual transference goes awry. Edwina enters Roger's body instead, forcing him to battle Edwina for control of his own being.More...
The Crisis1992-12-02Victor is a legal advisor who finds himself abandoned by his wife and fired the same day. He tries to seek comfort from different friends and family members, but everyone he meets is concerned with their own problems. His morale begins to falter when he realizes that no one cares about him.More...
Desperados2020-07-01A panicked young woman and her two best friends fly to Mexico to delete a ranting email she sent to her new boyfriend. On arrival, they run into her former beau, who soon gets caught up in their frantic scheme.More...
She's Gotta Have It1986-08-08The story of Nola Darling's simultaneous sexual relationships with three different men is told by her and by her partners and other friends. All three men wanted her to commit solely to them; Nola resists being "owned" by a single partner.More...
Similar Movies
Manivald
2018-06-16Manivald is a fox in his early 30s. He is still living at home with his mother. One day a young hot wolf called Toomas comes to fix the washing machine. A love triangle develops between the three of them. Things get out of hand and Manivald realizes that it is time to move out.Paris, Texas
1984-07-16A man wanders out of the desert not knowing who he is. His brother finds him, and helps to pull his memory back of the life he led before he walked out on his family and disappeared four years earlier.The Piano
1993-05-18When an arranged marriage brings Ada and her spirited daughter to the wilderness of nineteenth-century New Zealand, she finds herself locked in a battle of wills with both her controlling husband and a rugged frontiersman to whom she develops a forbidden attraction.Little Miss Sunshine
2006-07-26A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.Home Away from Home
1993-01-02To ease her homesickness Miriam recreates an aspect of home in her suburban British garden. Cultural memory exerts a healing power, combatting cultural appropriation, hostility towards migrants and the rift between Miriam and her Nigerian-British children.Wilbur Wants to Kill ...
2002-11-08The strange comedy film of two close brothers; one, Wilbur, who wants to kill himself, and the other, Harbour, who tries to prevent this. When their father dies leaving them his bookstore they meet a woman who makes their lives a bit better yet with a bit more trouble as well.Boys Don't Cry
1999-09-02A young transgender man explores his gender identity and searches for love in rural Nebraska.Pentuphouse
1998-01-01Della, a 45-year-old wanna-be, coulda-been jazz singer and her lover, Dale, a 23 year old small time criminal, are in the final stages of their dysfunctional relationship.Nest of Tens
2000-10-01Four alternating stories about mundane, personal methods of control. Children and a developmentally disabled adult operate control panels made out of paper, lists, monsters and their own bodies.D.E.B.S.
2005-03-25The star of a team of teenage crime fighters falls for the alluring villainess she must bring to justice.Fat Girl
2001-03-07Anaïs is twelve and bears the weight of the world on her shoulders. She watches her older sister, Elena, whom she both loves and hates. Elena is fifteen and devilishly beautiful. Neither more futile, nor more stupid than her younger sister, she cannot understand that she is merely an object of desire. And, as such, she can only be taken. Or had. Indeed, this is the subject: a girl's loss of virginity. And, that summer, it opens a door to tragedy.Bridget Jones's Diary...
2001-04-13Bridget Jones is an average woman struggling against expectations. As a New Year's resolution, Bridget decides to take control of her life, starting by keeping a diary in which she will always tell the complete truth. Her charming boss takes an interest in her, and she cannot stop running into a rather disagreeable acquaintance whom Bridget cannot help finding quietly attractive.Strange Days
1995-10-13In the last days of 1999, ex-cop turned street hustler Lenny Nero receives a disc which contains the memories of the murder of a prostitute. With the help of bodyguard Mace, he starts to investigate and is pulled deeper and deeper in a whirl of murder, blackmail and intrigue.Desert Hearts
1985-10-01While waiting for her divorce papers, a repressed literature professor finds herself unexpectedly attracted by a carefree, spirited young woman named Cay.Tru Love
2013-10-04A lesbian with commitment issues befriends a widowed mother who is visiting her workaholic daughter.Beyond Silence
1996-12-18Beyond Silence is about a family and a young girl’s coming of age story. This German film looks into the lives of the deaf and at a story about the love for music. A girl who has always had to translate speech into sign language for her deaf parents yet when her love for playing music grows strong she must decide to continue doing something she cannot share with her parents.Grbavica: The Land of...
2006-03-01A woman and her daughter struggle to make their way through the aftermath of the Balkan war.Bollywood/Hollywood
2002-10-25Rahul Seth is a dashing young millionaire who believes he is "western" enough to rebel against his mother and grandmother. They are not too keen about his Caucasian girlfriend Kimberly who, to make matters worse, is a pop star. Before you can say "karmic intervention," Kimberly dies in a freak accident and Rahul is devastated. Instead of allowing him to mourn in peace, Rahul's mother sees the opportunity she's been waiting for. She threatens to call off his sister's wedding unless he finds himself a "nice Indian girl." Rahul enlists the services of Sue, a fiercely independent escort whom he believes to be Hispanic, and therefore not "married" to the conventions taught to young Indian women. With a wink in her eye, Sue accepts the deal to pose as his Indian bride-to-be. She needs the money and having never been a fan of the typical Indian male, she feels her heart is safe. The charade begins....Longing
2006-02-15An average, everyday metalworker and volunteer firefighter content in his marriage to his childhood sweetheart finds his emotions unexpectedly stirred when he falls for a pretty waitress from a nearby town.Kings County
2003-06-12When four teenage drug dealers and their boss violate the altar of a crack addicted Santeria prophetess, their lives become unhinged when she predicts one of them will die and one of them will be incarcerated within a day.