My Girl (film)

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My Girl
Promotional movie poster for the film
Directed by	Howard Zieff
Produced by	Brian Grazer Joseph M. Caracciolo David T. Friendly
Written by	Laurice Elehwany
Starring	Dan Aykroyd Jamie Lee Curtis Macaulay Culkin Anna Chlumsky Peter Michael Goetz
Music by	James Newton Howard
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date(s)	November 27, 1991 (USA)
Running time	102 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$15,000,000 US (est.)
Gross revenue	$59,847,242 US
Followed by	My Girl 2

My Girl is a 1991 coming-of-age dramatic comedy starring Dan Aykroyd, Jamie Lee Curtis, Macaulay Culkin and Anna Chlumsky in her feature film debut. It was written by Laurice Elehwany and directed by Howard Zieff.

A sequel, My Girl 2, was released in 1994.

[edit] Plot

Madison, Pennsylvania, Summer 1972. Vada Sultenfuss (Anna Chlumsky) is a precocious 11-year-old tomboy and a hypochondriac. Vada's father, Harry Sultenfuss (Dan Aykroyd), is an awkward widower who does not seem to understand his daughter, and as a result, constantly ignores her. His profession as a funeral director has led Vada to develop an obsession with death as well as disease. Vada is also convinced that she killed her own mother, since her mother died in childbirth.

Vada is teased by other girls because her only friend, Thomas J. Sennett (Macaulay Culkin), is a boy, but geeky and unpopular. Their summer adventures—from first kiss to last farewell—introduce Vada to the world of adolescence.

Vada's summer begins well. She befriends Shelley Devoto (Jamie Lee Curtis), the new make-up artist at her father's funeral parlor, who provides her with some much needed guidance. She is also infatuated with her teacher, Mr. Bixler, and steals some money from Shelley's trailer to attend a summer writing class that he is teaching.

But before long, things start to fall apart. Her father and Shelley start dating and get engaged, Thomas dies from an allergic reaction to bee stings while looking for (and finding) Vada's mood ring in the woods, and she finds out that her crush, Mr. Bixler, is engaged to someone else.

Vada's grief, however, manages to mend the rift between her and her father, and by the end of the movie, Vada has not only managed to deal with her pain, but she has also thankfully overcome some of her previous issues as well.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Music

The soundtrack of the film contains many classic 1960s and 1970s pop hits in addition to the title song, including such oldies-radio staples as "Wedding Bell Blues" (Fifth Dimension), "If You Don't Know Me By Now" (Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes), "Bad Moon Rising" (Creedence Clearwater Revival), "Good Lovin'" (The Rascals), and "Saturday in the Park" (Chicago). When she gets upset, Vada plugs her ears and sings "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," the Manfred Mann version of which is also included on the soundtrack album. In addition, Vada and Thomas J. play "The Name Game" and sing "Witch Doctor" in the film, and Vada has posters of The Carpenters and Donny Osmond on her bedroom wall.

[edit] Cultural References

• In the film Accepted, after Justin Long's character performs a cover of The Ramones' "Blitzkrieg Bop", he lists "not crying at the end of My Girl" as one of the things he cannot do.
• Thomas J.'s death is referenced in the The OC episode entitled "The Heights". After crying during an intense conversation with ex-girlfriend Marissa, Luke later tells her that he hasn't cried like that "since Macaulay Culkin died in My Girl".
• At the end of heavy metal band Anthrax's 1993 album Sound Of White Noise, a sample of Vada's teacher Mr. Bixler saying "Be dangerous and unpredictable...and make a lot of noise" is used in the outro. Anthrax singer John Bush also sings this exact phrase on Sound Of White Noise b-side track "Poison My Eyes" which was released on the Last Action Hero soundtrack in 1993.

[edit] External links

• "My Girl" at the Internet Movie Database