3538. Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)

Starring: Kathleen Turner, Nicolas Cage, Barry Miller

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Running Time: 103 mins

Peggy Sue Got Married is an American film about an adult woman on the brink of divorce who, after fainting at her high school reunion, suddenly finds herself transported 25 years into the past, the time of her own senior year.

From the director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, comes one of the loveliest movies of the 1980s. Bathed in nostalgia for a carefree youth, and featuring a whole host of delightful performances, Peggy Sue Got Married is a film that will make you smile and laugh endlessly throughout.

There’s a lot to love about Peggy Sue Got Married, but let’s first talk about the many parallels it shares with Back To The Future, released just a year earlier. Both films are wonderfully vibrant depictions of the mid-to-late 1950s, complete with a delightful soundtrack and performances they go down just as sweetly in the past as in the present day.

However, beyond the overarching time travel premise, Back To The Future and Peggy Sue Got Married are two very different films. Above all, this is far from the beloved action-packed fantasy adventure, but rather a more intimate comedy-drama that reflects nicely on the naivetes of adolescence.

That makes this a rather offbeat coming-of-age film, in which the adult main character, played by Kathleen Turner, watches on as her high school friends all navigate the trials and tribulations of senior year.

The core message is similar to most coming-of-age movies you’ll encounter, but because it’s looked at from a more mature perspective, Peggy Sue Got Married is able to have a bit more fun at mocking all the clichés of teenage angst.

With a brilliant lead performance from Kathleen Turner, as well as a collection of fantastic dual young-an-adult turns from Nicolas Cage, Catherine Hicks, Joan Allen and more, this film does a fantastic job at bringing home the charm of a truly nostalgic trip into the past.

Complete with heaps of jokes that play on teen angst, and energetic performances right across the board, Peggy Sue Got Married is an absolutely delightful watch from start to finish, proving a real surprise in the legendary repertoire of director Francis Ford Coppola. So, that’s why I’m giving it a 7.6 overall.