OctobER : Yuppie Nightmares from the 1980s

The term “yuppies”, or Young Urban Professionals, is inextricably linked to 1980s America, representing well-educated young people with high-paying jobs in the era of rampant Reaganomics. Their quest for status-enhancing possessions led to a wave of gentrification in major cities. Portrayed in thrillers like Wall Street and light comedies such as The Secret of My Success, there’s also a series of films where these affluent, self-satisfied white-collar workers face dire consequences for their arrogance, ending up in disaster-prone parts of town or in troublesome company. This so-called yuppie nightmare comedy includes John Landis’ Into the Night, Susan Seidelman’s Desperately Seeking Susan, Adrian Lyne’s Fatal Attraction, and the double bill of Martin Scorsese’s After Hours and Jonathan Demme’s Something Wild. The yuppie nightmare film cycle blends elements from two seemingly contrasting genres: screwball comedy and film noir. Both genres are known for their complex, intricate plots, and in both Scorsese’s and Demme’s films, the male protagonists are pulled into chaotic, illogical situations by transgressive female figures (and the promise of sex)—the screwball heroine and the femme fatale. This effectively undermines the confident, patriarchal façade of 1980s America.

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