‘Risky Business’ As Conservative Morality Tale?

Risky Business, the classic 1983 film starring Tom Cruise, will be re-released in June as part of the prestigious Criterion Collection. The ad copy reads that Risky Business is “a sly piece of pop subversion” and an “irresistible satire of Reagan-era materialism.” It “features Tom Cruise in his star-is-born breakthrough as a Chicago suburban prepster whose college-bound life spirals out of control when his parents go out of town for the week and an enterprising call girl (Rebecca De Mornay) invites him to walk on the wild side.” Make no mistake: this movie is “a sharp-witted capitalist critique that remains fresh and daring.”