My Boyfriend's Back (film)
Encyclopedia
My Boyfriend's Back is a 1993 American romantic
black
comedy
/fantasy
/horror film
directed by Bob Balaban
which tells the story of Johnny Dingle, a teenage boy who returns from the dead as a zombie
to meet Missy McCloud, the girl he's in love with, for a date. The movie received negative reviews for its weak plot and bad acting.
The movie's title is a reference to the 1963 song of the same name
by The Angels. The original title of the film, Johnny Zombie was changed shortly before the film's theatrical release. Philip Seymour Hoffman
, Matthew McConaughey
, Renée Zellweger
, and Matthew Fox
appear in small roles in the film.
), but he can't tell her. One day, the shop where Missy works gets robbed and Johnny is killed trying to help. But Johnny doesn't want to stay dead, so he returns to his life like nothing ever happened. After a while, he discovers that his body is disintegrating and he must feed on human flesh if he wants to survive.
Romance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
black
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
comedy
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
/fantasy
Fantasy film
Fantasy films are films with fantastic themes, usually involving magic, supernatural events, make-believe creatures, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered to be distinct from science fiction film and horror film, although the genres do overlap...
/horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Bob Balaban
Bob Balaban
Robert Elmer "Bob" Balaban is an American actor, author and director.-Personal life:Balaban was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Eleanor and Elmer Balaban, who owned several movie theatres and later was a pioneer in cable television...
which tells the story of Johnny Dingle, a teenage boy who returns from the dead as a zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
to meet Missy McCloud, the girl he's in love with, for a date. The movie received negative reviews for its weak plot and bad acting.
The movie's title is a reference to the 1963 song of the same name
My Boyfriend's Back (song)
"My Boyfriend's Back" was a hit song in 1963 for The Angels, an American girl group. It was written by the songwriting team of Feldman, Goldstein and Gottehrer . The recording was originally intended as a demo for The Shirelles, but ended up being released as recorded...
by The Angels. The original title of the film, Johnny Zombie was changed shortly before the film's theatrical release. Philip Seymour Hoffman
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Philip Seymour Hoffman is an American actor and director. Hoffman began acting in television in 1991, and the following year started to appear in films...
, Matthew McConaughey
Matthew McConaughey
Matthew David McConaughey is an American actor.After a series of minor roles in the early 1990s, McConaughey gained notice for his breakout role in Dazed and Confused . He then appeared in films such as A Time to Kill, Contact, U-571, Tiptoes, Sahara, and We Are Marshall...
, Renée Zellweger
Renée Zellweger
Renée Kathleen Zellweger is an American actress and producer. Zellweger first gained widespread attention for her role in the film Jerry Maguire , and subsequently received two nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her roles as Bridget Jones in the comedy Bridget Jones's Diary ...
, and Matthew Fox
Matthew Fox (actor)
Matthew Chandler Fox is an American actor. He is mostly known for his role as Charlie Salinger on Party of Five, and for portraying Jack Shephard on the supernatural drama television series Lost.- Early life :...
appear in small roles in the film.
Plot
Johnny Dingle's (Andrew Lowery) your typical teenager. He's in love with a beautiful girl named Missy McCloud (Traci LindTraci Lind
Traci Lind is an American film actress who is known for playing Alex Young in Fright Night II and Missy McCloud in My Boyfriend's Back. She also starred in The Road to Wellville and The End of Violence. She was billed in Fright Night II as Traci Lin...
), but he can't tell her. One day, the shop where Missy works gets robbed and Johnny is killed trying to help. But Johnny doesn't want to stay dead, so he returns to his life like nothing ever happened. After a while, he discovers that his body is disintegrating and he must feed on human flesh if he wants to survive.
Cast
- Andrew Lowery as Johnny Dingle
- Traci LindTraci LindTraci Lind is an American film actress who is known for playing Alex Young in Fright Night II and Missy McCloud in My Boyfriend's Back. She also starred in The Road to Wellville and The End of Violence. She was billed in Fright Night II as Traci Lin...
as Missy McCloud - Danny Zorn as Eddie
- Edward Hermann as Mr. Dingle
- Mary Beth HurtMary Beth HurtMary Beth Hurt is an American actress of stage and screen.-Personal life:Hurt was born Mary Supinger in 1946 in Marshalltown, Iowa, the daughter of Delores Lenore and Forrest Clayton Supinger. Her childhood babysitter was actress Jean Seberg, also a Marshalltown native...
as Mrs. Dingle - Jay O. SandersJay O. SandersJay Olcutt Sanders is an American character actor.Sanders was born in Austin, Texas, to Phyllis Rae and James Olcutt Sanders. He is noted for playing Mob lawyer character Steven Kordo in the 1986–88 NBC detective series Crime Story...
as Sheriff McCloud - Libby Villari as Camille McCloud
- Matthew FoxMatthew Fox (actor)Matthew Chandler Fox is an American actor. He is mostly known for his role as Charlie Salinger on Party of Five, and for portraying Jack Shephard on the supernatural drama television series Lost.- Early life :...
as Buck Van Patten - Philip HoffmanPhilip Seymour HoffmanPhilip Seymour Hoffman is an American actor and director. Hoffman began acting in television in 1991, and the following year started to appear in films...
as Chuck Bronski - Paul DooleyPaul Dooley-Personal life:Dooley was born Paul Dooley Brown in Parkersburg, West Virginia, the son of Ruth Irene , a homemaker, and Peter James Brown, a factory worker. Dooley was a cartoonist as a youth and drew a strip for a local paper in Parkersburg. He joined the Navy before discovering acting while at...
as Big Chuck - Austin PendletonAustin PendletonAustin Pendleton is an American film, television, and stage actor, a playwright, and a theatre director and instructor.-Life and career:...
as Dr. Bronson - Cloris LeachmanCloris LeachmanCloris Leachman is an American actress of stage, film and television. She has won eight Primetime Emmy Awards—more than any other performer—and one Daytime Emmy Award...
as Maggie the zombie expert - Paxton WhiteheadPaxton WhiteheadPaxton Whitehead is a British actor who made his professional debut in 1956. Whitehead is best known to American movie audiences as Professor Phillip Barbay in the 1986 comedy film Back to School.-Early years:...
as Judge in heaven - Matthew McConaugheyMatthew McConaugheyMatthew David McConaughey is an American actor.After a series of minor roles in the early 1990s, McConaughey gained notice for his breakout role in Dazed and Confused . He then appeared in films such as A Time to Kill, Contact, U-571, Tiptoes, Sahara, and We Are Marshall...
as Guy #2 - Renée ZellwegerRenée ZellwegerRenée Kathleen Zellweger is an American actress and producer. Zellweger first gained widespread attention for her role in the film Jerry Maguire , and subsequently received two nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her roles as Bridget Jones in the comedy Bridget Jones's Diary ...
(scene cut)
Reception
The film was met with very negative reviews and had a very poor box office gross, making $3,335,984 from an alleged $22 million budget.External links
- My Boyfriend's Back Review at Obscurus Lupa Presents