Madonna's Best Performance Is in This '80s Cult Classic

Madonna is absolutely iconic in this movie.

The transition from music to acting has always been one riddled with ridicule. From Gene Simmons to Kelly Clarkson, there is no shortage of failed musicians-to-actors. Although she'd previously starred in A Certain Sacrifice, Madonna, the Queen of Pop herself, managed that transition with overwhelming grace and subsequent success in Susan Seidelman's 1985 cult classic Desperately Seeking Susan. The film is essentially the mid-'80s in distilled into a single movie with all the excess and materialism that the decade had to offer. In some ways, Madonna's character in the film is her fashion. It's the most important aspect of her character and plays a central role in the plot of the film.

Desperately Seeking Susan tells the story of Roberta Glass (Rosanna Arquette), a dissatisfied housewife living a cushy but mundane life. Her husband is a successful hot tub salesman whose sole goal in life is to make money. Roberta craves excitement in her life and lives vicariously through the personals section in the newspaper, especially through the back-and-forth messages of a woman named Susan and her lovers. Roberta decides to go spot the rendezvous in person, but through a series of convoluted plot details becomes mistaken for Susan herself (and also develops temporary amnesia and doesn't remember her true identity). While the film is only an hour and forty-five minutes, the plot jumps through a plethora of hoops to get to the desired result: Roberta gets to fulfill her fantasy of living like Susan and experience all the thrills, passion, and romance that come along with it. Roberta is technically the film's main character, but both the character of Susan (Madonna) and the pursuit of becoming her are really the whole point of the movie.

The film's title could not be more apt as the movie exists so that both Roberta and the audience are able to 'seek' the almost mythic figure of Susan. Within the context of the film, Roberta and Susan's lovers view her as such, but the audience is essentially watching Madonna play Madonna. Roberta is just a vehicle for the audience to experience through several layers of vicarious living what it is like to be Madonna, a glorious, otherworldly, and extravagant pop star who truly can have and do whatever she wants.

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The 1980s were a time when thanks to MTV (which dawned at the beginning of the decade), rock stars and pop stars gained a mythic quality to them. They were oft presented as idealized versions of themselves. Their presentation and style were everything, be it Prince or Michael Jackson or Bowie or of course, Madonna. While it would be easy to dismiss Desperately Seeking Susan as a vanity project for the Queen of Pop, it is instead an extremely telling snapshot of the era and the concerns, wants, and even needs of the general public at the time. However, it wouldn't have worked as well as it did if her performance didn't live up to her larger-than-life persona.

The movie's opening credits and introduction to Susan do a lot to tell us about her as a character and her desires. While the money and glamour are great, she's really interested in the chase, the pursuit, the fleeting nature of her rendezvous. She's very unlike the typical woman protagonist of the era, as she subverts gender roles by being the one to get up, and get dressed, leaving the previous night's conquest still asleep without as much as a goodby. In fact, it's soon after that It's revealed that she is actually a thief who sleeps with men only to subsequently steal from them while they recover from the previous night's activities. Madonna plays the part with unwavering coolness, and she is barely a character in the traditional sense. She never has a complete story arc or comes to some realization that her lifestyle is morally wrong. Instead, she treats every new conundrum that she inevitably gets herself involved in as a game to be won. What makes Madonna's performance so memorable is that many viewers will either want to be her or want to be with her, even if you know what she's doing and why she's doing it. Madonna's performance is detached, yet undeniably sexy; it's likely that you'd want to get tangled in her web even if you know how it ends.

Desperately Seeking Susan shamelessly indulges in unabashed '80s materialism like no other film with Madonna leading the way. If it wasn't for the overtly sincere tone carried through the rest of the movie, the number of scenes that emphasize shopping and clothing as status symbols would come off as satirical. The movie is very straightforward in tone and doesn't have a hint of irony or cheekiness. If anything, this makes it a much more fascinating watch in 2023. Madonna totally embraces her role as the material girl to end all material girls. Her fashion choices are gaudy and head-turning; they ensure that she is noticeable even in dark New York City nightclubs. Susan lights her cigarettes with her effortless coolness, hands obscured by white fishnet gloves. Susan stalks the city at night without absolute ease and no obvious fear for her own safety. Her reactions are just animated and natural enough to make her feel like a real person, but she is never too shaken by anything that happens to or around her. Whether Susan is a true representation of the real Madonna is ultimately something that none of us will know for certain. What is certain is that Madonna knows how to utilize her reputation and harness her persona to convince an audience that Susan embodies the real Madonna.

For a decade known for its excess and also notorious for bad acting, Madonna really understood where the lines were between nuanced and boring, eccentric and kooky. She's never boring to watch on screen, even if she is understated. On the flip side, Susan could have easily been far too over the top to match her style, a caricature of Madonna herself. She could have been the stereotypical '80s actress that Moira Rose was clowning on in Schitt's Creek. Instead, she gives not only a memorable performance but a dynamic one that understands the delicate balance needed for Susan. The film as a whole has developed quite a robust cult following and holds a special place in '80s pop culture thanks to Madonna's portrayal of Susan and to its un-ironic depiction of American materialism.