Entertainment

Girls On Film: 7 Era-Defining Single Ladies

The characters who make being single (and bored and lonely and chronically short on rent) look almost fun

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Without the singleton heroine, the girl in the too-short skirt or too-high heels, the woman standing alone in the rain, the girl who got stood up, or effed over—the woman we’ve been or always wanted to be—we might assume that we were the only ones who couldn’t seem to crack the requited love code. And that, gentle reader, would be a tragedy. Click through to see our favourite plus-nones.

single lady movie tropes
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Andie (Molly Ringwald), Pretty in Pink (1986)

As Andie, Pretty In Pink’s cash-strapped fashionista from the wrong side of the tracks, Molly Ringwald put earnest and fumbly teenage affection on the cultural map. A true-blue heart-on-her-badly-sewn-homemade-sleeve, Andie never played cute to win the guy. She was always her granny-glasses-wearing self, and if you didn’t like it, then to hell with you she’s a-OK with being alone. In return for her courage, she won the ultimate prize: someone who loves her for who she is.

Age: Teenager

Profession: High school student

Fashion choices: Cutesy-fied menswear meets Minnie Pearl, with a preference for blazers, floppy hats, granny glasses, floral prints and pink, pink, pink. Her homemade prom dress will live on as the most fugtastic gown ever!

Prefers men that: Struggle with their privileged status, a.k.a. preppy pricks.

Defining characteristic: Courage. Don’t lie to her. She will call you out at your locker!

Kicked off a trend for: Red hair and lip-gloss-slick lips.