As a teenager I loved this movie. Everytime it came on television I would watch it- and it appeared often!. The film centres around two models, Taryn Blake (Daryl Hannah)who has been a model her whole life and is the most famous teen model in America. While Laurie Caswell (Alexandra Paul)is just starting out but soon climbs to the top along side Taryn. The two are at first enemies, but soon become best friends. This is soap opera at its very best, its pretty to look at, quite trashy but very watchable. If it's ever on late one night, stay up and watch it, you might like it, and if you don't at least you will be able to spot many familiar faces.
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Meredith-722 May 1999
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rosscharles200019 July 2006I have seen this TV movie numerous times, and in fact have it still on video. I have not yet transferred it to DVD for "modern viewing". I still find the movie enjoyable to watch, sometimes happy, sad, and with Joan Collins playing the cold, calculating agent, thoroughly stereotypical (at least in my experience). As the lead Daryl Hannah (Taryn Blake)is a surprisingly well-rounded actress in the character, with Alexandra Paul (future Baywatch star) a good side-kick as Laurie Caswell. Although the movie is primarily about Laurie becoming a model, my focus was always pulled to Daryl's character of Taryn, wanting to be successful, constantly pushed and pressured by her mother, yet yearning for a "normal" life. This movie has obvious parallels with the life of Brooke Shields and her relationship with her mother and, although this was brought up at the time of release in the media, producers apparently denied that it was based on Brooke Shields life. Still a good watch even today.
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geminigal4523919 September 2005When I saw this movie back 1982, I immediately thought of Brooke Shields. Taryn Blake was just a blonde version of Brooke Shields. The character and and Julia Blake were just Brooke and Teri Shields disguised. Julia Blake was manipulative, just like Teri Shields is manipulative. Brooke Shields modeled as a baby, just like Taryn Blake did. Teri Blake lived off of Brooke's money for years. This movie was very realistic in the portrayal of the ups and downs of the professional modeling world. Julia Blake was the perfect example of the pushy stage mother who will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Taryn was just a pawn in the whole game, not getting to have a real childhood in her life.
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tarynblake16 December 2002I just wanted to know if anyone has an idea where I could get a copy of this movie. I saw it on TV once when I was younger and I couldn't watch it.
My given name is Taryn Blake and after hearing Daryl Hannah throw a tantrum at her mother(?) in which she shouts, "I am Taryn Blake!" I had to turn off the television. It was very frightening. I've never met another Taryn much less a blond version of my namesake!
I would like to show the movie to a couple of people who still don't believe me about this.- "the real" taryn blake
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triple823 May 2004SPOILERS THROUGHT!!!!!! I remember this movie well. I didn't see the tv series upon which it's based, but I did enjoy the movie though it was a bit cheezy in certain spots. The positve side is this movie provides a brief glimpse into a world that as glamorous as it may seem, has it's negatives like any other profession. The models are humanized here so rather then just coming across as pretty faces we the viewers actually learn a bit about these girls as people. On the minus side, the "nice girl" who gets swept into all this(Laurie) if my memory serves me right-seems to come out of everything very sunnily. I'm not sure this was as realistic as it could have been, did have the "formula" feel to it, you know this girl's gonna get swept into it, then something's gonna happen then she will become disallusioned etc etc. Still, this is an enjoyable little soap opera of a movie, a 7(b or b-) out of 10 and not higher.(This movie though is rated very high which frankly surprised me but it is definetly above average.) It's definetly wirth seeing though, if one likes movies about modeling. My vote is 7 of 10.
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Pure trashy, glamorous (well, for 1982 glamour-stakes anyhow!), bitchy and endlessly re-watchable entertainment, Paper Dolls is worth a watch for a number of reasons...
1) The opening credits sequence, in which supermodel Taryn Blake (Daryl Hannah, in one of her first acting jobs, coincidentally around the same time Blade Runner made her a star!) is photographed in a number of different poses, outfits and locations by the same guy who played Huggy Bear from Starsky & Hutch! During the opening moments, the title theme song is absolutely HILARIOUS! But, then, how could it not be with such lyrics as, "She works magic with her eyes... Full of innocence, that mesmerise..." or "Caught between two different worlds... She's the envy of the other girls"?! I wonder if this had been released as a pop single, would it have gone straight to #1?! Also, Daryl Hannah wears some of the most TERRIBLE clothes I've ever seen! But she still looks brilliant, and she seems to be having a ball playing up to the camera, as the photographer tells her to pretend such things as Timothy Hutton kissing her, so she would then "melt like chocolate chip in the sun" - I kid you not, he really says that!
2) Julia Blake, played to the hilt by Joan Hackett. Julia is teen supermodel Taryn Blake's cold-hearted, ruthless, bespectacled and miserable mother, who controls Taryn's entire life and is terrified at Taryn walking out on her the same way Taryn's father did years before.
The late Joan Hackett, who sadly passed away of cancer a year or so after this movie in her mid 40s, completely and utterly steals the entire show here! Watch out for the scene where she totally loses it with Taryn for simply wanting to have a sleepover with a friend - "YOU WALK OUT ON ME!" she bellows, "GO AHEAD! Like father, like daughter!" - how Joan Hackett didn't receive an Emmy nomination for portraying this frosty, uptight cow is a mystery to me!
3) As if one scary Joan in this movie wasn't enough - there's TWO! The ultimate Joan - Alexis Carrington, Joan Collins herself! If Ms Collins had been given more screen-time than Joan Hackett, it may have been SHE who chewed up the scenery instead! Collins is Racine, the sophisticated and pushy talent agent. Collins is her usual flashy, campy, hilarious self. She says things like, "Ciao, darling!" and, "Be careful whose pool you swim in today - you never know whose been in it yesterday!" - basically, Racine could easily be a not-so-distant relative of Alexis Carrington!
4) CAT FIGHT! CAT FIGHT! One of the most hilarious girl-on-girl scraps that I've ever seen on film. Taryn Blake and her "rival", sweet high school student turned model Laurie Caswell (Alexandra Paul, making her film debut with this one!) battle in a make-up tent on a beach in Hawaii, rolling around on the sandy floor, and smearing lipstick on each others' faces! The editing is appalling in this sequence, but that makes it even more funny!
Taryn yells such insults as, "Beginner novice!" while Laurie retorts, "You and your stupid, stupid games!" Needless to say, this is LITERALLY a "make up" tent, as the girls catch their reflection in a mirror, laugh hysterically at how idiotic they look, and are instantly best friends at that moment! All together now... AWWWW!!!!
5) The Warren Beatty look-a-like! Taryn and Laurie, loaded down with shopping bags in New York, spot movie star Warren Beatty across the street! Taryn's philosophy about approaching him is, "Famous people like to be recognised by other famous people!" What makes this scene so funny is the fact that the actor playing Warren Beatty looks about 15 years younger than Beatty actually would have looked in 1982!
I could go on in detail at the many, many great moments in Paper Dolls, but you should really try and see this obscure little gem to enjoy them all for yourself! It's tacky beyond belief, but that's part of its charm - and how many other nearly forgotten 1980s flicks star Daryl Hannah, Alexandra Paul, Joan Collins, Joan Hackett, Jennifer Warren, Craig T. Nelson, Marc Singer, Eric Stoltz... and the guy who played Huggy Bear from S&H?!!? -
bellino-angelo201412 September 2023I had to see PAPER DOLLS in January 2022 but back then it was nowhere to be found. Time passed, and last June someone uploaded it on Youtube, to my extreme joy. But when I finally saw it I felt a bit cheated. Now I'll explain.
Julia Blake (Joan Hackett) and Dinah Caswell are two women that think their young daughters Taryn Blake (Daryl Hannah) and Laurie Caswell should be models so, after a meeting with boss Racine (Joan Collins) the mothers will make their daughters enter the business even tho Taryn has to pass a maths exam and Laurie has to graduate, and in fact trouble is on the way.
The concept looked good, after all two years later it inspired a TV show. But what ruined the movie for me was the young leads' whiny nature (especially the brunette, and she needed to be rounded up), the fact that their mother were very approving of the trashy business their daughters were entering and its overall shallow nature.
One positive tho, and that's what didn't make me give a 1 or 2. It launched the careers of Daryl Hannah (who would go on to star in SPLASH, ROXANNE, the two KILL BILLs and even put me a like on a comment on Instagram) and Eric Stoltz (who debuted in 1978 with THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER OVER THE SEPTIC TANK, after this he played one of Sean Penn's friends in FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH and while he was fired from BACK TO THE FUTURE and THE KARATE KID he would make lots of great movies such as PULP FICTION, FLUKE. MASK and THE WATERDANCE for naming a few), so you can survive a bad debut and go on to greater things.
Overall, if you saw the TV show PAPER DOLLS or you are into these shallow things, then watch it since it's finally available again. -
bluekarma062 January 2012I remember watching this when it came out in 1982. Normally a guy wouldn't watch a movie like this but both women were so beautiful! I know most would go for the blond Darryl, but I liked the brunette and remember thinking she would be the bigger star. As it turns out, Darryl's career took off with Splash and other big movies and Alexandra was no where to be found! I was glad she ended up on a very successful TV series Baywatch but I still always thought her talent and looks had been wasted. I have met both actresses in real life(just met Alexandra1/1/12 at the farmers marker in Pacific Palisades) and Darryl at the Brentwood farmers market 3 years ago and of the 2, Alexandra is a sweeter and nicer person by far.
I haven't seen this movie again since it aired but I do remember liking it. I believe it was the first movie for both actresses. -
markcattell31 May 2020Great, glamorous, campy fun replete with shoulder pads and synthesizers.
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itsmrbigtoyou9 April 2008This movie is brilliant. It's well-written, full of great characters, witty one-liner's and actually manages to keep you entertained. It starts out with a photographer setting up his camera equipment for a photo-shoot.
The camera pans around while the theme song, Paper Doll by Mark Snow, begins to play. We then enter the lives of The Blake's: Mother and Daughter duo Julia (Joan Hackett) and Taryn (Daryl Hannah) and the lives of The Caswell's: Dinah (Jennifer Warren - who returns for the 1984 series in the same role), Dinah's daughter Laurie (Alexandra Paul in her first role) and Dinah's husband and Step-Father to Laurie: Michael Caswell (Craig T. Nelson).
Julia and Taryn live in NYC, where Julia uses her daughter as much as possible for model-ling jobs. Taryn's agent is the cruel Racine (Guest actress: Joan Collins from TV's "Dynasty"). Racine manages to get Taryn a deal with Wesley Miles (Marc Singer) with whom he will make passes at both Taryn and Laurie.
At first, Taryn and Laurie are sworn enemies, but then they become friends, much to the anger of Taryn's mother Julia. Michael Caswell is unhappy about the fact that Wesley Miles is taking advantage of his daughter and Taryn also. So, he 'sorts him out' with a good beating. It is at this point that Racine drops both girls from her agency.
Taryn is forced to stay in model-ling in New York, under the control of her mother, while Dinah, Laurie and Michael return to their quiet hometown of Stonehurst. Taryn cries watching Laurie leave as Laurie was her only friend, and the movie ends with the theme song Paper Doll playing again. -
AppleAsylum5 May 2001made for tv movies normanlly are a bit dramatic for me. not this one though. i like this movie a lot. i did know this movie but i did know the tv show that was a comedy when it came out around 1990. it was pretty much the same thing just funny. later on, i saw the movie on lifetime! i was impressed. 1-10 (8) Z.