There are many moments when watching American cinema where the conservative ideology behind the narrative becomes all too clear. And in many ways, Pretty in Pink`s Cinderella narrative reveals itself as yet another conservative narrative educating women to associate love with money and domestication. The title alone alludes to the superiority of conservative mores of innocent and domesticated femininity. However, what is brilliant about Pretty in Pink is its execution of this conservative ideology through the guise of a `love against all odds` Romeo and Juliet narrative. In this spectrum, Pretty in Pink subverts deconstruction of its conservative mores, by forcing the viewer to percieve Andy`s and Blane`s relationship as love which defies the conventions of society. Underneath this love story however, there is a deep seated drive for wealth and status. As Andy drives by the wealthy houses she cannot help but comment on the beauty and appeal which such wealth offers, perhaps already predicting her future domestication with Blane. A telling moment of Andy`s desire for upward mobility is revealed at Steff`s party where she arrives wearing pearls; an emblem of aspirations for wealth and status which is criticized by the other guests. However, the film`s brilliancy lies not only in its Romeo and Juliet disguise but in its double narrative of domestic trauma, where Andy`s domestic disorder—beaten down father, runaway mother—justifies her desires for wealth and stability while ensuring the viewers sympathy with Andy as heroine. And what isn`t sympathetic about Andy`s character? Andy`s resourcefulness and charisma places her firmly within the American exceptional tradition, justifying her right to upward mobility. Even Iona, Andy`s chameleonic adult mentor finds her identity and satisfaction in the adoption of middle class morality. Perhaps, though, if there is a counter narrative, it is in the characterization of Duckie who from the beginning of the film is clearly Andy`s cultural equal, signified by their matching fedora hats and fashion sense. In Duckie we find another example of the exceptional American: driven, charismatic, ardent, and faithful. And yet despite his natural abilities, Duckie loses against Blane`s dead-pan lethargy, who`s only virtue appears to be his wealth. Duckie`s character is clearly the more appealing and most probably appears the more appealing choice to most viewers. However, even Duckie cannot escape conservative interpellation and his status as faithful plan b which will always be there to support the female heroine in her pursuit of wealth comes to fruition in the closing prom scene of the film. Despite all this, the film`s magic is that it is still able to capture and entertain even in the face of such deconstruction, our own entertainment complicit in its ideologic construction.