Archie: To Riverdale and Back Again

I don't know why people trash this movie, it's not bad at all! Of course I can understand why people don't like it, due to the 'grown-up' Archie characters...Plus this was probably a pilot for a TV series that never took off the ground (I wish that this had been a series.) And remember you can't explain everything in a pilot episode. I'm a fan of the comics and had been for many years when the movie came out.

But all in all, it's a great film. Some characters are the same years later, others are very different they where in the comics!

It's 15 years since the gang has graduated from the halls of Riverdale High:

Christopher Rich plays Archie, now a lawyer, getting ready for a move to the big city, and he's engaged to Pam, a very stuck up woman.

Sam Whipple is Jughead, a shrink now, (A very far strech for Juggy) but he's divorced, with a son, and has women problems.

Karen Kopkins plays Veronica, Ronnie is still the same, after 4 husbands, and she's still daddy's little girl, but Ronnie is realizing that money doesn't buy happiness.

Gary Kroeger is Reggie, He is no longer the wisecracker he was, while in the halls of Riverdale High, Reg probably owns the entire block that houses 'Pop's Choc'late Shop'...

and last but not least of the gang is Betty, wonderfully played by Lauren Holly. She does a great job of being the happy-go-lucky character that Betty is! And Betty has a boyfriend, who is not the happier to meet Archie Andrews.

Plus we get to meet Moose and Midge, Big Ethyl, Mr Weatherbee, Mrs Gundy, Coach Taylor, but sadly the movie is missing Dilton, and Coach Taylor's son Chuck.

All of the characters are back in town for the class reunion others have been in Riverdale since school ended. The movie is like an Archie comic, in a 'years later' kind of way. The storyline has many different side stories, but is a fun movie to watch.

I'd give it 8 out of 10 stars....

I really enjoyed this movie because I grew up with the Archie comics and always wondered who would play their parts if this were ever live-action.

The only thing I would have left out was the fact that Archie and his fiancee are living together. Not a good example for kids.

Great job otherwise! The characters are well-captured - I just wish another could be made to show the cast in their 40's and what they do with their lives.

When ever I travel I always buy Arche comics because they provide joyous laughs. Watching this movie a week ago made me realize that some comics shouldn't be made into movies. The cast mainly full of unknowns excepet for Lauren Holly. The plot revoles around the gang at their high school reunion. But where are Chuck and Dilton ? Another flaw is having the same charcters play each other when their 15 which is dumb. The film's low point comes when Jughead tries to rap. I would made this film when the gang was in high school and have them reunite at the end instead of baseing the whole around the reunion. We can only hope that the feature film version in devolpement with a cast incudling Tobey Maugiure,Joshua Jackson and Christina Ricci will be do the comic justic.

I'm sure most of the cast and crew of "Archie: To Riverdale and Back Again" is currently plotting to have this embarrassing movie erased from existence. They've very effectively removed all the joy, youthful exuberance and goofiness from the old comic books (and tolerable TV cartoons) and replaced it with sullen, slow, thick and execrably cheesy made-for-TV mush. Avoid this stinkeroo at all costs, even if it means watching a blank screen for 2 hours instead.

I read Archie comics from age 5 to 13--they were like old friends. That was many years ago but I'm still sentimental about them and was eager to see this movie after learning about it years after its initial release. When I finally got the opportunity I viewed it with a bit of trepidation; I'm more or less a purist and for me its success would be dependant on the characters physical resemblance to their comic book counterparts. Personality was important too but the artwork was a big part of what I loved about the comics. I wanted the movie to respect the Archie tradition. I was disappointed that of the original teenagers only Veronica and Reggie bore a strong physical likeness to their comic book originals but during the course of the film Archie, Betty and Jughead seemed to transform...the actors ably portrayed the essence of the characters and convinced me that yes, this is what they would look like and act like fifteen years after graduation. As far as personality goes, that was well captured, too; after all, we all grow up but retain our essential character. There are places where the plot stretches credulity but that's part of the Archie heritage...the comic books were often madcap beyond belief! Except for some unnecessary sexual innuendo which didn't add much to the story, this was a tender hearted look at the power of friendship to endure teenage angst and be the better for it. (For the record I agree with everyone's comments about Jughead and the forgettable rap song--I dare say genuine rappers would be offended! Is there ANYONE out there who liked it?)