Director: John Hughes
Starring: Anthony Michael Hall,Emilio Estevez,Ally Sheedy,Molly Ringwald,Judd Nelson
In 1985, Writer/Director John Hughes’ The Breakfast Club changed the landscape of movies by proving that so-called ‘teen-flicks’ actually have something to say. For the two people out there who don’t know, the movie focuses on five high school students – “a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, and a princess, and a criminal” – who must spend a Saturday afternoon in detention hall. The film stars Anthony Michael Hall as Brian Johnson, Emilio Estevez as Andrew Clark, Ally Sheedy as Allison Reynolds, Molly Ringwald as Claire Standish, and Judd Nelson as John Bender. I think the gods of Hollywood must have looked down on these folks and said “I’ll give you one good movie,” because the rest of what they’ve done is crap – just look at The Mighty Ducks and Suddenly Susan.
Rounding out the cast is Paul Gleason as Richard Vernon, the administrator in charge of detention hall. His character is a complete bastard, and makes the movie come a bit too close to being just another generic “students dupe the teacher” movie.
As it is, the characters definitely start out being cliché. It’s not exactly original to have Nelson dress up in a tight white shirt, baggy flannel, pants that are falling off his ass, and combat boots and call him the “criminal.” And I still see Sheedy’s proto-Goth outfit on pale-faced high school girls every time I go to the mall. But that’s what is so great about this movie: Hughes took those five archetypes we all encounter in high school and turned them into living, breathing characters that we can relate to.
Never one to short the audience on humor, Hughes filled the film with comedic highlights. The standout moments are Vernon and Bender’s trading of one liners. Check out some of this dialogue: “What if your home... what if your family... what if your *dope* was on fire?” “Impossible, sir. It's in Johnson's underwear.”
This repartee is balanced by the tense moments when the five students struggle to get to know one another. Words like “sporto” and “wastoid” definitely sound dated after a decade and a half, but they perfectly capture the world of high school. It’s a world where just being part of a social group is an insult unto itself.
Finally, who could talk about The Breakfast Club without mentioning its soundtrack? "Don't You (Forget About Me)" is one of the best soundtrack tunes ever. It's ironic that Simple Minds became famous for a song they didn't write, but that doesn’t diminish it's greatness. The other tracks, like Wang Chung's "Fire In The Twilight" sound oh-so-dated after all these years, but in the context of the movie they are perfect.
All these elements combine to raise The Breakfast Club above the drivel of Hughes’ Home Alone and Beethoven trilogies. They turn this movie into an insightful character study of suburban high school life, and perfect viewing on a rainy afternoon.
