Breakfast Club

I must admit that I was a true loner in high school, and essentially I'm now at 33 I'm still a loner who has become a bit more jaded with the passage of time. With that said, John Hughes "The Breakfast Club" seems to me to be a sort of love letter to all of us who just seemed to blend into the background during our high school years. Of course like everyone I also have a favorite character in the film, and my choice is Allison who is wonderfully played by Ally Sheedy. So, my advice to all who have read this far is to try and watch this film with your emotions rather than trying to analyze the film to death.

Depending on when you watched this first (or will watch it), it will determine how much impact this will have. Obviously if you've watched it back in the day, sentiment will kick in too. And while I wouldn't go as far as to say this hasn't aged well at all, there are some indicators that the impact today for some new viewers will not be the same as back then.

Having said that, the movie still holds up, as we get some missfits thrown in together and mixed up. All with different backgrounds, all with different issues and problems. All rebelling in their own way though. Against the "teacher" of course. But the authority figure here stands for more and the class struggle, the growing up struggle, the maturing struggle, the being in school struggle - all stand for something. So while you may not feel the biggest association with any of the characters, if you really dig into the movie, there is much to find here

After reading some of the negative comments made about this movie, i decided to make some of my own. Yes, to younger viewers,this movie will appear to be outdated. The only thing "outdated" is the clothing styles and the music. It doesnt matter what year you went to high school or what school you even went to, there will always be a "criminal", a "jock", a "princess", a "nerd", and a "basket case". This movie is the best teenage movie, no matter when you are a teenager!

This movie is one of the best, if not THE best, 80's film there is. The fact is, every teen character in this movie can be related to someone we knew in high-school. As a child of the 80's, I can honestly say that this is a representative cross-section of every high school in North America. The geek, the jock, the outcast, the rich pretty-girl snob, and the future criminal. They all exist, to some degree or another, in the classrooms of every high school on the continent.

What makes this film rise above the rest is the character development. Every character in this film is three-dimensional. They all change, in one way or another, by the end of the film. Whether or not things remain the way they are long after this film ends is unknown, and that adds to the rama. The most important scene in this film is when the characters, as a group, all open up to one-another and describe the hell that their daily school routines are in a personal fashion. Nobody likes the role they must inevitably portray in the high-school scene, but the fact is, it is often inescapable. This film gives the viewer some insight into how the other people around them might have felt during that particular time in their lives.

Each of the main characters in this film shines, but Judd Nelson (John Bender) and Emilio Estevez (Andrew Clark) rise above the rest. Simply put, these two actors each put their heart and soul into their respective characters, and it shows.

At the end of the film, the viewer is left to make their own conclusions as to how things will carry forth. And I'm sure that most people will do that. This is one movie that left me feeling both happy and sad for each of the characters, and it isn't easy to make me care about a film in that way. Even if you aren't a fan of the 80's genre, this isn't one you would want to miss.

My Rating: 10/10

John Hughes is in my opinions the "king of teens." Each of his teen films is great, from "Sixteen Candles", "Pretty in Pink" (which he co-wrote and produced), and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." They all have funny and serious moments and are classics. By the same token, "The Breakfast Club" is no exception. However, it stands out as doing the best job of the above films at portraying 80s teen life (and perhaps even teen life today) as it really was (is). Hence the familiar plot: Five high school students from different crowds in school (a nerd, a jock, a prom queen, a delinquent, and a loner) are thrown together for a Saturday detention in their school library for various reasons. Detention is supervised by the gruff and demeaning principal Richard Vernon, believably portrayed by Paul Gleason. As the day progresses, each member tells the story of why they are in detention, and by day's end they realize they have more in common than they ever imagined.

What makes the film unique is that each character tells his or her own story with credibility and persistence. Jock Andrew Clark (Emilio Estevez) is under pressure from his father to perform up to high standards, which Mr. Clark believes will add to his (dad's) lost youth. Nerd Brian Johnson (Anthony Michael Hall) excels academically, but is failing shop class. Neither he nor his family can accept an F. Delinquent John Bender (Judd Nelson), while tough on the exterior, masks a difficult home life. Prom queen Claire(Molly Ringwald) has pressure to conform from her friends, as well as issues with her parental unit. Loner Allison (Ally Sheedy) has few if any friends, wears all black, and has similar problems at home. Can the emotional bonding they share in detention hold true beyond the library, and can stereotypes be broken?

"The Breakfast Club" presents no-doubt stereotypical characters, and every member represents countless real-life examples. But what makes it so enjoyable is that applies a variety of themes to its context: prejudice/discrimination, acceptance/tolerance, diversity, class/status differences, family matters, group dynamics, etc. It also encourages us to look at others and ourselves beyond surface-level appearances. Finally, "The Breakfast Club" has great 1980s pop culture and societal integrations, from the soundtrack with Simple Minds "Don't You (Forget about Me), to wealthy, surburban American life (haves and have nots), and superficial values of the "me" decade. It reminds us that there truly is diversity in all of us. We are different, but we are all "the same" in one way or another.