Here it is. The first review in my Retro Reviews series. I thought long and hard about this, there's a lot of great movies out there. Do I want to go with The Godfather? The Good The Bad And The Ugly? Maybe One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest? Nope, The Breakfast Club bitches. So please sit back and relax while I explain why I chose to do this rather than 2001: A Space Odyssey.
First and foremost this is a teen movie, but a proper one. It's a teen drama not a movie about how hard it is to buy beer and get your penis in or around a vagina. This movie came to us from writer/director John Hughes. John Hughes, at the peak of his career, created some of the most well loved teen movies of the 80's, comedy and drama alike. At the nadir of his career? Well he just kept on making Home Alone sequels. The Breakfast Club is probably the most well regarded and well known of the good part of Hughes' career (pre Home Alone 2), as well as still being one of the best in it's genre.
The plot follows five teenagers played by Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall and Judd Nelson, AKA the basket case, the princess, the athlete, the brain and the criminal respectively. Rounding out the cast is Paul Gleason as the assistant principle and John Kapelos as the school janitor. The five teens (some of whom were actually played by teenagers in this film) are all for one reason or another in detention together on a Saturday morning. The film is quintessentially 80's in style and tone but it still works today. These tropes still exist in every school, they just dress differently now. It's a story about frustrated teens at the awkward age where they're expected to behave responsibly like adults but are still treated like kids. The adults in their lives don't understand them and this breeds hostility on both sides. Don't get me wrong this is not an emo "they just don't get me" kind of film. Teenagers are just fucking weird and our late teens are short lived and easily forgotten so it can be hard to sympathise.
Having such a small cast, particularly one that worked together as often as they did, keeps everything tight and the chemistry great. The performances are all superb, balancing the comedy with the more serious dramatic scenes expertly. While Gleason's assistant principle Vernon serves as an excellent antagonist for the group. There's not a lot of depth to the role but he works as a perfect caricature of the authority figures controlling these kids' lives. The plot is basic, five people stuck together getting closer and bonding through the shared experiences of teenage life. Wonderfully paced, always lightening the mood before the more dramatic turns.
Also, it's why we all love Don't You Forget About Me by Simple Minds.
First and foremost this is a teen movie, but a proper one. It's a teen drama not a movie about how hard it is to buy beer and get your penis in or around a vagina. This movie came to us from writer/director John Hughes. John Hughes, at the peak of his career, created some of the most well loved teen movies of the 80's, comedy and drama alike. At the nadir of his career? Well he just kept on making Home Alone sequels. The Breakfast Club is probably the most well regarded and well known of the good part of Hughes' career (pre Home Alone 2), as well as still being one of the best in it's genre.
The plot follows five teenagers played by Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall and Judd Nelson, AKA the basket case, the princess, the athlete, the brain and the criminal respectively. Rounding out the cast is Paul Gleason as the assistant principle and John Kapelos as the school janitor. The five teens (some of whom were actually played by teenagers in this film) are all for one reason or another in detention together on a Saturday morning. The film is quintessentially 80's in style and tone but it still works today. These tropes still exist in every school, they just dress differently now. It's a story about frustrated teens at the awkward age where they're expected to behave responsibly like adults but are still treated like kids. The adults in their lives don't understand them and this breeds hostility on both sides. Don't get me wrong this is not an emo "they just don't get me" kind of film. Teenagers are just fucking weird and our late teens are short lived and easily forgotten so it can be hard to sympathise.
Having such a small cast, particularly one that worked together as often as they did, keeps everything tight and the chemistry great. The performances are all superb, balancing the comedy with the more serious dramatic scenes expertly. While Gleason's assistant principle Vernon serves as an excellent antagonist for the group. There's not a lot of depth to the role but he works as a perfect caricature of the authority figures controlling these kids' lives. The plot is basic, five people stuck together getting closer and bonding through the shared experiences of teenage life. Wonderfully paced, always lightening the mood before the more dramatic turns.
Also, it's why we all love Don't You Forget About Me by Simple Minds.
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