{"id":32500,"date":"2013-09-09T14:41:41","date_gmt":"2013-09-09T21:41:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=32500"},"modified":"2024-06-14T20:05:16","modified_gmt":"2024-06-15T03:05:16","slug":"breakfast-club-the-1985","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=32500","title":{"rendered":"Breakfast Club, The (1985)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Everyone&#8217;s home life is unsatisfying: if it wasn&#8217;t, people would live with their parents forever.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Poster-196x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"196\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-32505\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Poster-196x300.jpg 196w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Poster-83x128.jpg 83w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Poster.jpg 495w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 196px) 100vw, 196px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA group of diverse teens &#8212; a privileged preppy girl (Molly Ringwald), a rebel (Judd Nelson), a jock (Emilio Estevez), a nerd (Anthony Michael Hall), and a recluse (Ally Sheedy) &#8212; form unexpected bonds during an extended day of detention at school, overseen by the tyrannical Mr. Vernon (Paul Gleason).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Friendship<\/li>\n<li>High School<\/li>\n<li>Misfits<\/li>\n<li>Teenagers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary\u2019s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary argues that writer-director John Hughes&#8217; &#8220;follow-up to <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=7468\"><em>Sixteen Candles<\/em><\/a>&#8221; (&#8220;nick-named &#8216;The Little Chill'&#8221;) is &#8220;essentially a mock encounter session involving five teenagers&#8221;, who &#8220;reveal themselves through their volatile actions and wrenching confessions&#8221; as &#8220;tough exteriors disappear, social barriers crumble, [and] deep secrets are revealed about their troubles at home&#8221;. He points out that &#8220;each kid turns out to be soft at the core and sympathetic&#8221;, and notes that &#8220;all suffer from the same problem: parents&#8221; (!!). He writes that while Hughes&#8217; &#8220;direction is too stagy&#8221;, his &#8220;dialogue is perceptive and witty, and also realistic enough to have made the film a hit with teenagers&#8221;. (Indeed, while the movie was popular upon its release, its cult status has grown to enormous proportions since then, with its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheBreakfastClubMovie\">Facebook page<\/a> receiving nearly 2 million &#8220;likes&#8221;.) Peary notes that &#8220;it&#8217;s obvious that Hughes likes teenagers and believes them to be smart and funny&#8221;; he further points out that &#8220;the young cast excels&#8221;, with &#8220;even Nelson&#8221; &#8212; who &#8220;got a lot of bad press, looks too old, and is stuck with most of the film&#8217;s cliches&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;fine in the largest role&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p>Peary&#8217;s assessment just about sums up the merits of this guiltily enjoyable teen classic &#8212; though he neglects to mention the memorable use of Simple Minds&#8217; &#8220;Don&#8217;t You (Forget About Me)&#8221; as the theme song (it was written specifically for the movie). Interestingly, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0088847\/trivia?item=tr0732029\">Hughes was asked to write a play based upon his film<\/a> (to be performed by high schoolers), and this may be the best way to view the material: as a morality play, one with an overly-convenient resolution (as Peary points out, &#8220;the ending is too rushed&#8221; and &#8220;we aren&#8217;t sufficiently prepared for the two couplings that take place&#8221;), but which packs a punch precisely because it&#8217;s so <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dailyscript.com\/scripts\/breakfast_club.html\">strategically scripted<\/a>. Hughes&#8217; genius was in capturing the types of stereotypes and concerns that plague teenagers (who often feel isolated by their differences) &#8212; and then allowing his characters to work through these concerns in a cathartic deconstruction. It&#8217;s the stuff of (troubled) teens&#8217; fantasies, and clearly explains the film&#8217;s cult status years later. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Note:<\/strong> In addition to <em>Sixteen Candles<\/em> (1985), John Hughes wrote and directed several other cult favorites &#8212; including <em>Weird Science<\/em>, <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5645\"><em>Ferris Bueller&#8217;s Day Off<\/em> (1986)<\/a>, and <em>Planes, Trains, and Automobiles<\/em> (1987); indeed, despite variable output in his later years, Hughes himself (who died from a heart attack in 2009 at age of 59) has a considerable cult following.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fine performances by the young ensemble cast<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ringwald.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ringwald-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-32506\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ringwald-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ringwald-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ringwald-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ringwald.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hirsch.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hirsch-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-32504\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hirsch-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hirsch-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hirsch-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hirsch.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hall.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hall-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-32503\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hall-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hall-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hall-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Hall.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Estevez.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Estevez-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-32502\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Estevez-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Estevez-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Estevez-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Estevez.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>An often witty and incisive script by Hughes<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ensemble.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ensemble-1024x576.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-32501\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ensemble-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ensemble-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ensemble-300x168.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Breakfast-Club-Ensemble.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as a cult favorite.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cult Movie<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0088847\/\">IMDb entry<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1985\/02\/15\/movies\/john-hughes-s-breakfast-club.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.reelviews.net\/php_review_template.php?identifier=1194\">ReelViews Review<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Everyone&#8217;s home life is unsatisfying: if it wasn&#8217;t, people would live with their parents forever.&#8221; Synopsis: A group of diverse teens &#8212; a privileged preppy girl (Molly Ringwald), a rebel (Judd Nelson), a jock (Emilio Estevez), a nerd (Anthony Michael Hall), and a recluse (Ally Sheedy) &#8212; form unexpected bonds during an extended day of detention at school, overseen by the tyrannical Mr. Vernon (Paul Gleason). Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Friendship High School Misfits Teenagers Response to Peary\u2019s Review:&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=32500\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=32500"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32500\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97797,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32500\/revisions\/97797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=32500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=32500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=32500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}