By Mary Beth Gentle
Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off; these are just a few titles from the man that put pen to paper and helped define a generation, my generation. When the news hit my desk last month that Writer/Director John Hughes had died, a black cloud drifted over the Hollywood Cubicles. My entire youth flashed before my eyes and then slowly, I began to smile at the memories his movies brought to mind. John Hughes was a master at capturing the moments of teen angst with a perfect balance of heart and humor in a way no one had before or has since.
I pulled up his list of credits and was amazed at just how many films John Hughes had written, produced and directed. And was even more amazed by the fact that I have probably seen most of them at some point in my life. I sat down and decided I was going to try to pick my top three John Hughes movies. Too hard. So, I had to narrow it down to the top three that he both wrote and directed. Here is the list I came up with:
Sixteen Candles – 1984
The story centers around a slightly awkward high school sophomore, Samantha "Sam" Baker played by Molly Ringwald, as she struggles to get through her sixteenth birthday, which her entire family has forgotten as they prep for her sister Ginny’s big wedding day. As Sam struggles to survive a house filled with chaotic wedding plans, two sets of slightly insane Grandparents and a ‘geek’ with a giant crush on her, she must also come to terms with her own infatuation with the very popular and attractive senior, Jake Ryan. John Hughes captured the angst of high school life in this coming of age tale with real characters dealing with real problems in what is still a very funny movie. Will anyone remember it’s Sam’s birthday? Will her sister actually get married? And will true love find Sam and Jake together at the end? If you haven’t seen this one – it’s worth checking out.
The Breakfast Club – 1985
This ultimate teen angst movie finds a diverse group of high school students, consisting of an athlete (Emilio Estevez), a criminal (Judd Nelson), a basket case (Ally Sheedy), a princess (Molly Ringwald), and a brain (Anthony Michael Hall), sharing Saturday detention. Over the course of the day, they attack the barriers that ordinarily kept them apart, they discover more than just a few similarities in their lives and new bonds are formed. They discover that maybe they are not as easily defined as the labels put upon them by both the outside world and themselves. At the end of the film they go their separate ways, but still hopeful that these bonds will exist outside of detention. This movie had something that everyone could relate to, because some part of each of us can be found somewhere in these characters.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – 1986
Deciding he needs a day of fun with his girlfriend and his best friend before they all head off to different colleges, high school senior Ferris Bueller, played by Matthew Broderick, decides to skip school on a spring day by convincing his parents that he is sick. When the rest of the school learns of Ferris's exaggerated illness, they begin to offer donations to help "Save Ferris”. But there is one person not convinced by the deception, the school's Dean of Students, Edward Rooney. Ferris and his friends arrive in downtown Chicago and have the time of their lives, all the while avoiding Ed Rooney and making sure they get back home before Ferris’ parents get off work. Ferris Bueller did what the rest of us could only dream of doing – he took the day off!
Here are a few more of the many John Hughes movies that I have enjoyed over the years; She’s having a baby, Pretty in Pink, Uncle Buck, The Great Outdoors, Planes Trains and Automobiles…the list goes on and on. So whether you in the mood for the teen angst of The Breakfast Club, the comedy of Dan Aykroyd and John Candy or some good old family fun with the Home Alone Movies, I recommend you settle in and watch a movie in honor of John Hughes.
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