John Hughes’ 1980s “Classic” Teen Movies: Still Worth Watching, But Critically
Do you know what The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and Home Alone all have in common? They were all directed by the same person: John Hughes. Hughes, born in Lansing Michigan, is known for his iconic 80’s movies. If you love the look and feel of the ‘80s, here is a list of these must-watch movies:
The Breakfast Club (1985)
One of Hughes’ most well known movies, The Breakfast Club is the story of five completely different high school students who represent some of the classic ‘80s stereotypes: the brain, the athlete, the basket-case, the princess, and the criminal, who have all been given Saturday detention. There isn’t a lot of plot in the movie and most of it is filmed in one room, the library of the school. It’s all about the character development. This movie isn’t for everyone since it’s more about the emotional connections of the characters than anything else, and you’re really just watching them in detention, but I love it. It’s an easy watch and you can really see how each character is affected differently by their experiences.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
Another one of his most well known movies, Ferris Bueller stars Matthew Broderick as the title character, the kind of guy I think most people would want to be in high school. Everyone in his school knows and loves him, and everything he does ends up perfectly. The movie also features Jennifer Grey as his sister (who you might know as Baby from Dirty Dancing) and Jeffrey Jones as his principal. Ferris gets his best friend, Cameron (Alan Ruck) and his girlfriend, Sloane (Mia Sara), to spend the day with him instead of at school. They travel around Chicago, doing everything from going to the Art Institute of Chicago, to sneaking into a fancy restaurant, to Ferris joining a parade and starting a city-wide dance to “Twist and Shout”, all while Ferris’s sister and principal are both trying to get him caught skipping school. There’s a big coming of age theme for Cameron, Ferris’s best friend. He starts the day as an anxious wreck because of his overbearing dad, but by the end, thanks to Ferris, he’s much braver and is able to stand up for himself.
Sixteen Candles (1984)
Another Hughes movie starring Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall (both in The Breakfast Club), Sixteen Candles follows Samantha as she wakes up on her sixteenth birthday to find that her parents were too focused on her sister’s wedding the next day to remember her birthday. She has a crush on Jake Ryan (Michael Schoeffling), a super popular senior jock who also has a crush on her, though she has no idea. Meanwhile, an unnamed geek, played by Anthony Michael Hall, tries to date her. The movie follows Samantha throughout her day at school and a dance, finally ending at her sister’s wedding the next day.
Pretty In Pink (1986)
Pretty in Pink is similar to Sixteen Candles, with some overlapping actors and plot points. Pretty in Pink is about Andie (Molly Ringwald), a girl from the poorer side of Chicago, and Blane (Andrew McCarthy), a wealthy boy, and how they overcome their friends’ judgements to date each other. In addition to their troubles, Duckie Dale (Jon Cryer), a longtime friend of Andie, is determined to marry her, though Andie and Blane’s relationship puts a strain on their friendship. This movie is a little different from the three I’ve covered so far. Hughes wrote but did not direct this film, which may be the reason the plot goes over many days, not just one or two like many other Hughes movies.
Weird Science (1985)
A very different plot from his other movies, Weird Science is a science fiction movie, unlike all the other realistic-fiction movies he’s done. This one stars Anthony Michael Hall (again). Though it’s a small part, it also stars a very young Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man in the MCU) as one of the popular guys . It’s a movie about two nerds who accidentally create the “perfect woman” and use her to gain popularity points. This “perfect woman” also has some unexplained powers to create whatever she wants whenever she wants it. Eventually the popular kids want a woman of their own, and that’s when things start going downhill.
Uncle Buck (1989)
Uncle Buck is also a little different from Hughes’ other movies, with an adult for a main character, and only one of the three kid characters are in high school. Uncle Buck is played by John Candy, who is also in other John Hughes movies, like Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, The Great Outdoors, and a small part in Home Alone. Speaking of Home Alone, Uncle Buck also stars Macaulay Culkin one year before it came out (he plays Kevin in it). The movie is about three kids whose parents have to leave after their grandfather has a heart attack. Their parents have to leave at the last minute and can’t find any baby-sitters, leaving them with one option: having Uncle Buck watch the kids.
How Do the Films Hold Up?
As much as these movies are thought of as classics, parts of them are very dated, and there are a lot of problematic things in most of them. In Sixteen Candles, for example, there are a lot of insensitive jokes and stereotypes concerning a Chinese exchange student. Also in Sixteen Candles, there’s a part when the love interest tells the nerd to “have fun” with his intoxicated girlfriend who can barely stand. And in The Breakfast Club, Bender repeatedly whispers inappropriate things in Claire’s ear and looks up her skirt, even after she repeatedly asks him to stop.
Though I love these movies, it’s concerning to me how normalised the racism and sexism are in all of them. Some have more than others, and a lot has changed in the last 40 years, though that doesn’t excuse the behaviors.
Aside from these very obviously dated parts, these movies are still great, with a couple managing to stay fairly popular throughout decades. Hughes’ movies do an amazing job of showing both the realities and fantasies of a teenage high school life with universal characters that are relatable to teenagers of every decade. John Hughes really helped to define the “coming of age” film genre with these movies and they’re very much worth watching, critically.
