Dear Mr. Vernon, we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole episode to watching
John Hughes films.
But we think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you what we think of them.
You see his films as you want to.
But what we found out is that each one is funny, relatable, well-written, and nostalgic.
Does that answer your question?
Sincerely yours...
This is Movie Night!
Hello and welcome to Movie Night, YouTube's most-watched review show, I'm your host, Jonathan
Paula.
Tonight we'll take a look at three classic John Hughes films - which, like all his work,
primarily deals with teens and 20-something characters finding their place in the world.
We begin with "The Breakfast Club".
This now cult-classic by famed director John Hughes was released in February of 1985, and
eventually grossed 50x times its meager $1 million dollar budget.
One of the quintessential installments in the "brat pack" group of films, this coming-of-age
comedy drama stars Emilio Estevez, Anthony Micheal Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald,
and Ally Sheedy as five high school students forced to suffer through a detention together
on a dreary Saturday afternoon - with Paul Gleeson as their only supervisor.
All of the young adults do a fantastic job with the realistic teenage dialogue, easily
bringing their well-developed characters to life - each one individually amusing in their
own right.
The original script by Hughes, reportedly written in just two days, perfectly understands
their dilemmas, and although each character is a bit of an exaggerated stereotype, they
play off one another very well.
What begins as fart jokes and playful antics eventually transforms into a much deeper narrative
that explores the pains and issues real adolescents struggle with in their daily lives, especially
when Estevez poignantly remarks, "We're all pretty bizarre.
Some of us are just better at hiding it."
As the mature voice of reason, Gleeson is great as the animated disciplinary...
but he's hardly the "real" bad guy the film makes him out as, even if it mayn't seem that
way to younger audiences.
Personally, I only saw this film for the first time recently, as an adult - so I definitely
went into it with
a different perspective.
Although refreshing and amusing throughout, the 97-minute film is awkwardly paced, and
sort of aimlessly bounces from one scene to the next.
Outside of a handful of some deliberately artistic shots, the cinematography and editing
here is very low-key and conventional, with the action on-screen unraveling like a theatrical
play, confined mostly to a single room - and impressively shot entirely in sequence.
With the exclusion of the awesomely iconic original song, "(Don't You) Forget About Me",
by Simple Minds that bookends the film, most of the R-rated picture is left in complete
silence.
Dutifully exploring themes of self-worth, friendship, and growing-up, this movie may
not be exciting, or particularly dramatic but there's an undeniable warmth and charm
to it that makes it required viewing for all fans of 80's cinema.
"The Breakfast Club", "Timeless characters propel introspective script."
Now let's go to the YouTube comments to see what you had to say about this film.
A NINE and a SEVEN for "The Breakfast Club", you praised the writing, characters, and realistic
situations, scoring this an AWESOME.
Unquestionably, this film would have had a more profound impact on me had I gotten around
to watching it a decade ago, but as a mature adult, there was still much I enjoyed, and
I thought it was COOL.
For tonight's poll question; which member of 'The Breakfast Club' do you identify with
most?
Leave your response a comment below.
Next up, let's review "Ferris Bueller's Day Off".
This teen comedy was a massive hit in the summer of 1986, when it earned over eleven
times its small five million dollar budget.
Writer, producer, and director John Hughes once again takes us inside the mind and life
of an American teen - on one crazy day of adventures when he decides to skip school.
Matthew Broderick stars as the title character, an aloof high schooler who shuns responsibility
and lives in a dream world without consequences, often explaining his greedy actions via fourth-wall-breaking
soliloquies, including his personal mantra that bookends the film, "Life moves pretty
fast.
If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
Alan Ruck and Mia Sara play his two best friends, and showcase excellent range and comedic timing
as a threesome, bringing to life a very realistic and 'lived-in' sort of friendship - all while
evading their over-zealous principal, played by Jeffrey Jones in an amusing physical-comedy
type role.
Jennifer Grey, Edie McClurg, Ben Stein, and a young Charlie Sheen also give great performances
in smaller supporting roles.
Although the movie has plenty of memorable moments, the landmark sequence is undoubtedly
Broderick crashing Chicago's Von Steuben Day Parade, and lip-syncing to "Twist And Shout"
with real life Chicagoans playfully dancing along with him in the background.
The film is a self-proclaimed "love letter" to the city
of Chicago, Hughes does a fantastic job of showing off many famous places and areas of
his Windy City hometown, from the Sears Tower, to the Art Institute with wonderfully framed
anamorphic shots.
Kids and teens will enjoy this PG-13-rated picture, if only as a fantasy realized on
the big screen; what if you could skip school for a day and live life large with your friends
in the big city?
Certainly plenty of fun and hilarity to go around - but the movie, especially its titular
hero is just shallow.
The individual characters and endlessly quotable dialogue all work well of course, Hughes'
understanding and handling of teen emotions and thinking saves this picture.
Reportedly, he wrote the entire script in under a week, and honestly, it shows - the
disconnected scenes have little flow between them, and mashed together for no other reason
than to pad out the 103-minute run time.
There's no consequence to any of Bueller's actions, no remorse, humility, or lessons
learned.
In short, he's a terrible role model who treats his friends like crap, and gets away with
it because the movie needed a materialistic happy ending.
That said, a final race sequence through the suburbs of Chicago set to the funky sounds
of Yellow's "Oh Yeah" are a great send-off to one of the more iconic characters of 80's
cinema.
Ultimately nothing more than a relatable, but an empty and drown out experience that
fails to really explore the teen psyche or ever impart any morals or wisdom, this is
a disposable bit of fun I won't be clamoring to watch again any time soon.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off", "Pointless overrated fluff that delights".
Here's what you had to say in the YouTube comments.
Our scores for "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", a EIGHT and a SIX.
You loved the characters and funny moments, scoring this a GREAT.
While I definitely had fun watching this movie, Bueller just isn't a particularly likable
character in my opinion... and since the whole premise rests on relating to his experiences,
I was unfortunately underwhelmed.
I'm rating this a GOOD.
Now, a reminder to check out the Movie Night Archive channel for my trailer commentaries
and a library of all our past reviews.
Finally tonight, let's discuss "Career Opportunities".
Grossing a modest $11-million dollars when it was released in March of 1991, this Bryan
Gordon teen romantic dramedy rarely excites, and generally feels like a low-budget made-for-TV
movie.
Taking place over the course of a long evening inside a Target department store, Frank Whaley
stars as a lowly janitor who is working his first nightshift alongside the criminally
gorgeous Jennifer Connelly, a socialite daughter of a wealthy businessman.
Whaley is decently endearing as the "town liar", but isn't quite suited for leading-man
material.
His character clearly hopes for something more out of his dead-end life, perhaps even
the affection of his old high-school crush whom he now finds himself alone in the big
store with all night.
As a 21-year-old bombshell, Connelly is downright distractingly beautiful here: but the icing
on the cake is this future academy award winner's acting chops: mixing subtle flirtation with
frustrated anxiety impeccably well.
Also, a scene where she rides a small mechanical horse is quite memorable.
These are relatable characters struggling to figure out the next step in their life,
with Connelly countering Whaley's own self-deprecating outlook by saying, "At least you have some
control over your life.", before lamenting about her own situations.
Even though the movie is extremely short at just 83 minutes, their chemistry has plenty
of time to blossom, thanks largely in part to writer John Hughes's great dialogue.
It's difficult not to root for their relationship to succeed, as you watch it unfold practically
in real time.
The PG-13 rated film has plenty of comedy hi-jinks afoot as well, like a quick cameo
scene by the always amusing John Candy.
The score by Thomas Newman isn't anything special, but repeated use of cheesy pop ballads
help cement the picture's mood.
Mostly all of the camerawork here are locked down medium to wide-shots, which does little
to liven up the dull atmosphere of an empty department store.
Just as the story begins to settle-in and seriously examine the hardships and dilemmas
facing wayward young adults... the plot does an about face for the absurd: when a ridiculous
burglary element is introduced.
The goofy would-be thieves hold our protagonists hostage, and the playful and poignant romantic
comedy thread is entirely abandoned for silly prat falls, and a rushed ending that leaves
much to be desired.
If not for some of the names attached to this project, there'd be no reason to see it, let
alone watching it sometime again.
"Career Opportunities": " ".
And here's my score on the rate-o-matic... a FOUR.
This film isn't nearly as interesting as Hughes' other coming-of-age adventures, and it's far
too short too effectively finish the story it began, but some cute moments and Jennifer's
astonishingly good looks make it worth seeing, but it's still just MEH.
Now, let's take a look at some Tweet Critiques to say what you're saying about movies currently
playing in theaters.
If you see a new movie in theaters, Tweet your review with the #JPMN hashtag.
Next week we'll take a look at superhero sequels, 1980's "Superman II", Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man
2", and of course, the upcoming "The Amazing Spider-Man 2".
Once you've seen these films, share your opinions by voting in the polls below, or by leaving
a comment review.
If you'd like to watch more Movie Night reviews, check out the "related videos" on the right,
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episodes.
Once again, my name is Jonathan Paula, thank you for watching and listening.
Until next time, have a good Movie Night!