This movie was a lot better than I thought it would be. I know it was made by John Hughes, mastermind behind Pretty in Pink and Ferris Bueller's day off, but this seemed just like a normal cliched teen movie. However, this was pretty good, taking the title of John Hughes' second best film and one of the best teen movies ever made. What I like about John Hughes is that he shows that films don't need mindless action sequences or half-naked women to be good. All of his films were pretty low-budget and understated, and less is definitely more.
First of all, the film churns out some great performances. My personal favourite was Judd Nelson, even though his character was a total jackass. He was a total ass, but he was a likeable ass, who Hughes makes likeable by giving him dimensions and a back story as opposed to just making him a petty thug. Molly Ringwald was good too, and it's genuinely sad that she didn't have much of a career after the eighties. As for the rest, Emilio, Ally, and Anthony did well and it's also sad that they didn't really have much of careers after the eighties. In fact, none of these actors really had careers after the eighties, and it's a shame, because they're all pretty good actors.
The story is pretty flimsy, but the flimsiness of the plot is made up for by the greatness of the actors. For those of you who don't know, SHAME ON YOU. Just kidding, but it's about five teenagers:
Brian (Anthony Michael Hall), the brain
Claire (Molly Ringwald), the princess
Bender (Judd Nelson), the criminal
Andrew (Emilio Estevez), the jock
and Allison (Ally Sheedy), the basket case
These five teens would normally have nothing to do with each other. But they are forced to tolerate each other during saturday detention, which they all acquired in various ways. Throughout the day, they go through tons of exposition and realize that they all have weird home lives and are deeper than their respective stereotypes. Normally exposition feels rushed or contrived, but it works just perfectly because it is stretched out along a whole hour-and-a-half movie, as opposed to a short time like normally. Needless to say, this story definitely makes a mountain out of a molehill and leaves a big impact with it's well told story and great performances.
Lastly, the film really blends serious heartfelt moments with more light-hearted funny moments just splendidly. Most of the humour comes from Judd Nelson's character and him being a jackass to Molly Ringwald, among other people. But I found it predictable, yet strange how they get together at the end. I mean, I was expecting them, but I definitely wasn't expecting Emilio Estevez and Ally Sheedy. They just seemed to only like eachother after her makeover, which looked horrible on her.
If you haven't seen this film, you really need to see it now, no matter your gender or taste in film. It truly is a classic and definitely makes a huge impression with what little it had in terms of plot. Great performances definitely carry this film, and make it definitely one of the best teen movies ever made. John Hughes truly is a wonderful director, and I'm not sure if he wrote this, but whoever did has a true gift and should be revered as a great writer/s. All in all, a classic that really is better than I thought it would be.
