![the breakfast club 1985 the simpsons the breakfast club 1985 the simpsons](https://www.theatermania.com/dyn/photos/theatermania/v1finw2400x0y0w1200h1571/143300.jpg)
They could say all this, but that would leave out the parts that make this film so special. They had a wonderful life in the eighties and were then resuscitated in the nineties, died a slow and horrible death in the early 2000’s and then began a more mature cult-like rise again after 2010 (examples: The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015) – though not in any way a comedy really if the ending is anything to go by). I mean anyone can write the synopsis and say that the film was a classic example of the rise of teen comedies. I guess writing this without actually giving any important details away means writing about what this so-called ‘perfect’ films means to me. Upon first glance you see them as the aforementioned labels and then everything gets torn down and you learn to love them, and you want to hug them and tell them that everything is going to be okay (even though you know it isn’t and I am not a hugger). Throughout the entire film we are breaking through the molds that the kids have found themselves bound by. I will admit that the premise of this film does not say a lot at first glance and perhaps that was Hughes’ whole point. These characters clearly need to talk to one another. I have dabbled a little in screen writing and I have always been a sucker for a limited setting because it allows for the dialogue to become the heart of the film.
![the breakfast club 1985 the simpsons the breakfast club 1985 the simpsons](https://ih1.redbubble.net/image.740898232.6509/ssrco,slim_fit_t_shirt,mens,101010:01c5ca27c6,front,square_product,600x600.jpg)
With these five characters spending a Saturday in the school’s library for 8 hours we have a recipe for something magical and that is why I say this film is perfect. Finally we have John (played by Judd Nelson) who is the loud and rude and clearly disturbed rebel who is, for all intents and purposes, also the film’s hero, and ours (the viewer’s) too. Allison (Ally Sheedy) is the loner and oddball of the group who is quiet at the beginning and then slowly starts to relate to the others. Brian, played by Anthony Michael Hall (who also reappeared in the Hughes films Weird Science (1985) and Sixteen Candles) is the nerd who has spent his life doing what he’s told and striving for excellence. Then there’s Emilio Estevez’s character, Andrew (Andy) who is the ‘Jock’ of the group, who plays sports and is bullied by his father. She appears blissfully unaware of her effect on those around her (who all seem to hate her). Who are they? Firstly we have Claire, portrayed by Molly Ringwald who is the quintessential prom queen. Well at least that’s what I get out of this film. On a human level they are all basically the same person. And every single one of them holds a specific element that we can all relate to. Do these kids have problems? On the surface the answer is a very loud NO, but as the kids start to actually communicate with one another you realize that loneliness, insecurity, anger, frustration and fear are all very real emotions for all of them. They have a teacher in charge of said detention who has no interest in them whatsoever and they are all grouped into clichéd subdivisions of high school hierarchy according to once again, the white middle class suburban America. Five high school kids attending Saturday detention in white middle class suburban America during the 1980’s. Seriously! I mean the concept appears to be nothing particularly special. It took me four viewings of The Breakfast Club (1985) to realize that this is one of the most perfect films ever made. I first watched Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986) when I was a teenager (it’s one of my mom’s favourites), and then it was unfortunately many years later in my mid-twenties that I suddenly picked up where I left off and started really watching more of what he had made.
![the breakfast club 1985 the simpsons the breakfast club 1985 the simpsons](https://y.yarn.co/c02acf02-54b6-4c1d-bdf5-80e09c2d3f37_screenshot.jpg)
It is very safe to say without sounding as though I am just jumping on the 1980’s bullshit ‘nostalgic bandwagon’ that I really have always been a fan of John Hughes’ movies.