What's the Best John Hughes Teen/High School Movie?

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Oatsdad, Jun 28, 2020.

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  1. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever Thread Starter

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
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  2. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever Thread Starter

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    I don't think I've seen "Uncle Buck" since it ran theatrically so I barely remember it.

    I figured it'd be clear that the thread was about movies that revolved almost entirely around teens/high school, not just movies that included teens or high school! :)

    I wasn't sure if "Career Opportunities" - another movie I've not seen in decades - qualified, but since a) the story is about a guy's career choices and b) no one's complained, I guess I made the right choice to omit it!
     
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  3. Veggie Boy

    Veggie Boy still trudgin'

    Location:
    Central Canada
    I voted Sixteen Candles as a comedy masterpiece. Anthony Micheal Hall at his best. Ferris Bueller's Day Off is a close second. I disliked Pretty In Pink. Indifferent about the rest
     
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  4. So my choices are

    1. Ferris Bueller
    2. The Breakfast Club
    3. Pretty In Pink
    4. Some kind of Wonderful
    5. weird Science
    6. Sixteen Candles
     
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  5. BadJack

    BadJack doorman who always high-fives children of divorce

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    The movies actually seem to get progressively worse. I probably like "SKOW" better than "Ferris" but it's certainly not as memorable.

    (Fun game: watch Matthew Broderick in 1999's "Election" and pretend that it's the grown-up Ferris.)

    The smartest thing Hughes did was to throw that "When you get old, your heart dies" line into "The Breakfast Club", so by the time you realize that a lot of these characters are smarmy brats, he makes it seem like it's your fault!
     
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  6. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    I knew more people would choose mindless entertainment over substance which is why i'm not surprised Ferris Beuller is ahead. But, I always go for the deeper stuff. I picked "The Breakfast Club".
     
  7. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever Thread Starter

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    Not sure how you define "memorable". It's not as wacky and overtly comedic, but that doesn't make it a lesser movie.

    Saying the movies get worse means you think "Weird Science" is superior to "FBDO" and "SkoW"! :wtf:
     
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  8. BadJack

    BadJack doorman who always high-fives children of divorce

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    I don't, that's true. "Weird Science" is awful but I still laugh at Chet as that monster thing at the end, and as much as I'd like Ferris to get hit by a bus, there are funny lines and scenes in the movie.

    I'll admit I haven't seen "SKOW" or "Pretty in Pink" in years so maybe I misphrased things.
     
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  9. Duke Fame

    Duke Fame Sold out the Enormodome

    Location:
    Tampa, FL
    Weird Science isn't great, but has a ton of funny scenes and Bill Paxton is fantastic in it. Really an overlooked performance by him.
     
  10. SandAndGlass

    SandAndGlass Twilight Forum Resident

    I have to agree. There is something compelling about teens locked inside a classroom on a Saturday.

    It all comes off because it showcases the individual characters and their interactions.

    It is also a movie that wouldn't have worked without a perfect script.

    There is a special Criterion addition that was released a couple of years back that contains several extended scenes that were cut from the original.

    The scene with the Janitor having a conversation with the students is brilliant and is completely worth buying for this scene alone.

    The Janitor (was his name Carl?), really blasts each of the students about their future and does not hold back.

    Many years back, Mia Sara was at the Fort Lauderdale film festival. She was dating Sean ConneryConnery's son, having just finished making a movie with him.

    Back then, the festival was Sponsored by Blockbuster Video. The festival screenings were held at the AMC theater, behind an older shopping mall.

    Her first movie, she was in four festival films, was an afternoon matinee. There was no one around or nothing else to do, so she and a couple of others were hanging around in the empty hospitality tent, where I was waiting for the next movie. Jon Crier was with her, and one other person.

    She really does look that pretty in person. She only had light make up on that day. John was wearing a goatee.
     
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  11. Opeth

    Opeth Forum Resident

    Location:
    NH
    Ferris
    Weird Science
    Breakfast Club

    All great movies, I don't rate the other 3
     
  12. Spitfire

    Spitfire Senior Member

    Location:
    Pacific Northwest
    Like Ferris Bueller the mist followed by 16 Candles. Don't care too much about the rest but Weird Science has its moments even though it isn't a very good movie.
     
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  13. thxdave

    thxdave "One black, one white, one blonde"

    Who hurt you, man? ;-)
     
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  14. Guss2

    Guss2 Senior Member

    Location:
    South Florida
    Personally I love all of his teen angst movies, but let's not forget just how prolific Hughes was, especially in the 80's. He wrote Mr. Mom but couldn't direct because they wouldn't let him film in Chicago, Vacation series, except European, no wonder it was so bad. Home Alone series, weather you like them or not, Uncle Buck, The Great outdoors, She's Having A Baby, Dutch, Planes, Trains And Automobiles(one of my favorites), Only The Lonely, Career Opportunities/Jennifer Connelly!!!!!!!!!! Hughes made something for everyone and is personally one of my favorite writer/director/producers of all time. I also thought it was cool he set most, if not all his movies in the same city, Chicago.
     
  15. fitzysbuna

    fitzysbuna Senior Member

    Location:
    Australia
    the teenage girl who is not getting along with her parents and treating everyone like crap
     
  16. The Hud

    The Hud Breath of the Kingdom, Tears of the Wild

    You have a lot more hair in your nose than my Dad.
     
  17. Honey Bunches of Sadness

    Honey Bunches of Sadness Forum Resident

    Location:
    SF Bay Area
    While Ferris Bueller was the funniest and most entertaining, I voted for Breakfast Club, which had a bigger impact on me.

    Having said that: after I first saw the film as a teenager, my mom asked me how I liked the movie. I responded something to the effect, “It was thought-provoking. I feel like I understand better why certain kids turn out the way they do.” My mom’s retort: “So it was all the parents’ fault?”

    Touché, mom.
     
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  18. Raylinds

    Raylinds Resident Lake Surfer

    Sorry Oatsdad, I really like you but you lost all credibility as a film critic when you said Pretty in Pink was mostly awful. What does PiP have going for it?
    A brilliant performance by Annie Potts the quirky older sister figure who ends up falling for a yuppy dentist and getting into Barry Manilow.
    A wonderful performance by Jon Cryer as the outcast friend hopelessly in love with the protagonist- the Otis Redding scene alone is worth the price of admission.
    A great performance by one of the best character actors of all time- Harry Dean Stanton.
    Andrew Dice Clay!
    A brilliant, if now somewhat dated, soundtrack (I still love it, though).
    James Spader- the good looking creepy guy that everyone loves to hate.

    I will admit, the two main characters are probably the week spot but Molly Ringwald and Andrew McCarthy are not without their charm and I have to agree with what was written on the Rotten tomatoes site: "Molly Ringwald gives an outstanding performance in this sweet, intelligent teen comedy that takes an ancient premise and injects it with insight and wit.". I think a lot of young people at the time could really relate to the whole idea of cliques and the cool kids versus the outcasts.
    Principal- If you give off signals that you don't want to belong, people will make sure that you don't.
    Andie- That's a beautiful theory.

    I admit it's not Citizen Kane, but none of these movies are. I know it's subjective, so my comment is really tongue in cheek, but I think you really missed the mark on this one.

    My favorite on the list, but only beats Bueller by the smallest of margins.
     
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  19. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever Thread Starter

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    A movie with a teen in it doesn't = a "teen movie".

    This thread's about movies that focus on teens/high school. The title indicates "Uncle Buck" isn't primarily about teens...
     
  20. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever Thread Starter

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    Sorry Raylinds, but you lost all credibility when you claimed Jon Cryer gave a brilliant performance.

    Duckie's on a short list of the most irritating characters/performances ever! That lip-synch scene makes me cringe every time I see it - it's just awful.

    And I like Potts but she's annoying too - and she sells out at the end to become a freakin' Yuppie! :sigh:
     
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  21. '05Train

    '05Train Crashin' & Flyin' & Livin' & Dyin'

    Location:
    Roanoke, Virginia
    No one, it's just not an entertaining movie to me. Ferris is a jerk, which makes for an unpleasant viewing, and the "good guy" in the movie (Principal Rooney) gets crapped on. Oh, and there's some sort of important point about Cameron wrecking his dad's Ferrari, but that's utterly lost it the film's bizarre mix of "humor" and bloviating.

    Like I said, I know I'm in the minority.
     
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  22. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever Thread Starter

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    The Cameron subplot is one of those where we're supposed to believe that Ferris has some master plan to liberate his friend from oppression.

    They must drive the Ferrari so Cameron will stop being so afraid to upset his dad!

    Um, sure. Seems more like Ferris just wants that bitchin' ride and he doesn't give a crap about the outcome! :help:
     
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  23. Kevin In Choconut Center

    Kevin In Choconut Center Offensive Coordinator

    This is a nice thread. I loved "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" when it came out, but not so much these days. I've only seen "Pretty In Pink" once and liked it. " Parts of "Sixteen Candles" are problematic, at best, in today's cultural climate but I take it for what it is in context and still enjoy it. "Some Kind Of Wonderful" and "Weird Science" are two films I've never seen. I might add them to my Netflix queue.

    "Career Opportunities" is a film the name of which I've been trying to remember for years! I saw it the night it opened in theaters, hard to believe that was 29 years ago. I just added it to my Netflix queue.

    "The Breakfast Club" is my favorite of all these. It just feels so realistic to me. I was in high school when it came out.
     
  24. GodShifter

    GodShifter Forum Member

    Location:
    Dallas, TX, USA
    “Weird Science” was awful. I personally dislike “Ferris Bueller” as he’s too smug and self assured. Breaking the fourth wall is usually not something I like, either.

    I picked “Sixteen Candles”. I’ve always liked that movie.
     
  25. vamborules

    vamborules Forum Resident

    Location:
    CT
    Agreed on both counts. Weird Science is hilarious and Bueller is annoying.
     
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