Five high school students, all different stereotypes, meet in detention, where they pour their hearts out to each other, and discover how they have a lot more in common than they thought.
Pauline Kael described “The Breakfast Club” as “A movie about a bunch of stereotypes who complain that other people see them as stereotypes.” While that’s certainly true, “The Breakfast Club”, directed by John Hughes, is also about teenagers who realize that their peers are far more complex than the restrictive labels they’re boxed into. That idea alone sets this film apart from most other coming of age tales. It’s hilarious, yet, it’s sympathetic and understanding.
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A princess, an athlete, a criminal, a brain, and a basket case, all share nothing in common other than they must share nine hour detention together in the school library on Saturday, March 24, 1984. Supervised by a power hungry principal, the disparate group all have a chance to tell his or her story, making the others see them a little differently than what their label says. When the day ends, they question whether school will ever be the same.
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Instead of relying on the staples of bare flesh, crass humor, and brainless plots, this film focuses on five dissimilar characters, is almost entirely dialogue driven, and doesn’t offer even a glimpse of a breast or buttock. It’s a story about communication gaps, teen isolation, and the angst that everyone, regardless of how self-assured they seem, experiences during the years that function as a transition from the freedom of adolescence to the responsibilities of adulthood.
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These characters act like such stereotypes because they try to embody their parents, this leads to a severe identity crisis and ultimately demolishes a person’s individuality, all this pressure leads to teenage angst and rebellion. Each character has his or her own little problem and as insignificant as they might appear, to a teenager, they are everything. This is what this film captures the best with it’s realistically honest and strong script. Its not filled with outlandish dialogue nor out of place one liners, although they are moments where the film takes a break from the somber tone and has fun with itself, it’s an outstanding job that successfully deconstructs the stereotypes of the kids, slowly peeling back the layers and showing how each suffers from similar problems. Aided by magnificent performances, these characters feel like actual human beings rather than actors on a set, as the film intelligently showcases a strong depiction of high school youth and their troubled stages.
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“The Breakfast Club” is the definite all American adolescent coming of age story that fantastically deconstructs the social clicks within the microcosm of society known as high school. The ‘80s style marks this film as a story of that specific generation, however, the struggles the characters go through are timeless. Director John Hughes masterfully wrote five compelling, believable characters that are searching for some type of approval or acceptance, and unsurprisingly enough, they’ve become characters that we’ll never forget about. We see them as more than what most would see them - in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we, the viewer, found out is that each one of us is a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, a princess, and a criminal. Now, does that answer your question on whether or not to watch this classic film? Sincerely yours, The Moviegeek.
