The Breakfast Club

“Hey, hey, hey , hey….oooooohoooooohooooo!” yeah, you know the song, and if you recognize the opening lyrics of “Don’t You Forget About Me”, then you remember the totally awesome mega cult hit The Breakfast Club.

The Breakfast Club stars Molly Ringwald (16 Candles) as Claire Standish, Judd Nelson (St. Elmo’s Fire) as John Bender, Emilio Estevez (St. Elmo’s Fire) as Andrew Clark, and Ally Sheedy (St. Elmo’s Fire) as Allison Reynolds.

All do an awesome job excelling in political incorrectness while portraying the very teens one might find in a 1980’s school. Though the thought of an entire movie filmed in a library can be off putting, each performs solidly as lost souls gathered on a dismal Chicago March Saturday. Soon this incoherent group discovers that a Brain, a Princess, a Criminal, a Jock and a Basket Case can do way more as a group than as individuals. Their mannerisms and expressions throughout the movie are perfect. Even individual dance moves in the famous “make up dance” scene betray their individuality. You can imagine each one with their particular click dancing in the same manner during the prom. Also, Gleason performs most excellently as the gnarly Principal Vernon, bent on punishing the “children”.

Memories of teen angst hit me after watching this movie for the 2d time 27 years later. “Yeah, that’s the way it was”, I found myself asking, “Who didn’t relate to at least one of the characters?” I remember shortly after my 1985 viewing how my friends and I comparing ourselves to someone or maybe even a few of the dentionees. It wasn’t hard then and it was just as easy now. And not to mention the awesome crush I had on Molly Ringwald.

Memorable quotes include:

Claire : Do you know how popular I am? I am so popular. Everybody loves me so much at this school. 

Bender: Poor baby. 

Clark: If I lose my temper you're totaled, man. 

Bender: Totally? 

Clark: Totally. 

Bender: Does Barry Manilow know that you raid his wardrobe? 

Vernon: Don't mess with the bull, young man. You'll get the horns. 

Sound track was incredible with the hit singles:

“Don’t You Forget About Me” Simple Minds

"Fire In The Twilight" Wang Chung

The Breakfast Club is rate R for language, drug usage and other politically incorrect stuff.

St. Elmo's Fire

1985’s St. Elmo’s Fire is a timeless hit. Rocking theme song, awesome cast, and a radical plot makes this movie a great 80’s classic. I saw it in a movie theater while I was a private in the Army and remember my friend saying, “It’s the Breakfast Club all grown up”. That’s it in a nutshell. Most of the friends return (minus Molly Ringwald and the addition of  more super stars).

Brat pack returns include Judd Nelson as Alex Newbary, Emelio Estevez as Kirby Keegar and Ally Sheedy as Leslie Hunter. Defining actors include Rob Lowe (Class, Youngblood) as Billy Hicks, Andrew McCarthy (Class, Pretty In Pink, Mannequin, Weekend at Bernies, Less than Zero) as Kevin Dolenz, Demi Moore (One Crazy Summer) as Jules, Mare Winningham (Turner and Hooch) as Wendy Beamish, and Andy MacDowell (Sex, Lies and Videotape) as Dale Biberman.

Newbary, Keegar, Hunter, Hicks, Dolenz, Jules and Beamish are inseparable friends from Georgetown University. They’ve been tight for years and as realize their futures are right before them. All they have to do is seize the day. But there’s a problem, they refuse to grow up. They go to the same bar, (St. Elmo’s Fire) insist on sitting at their table, refuse to get jobs and those who do work, can’t seem to give up their drug habits they developed in college.

Through a series of ordeals that include arrests, suicide attempts, bad breakups, broken trust and fighting, the group realizes that not only do they need each other, they need to make the plunge into adulthood.

Great lines include, “The only way to lose weight in the thighs is amputation”, “Men, can’t live without ‘em, can’t shoot ‘em”, “I enjoy being afraid of Russia. It's a harmless fear, but it makes America feel better..” and much more.

St. Elmo’s Fire has a totally awesome soundtrack that helped define the 80’s. Love Theme From St. Elmo’s Fire and Man in Motion are awesome contributions to 80’s pop culture.  

St. Elmo’s Fire is rated R

They Live

They Live

I saw John Carpenter’s They Live for the first time while stationed in Wildflecken, Germany. I watched a lot of movies back in the day. It was a good way to blow off steam at the end of a long work day when I wasn’t seeing the sights or otherwise touring the landscapes and scenes of Europe.

They Live has no famous 80’s background music. Filmed during what I call the black hole of music in 1988, I doubt if the sound track would be as good as that of Breakfast Club, St. Elmo’s Fire, or Footloose. Instead this move was tracked with the electronic sounds of old Carpenter himself. The only real pop culture was probably just the same ol’ LA scene as in most movies of the time; palm trees, cityscape and flannel shirts.

Rowdy Roddy Piper plays George Playa, a homeless man who wonders into LA looking for work. He sports a great mullet and is busting out of his cloths, wrastlin’ style. The writers ensured his first job is on a construction site where he gets a few shirtless scenes to keep the movie campy. While on the site he meets Frank a character well played by Keith David.

George and Frank don’t trust each other, but it’s clear that they should definitely resolve their issues and save the world. As the tension mounts between them, an unholy mystery is forming at the nearby church. The homeless wonderers join others at an outdoor homeless gypsy camp and become aware of the strange late night events at the church. Meanwhile, a weird hacking of the television channel is warning observers that someone is controlling them.

Out of nowhere the police come and destroy the camp, church and some suspicious characters from the church.  However in an even more campy twist, we find the parishioners are smuggling …wait for it…SUNGLASSES. After the police raid the church George goes back in and discovers a magic box of Ray Ban or Vuarnet Wayfarer knockoffs. Don those catch me kiss me shades and not only will the ladies be hunting you down, but you can actually see the aliens who are enslaving us. Oh yea, the subliminal “OBEY”, “NO INDEPENDENT THOUGHT” and “MARRY AND REPRODUCE” message are revealed in magazines, bill boards and signs.

Only after a lengthy knockdown, drag out, butt kickin’ scene do George and Keith begin to see eye to eye. In fact, George practically knocks Frank out before forcing glasses on his face to see things from his point of view.  After that the tension is gone and they can get down to a good old fashioned friendship while they save the world.

This movie is rated R and rightly so as swearing is peppered throughout. It actually makes it through 92 of 93 minutes before the first and only nude scene arrives and pretty much unexpected. Fun movie, good times, see They Live.