Weird Science Joins the 30-Year Old Club and It’s Still as Funny as Ever

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american ninja, anthony michael hall, bar scene, bill paxton, breakfast club, chet, fright night, ilan mitchell-smith, john hughes, judie aronson, kelly lebrock, robert downey jr., robert rusler, sixteen candles, suzanne snyder, teen wolf

Fewer films have ever made me laugh as hard as John Hughes‘ Weird Science. This film is a sign post of my childhood, one that carries tremendous meaning and nostalgia. While this one may not register on many folks’ radar as a top notch Hughes example, I happily rated it my favorite of his oeuvre back in 2013. That it came out in what might be considered the most 80s month of films in the entire decade (along with the original Fright Night, Real Genius, Teen Wolf, Better Off Dead and American Ninja) makes it all the better. So, it is with great pleasure that pleasure that I fête Weird Science as it turns 30 this year (released August 2, 1985), a fantastic example of 80s film hijinks replete with Hughes‘ ability to take something that is on the surface a typical male teen horn-dog film and give it some substance at the end. I am unashamed in my love for this film and I can happily report that even to this very day, Weird Science towers above the poor excuses for teen comedies of today.

And then, BANG! we hit the city, baby. Dead on. For a little drinks, a little nightlife, a little dancing…

The story of the film, for you unfortunate louts who have yet to see it, is a somewhat standard territory for Hughes – two loveable losers, Gary (Anthony Michael Hall in his finest role) and Wyatt (Ilan Mitchell-Smith), cast outs at their school long for nothing but to be cool. However, those dreams are consistently dashed again and again by the masses, especially Max (Robert Rusler) and Ian (a very young Robert Downey Jr.). That Gary and Wyatt are smitten with Deb (Suzanne Snyder) and Hilly (Judie Aronson, one of my all-time crushes), Max and Ian’s girlfriends certainly doesn’t help. So when Wyatt’s parents leave for the weekend, they decide to make a girl…actually make a girl, using Wyatt’s then high-tech computer set-up and know how, a sort of new wave Dr. Frankenstein. When it actually works and Lisa (the stunning Kelly LeBrock) materializes in Wyatt’s bedroom, the boys’ futures start to change for the better.

But as always, there are roadblocks. Wyatt’s older brother Chet, in what is arguably the best shithead older brother performance in film history graciously given to us by the incomparable Bill Paxton, is home from college to “watch over” the boys. He harasses and harangues them all while they and Lisa set about changing their fortunes over the course of one weekend. The key to this is not only was Lisa created to be incredibly beautiful (and trust me, in 1985 LeBrock was the pinnacle of beauty) but she also had special, witchcraft-like powers that allowed her certain license to create ideal situations in which Gary and Wyatt could prove themselves to their otherwise unsuspecting classmates. They do so in memorable fashion thus ingratiating themselves to said classmates and more importantly the apples of their eyes, Deb and Hilly.

Now make yourself one, dickweed!

This is a month that will likely be a one-way Nostalgia Express for me. It’s fitting that it is starting out with Weird Science. I hold this film in the highest regard. While it may not be Hughes‘s “best” film, it certainly is my favorite of his. It may not have quite the same touching ending that both Sixteen Candles or The Breakfast Club have,but Weird Science earns its ending. It’s honest despite the preposterous nature of the events leading up to it and there is something that we can all likely identify with in Gary and Wyatt. And to me, any film that gives moviegoers a scene like the one where they go to a bar on the Southside of Chicago is complete and total magic. Check it out:

There are very few scenes that are as quotable as this one. That it’s just one among many in the film is a testament to the quality of Weird Science. And despite falling into the shadows of the acting world for a long while, Anthony Michael Hall gives one of the all-time great comedic performances in this film. I wish I could understand why he faded away like he did even though he has resurfaced in the past few years. The same could be said of Ilan Mitchell-Smith who was solid in The Wild Life and really encapsulated the character of Wyatt. This film is a true treasure and deserves mention alongside any comedy of the 80s and beyond.

This film has significant personal meaning to me as I got to see it with my brother and sister at the Rivoli Theatre in downtown Muncie, Indiana, when my parents were in court hammering each other over visitation rights post-divorce. This film was the perfect antidote to the trepidation my siblings and I felt that day. So to John Hughes, the cast of the film and anyone else who had anything to do with the making of this film, I thank you. It’s rare the one can point to one person and call them the voice of a generation, but I don’t doubt that anyone who came of age in the early to mid-80s couldn’t at least tip John Hughes as the most likely candidate.

Enjoy the tasty original trailer and if you have yet to watch this puppy, get there people:

When “Somebody’s Baby” by Jackson Browne plays in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, it only means one thing…

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amy heckerling, anthony edwards, breakfast club, cameron crowe, cars, d.w. brown, eric stoltz, fast times at ridgemont high, hamm's, jackson browne, jeff spicoli, jennifer jason leigh, judge reinhold, mark ratner, mike damone, moving in stereo, nicolas cage, phoebe cates, Ridgemont High, robert romanus, Ron Johnson, sean penn, simple minds, somebody's baby, stacy hamilton

Some movies are inseparable from songs that appear in them. Think “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds from The Breakfast Club – when anyone in my generation (and those that come after me I would presume) hears that song, I would guess that they immediately think of this. The song is almost completely inseparable from the film. In the same vein, it’s hard to separate Jackson Browne‘s “Somebody’s Baby” and the essential role it plays in Fast Times at Ridgemont High. For those of you who don’t know what the film is about, it follows the trials and tribulations of a set of early 1980s high schoolers at Ridgemont High in Ridgemont, California, as they navigate life situations. Somewhat centered on brother and sister combo Brad (Judge Reinhold) and Stacy (Jennifer Jason Leigh) Hamilton, we see their peaks and valleys as the cast of splendid characters swirl around them, floating in and out of their lives. With arguably the most memorable stoner role of all-time, Sean Penn absolutely shines as surfer and general nuisance Jeff Spicoli. With all-star cast that has some of the first appearances in film by people like Nicolas Cage, Eric Stoltz, and Anthony Edwards, this film is hard to forget. That it was the first film (based on his own novel) written by Cameron Crowe makes it all the better.

Linda and Stacy, maneaters of Ridgemont High.

“Somebody’s Baby” plays a fairly crucial role in this film and applies almost exclusively to Stacy Hamilton. A freshman, Stacy is intent on learning the ways of beguiling boys. Under the tutelage of her best friend Linda (the unforgettable Phoebe Cates), Stacy sets forth on a mission to not only secure a boyfriend, but to lose her virginity and blossom into a fully operational sexual being as well. It all starts while working at the most hopping pizza place in the Ridgemont Mall, Perry’s, a hot customer named Ron Johnson (D.W. Brown) comes in. The girls at Perry’s fight over who gets to be his waitress. It’s Stacy’s section, so she’s the one. Being the slimy kind of guy he is, Ron immediately hits on her and of course gets her phone number (she’s 15 even though she tells him she’s 19 and he’s 26). So when they make a date for later, what can they actually do together? Ron immediately suggests going to  “The Point.” One knows from so many other teen movies that any place called “The Point” can only lead to one thing – SEX. He clearly had one thing on his mind from the outset. And that’s precisely what happens – Stacy loses her virginity that night. To a 26-year old. In a little league baseball dugout. But here’s the first time we hear Browne‘s “Somebody’s Baby,” which was written specifically for the film.

Ron and Stacy on arguably the worst first date ever.

This song immediately becomes the cue for us to know Stacy is going to get freaky. And this scene with Ron basically plays out over the course of the song: “‘Cause when the cars and the signs and the street lights light up the town/She’s got to be somebody’s baby/She must be somebody’s baby/She’s got to be somebody’s baby.” To me, this covers their trip motoring to “The Point” in Ron’s cherry Datsun (pre-Nissan) 300zx, which was hot stuff back in 1982, cars passing, streets lights illuminating their way. At the first appearance of the chorus, Browne tells us: “She’s probably somebody’s only light. Gonna shine tonight/Yeah, she’s probably somebody’s baby, all right. She might well have been his only light…for that night, and she certainly shined. Of course neither she nor we ever see Ron again, the closest thing being some roses he sends Stacy afterwards. Who says chivalry is dead?

In the scene where Stacy and Linda discuss sex and other variables when they are at the lunch table being surreptitiously listened to by a table full of guys, it’s easy to see where these lyrics came from: “I heard her talkin’ with her friend when she thought nobody else was around/She said she’s got to be somebody’s baby/She must be somebody’s baby.” So it’s plain to see this song is incredibly integrated into the fabric of the movie.

So when Stacy starts giving signs to her exceedingly shy biology nerd classmate Mark Ratner (Brian Backer) that she is interested, we expect something similar to happen. These lyrics clearly outline Ratner’s feelings for Stacy (he tells Damone that he’s already in love with her, but he doesn’t even know her name): “I try to shut my eyes, but I can’t get her outta my sight/I know I’m gonna know her, but I gotta get over my fright/We’ll, I’m just gonna walk up to her/I’m gonna talk to her tonight.” Stacy now occupies the role of the experienced one and has somewhat of an appetite for sex (once again encouraged by Linda). However, Mark is timid and doesn’t want to be the guy only out for sex.

Mark and Stacy: young love (lust?) personified.

He wants a relationship and the two seem to connect when Ratner finally gets the stones up to ask her out. After a long dinner, where he has to wait for his friend Mike Damone (Robert Romanus) to bring him his wallet he forgot at home., they adjourn back to Stacy’s house, where her brother is out with friends and her parents are out of town. Stacy changes into something more comfortable (her robe…what’s she thinking about?) and they begin to make out. We think this is going to lead down the same path as it did with Stacy and Ron, but…no “Somebody’s Baby” to give us the clue that Ratner is going to get his and Stacy is going to get hers. Ah, wait we must.

Mike Damone, romeo extraordinaire.

And we don’t have to wait long. When Stacy confides in Mike, after he plays it cool with her, that she likes him, he walks her home. She invites him in after, in his cool sort of way, makes it known that despite that fact that his friend is VERY interested in her, he is too. So when the suggestion is made that they go out back to swim in her pool, they adjourn to the cabana where…we get “Somebody’s Baby.” We now know that they are going to get busy, and that they do.

This song embodies the trio of “relationships” Stacy has in the film. It is a perfect accompaniment and tells us her basic story in about 4 minutes. Without this song playing at key times, this film wouldn’t be nearly as lush as it adds another dimension/layer to the film, something not really done in teen comedies at the time. Director Amy Heckerling gets all the credit for its usage. And I also appreciate that she never judges Stacy (or Linda for that matter) as being slutty. I think that this film treats females discovering their sexuality quite naturally, albeit awkwardly in Stacy’s case. It also covers the dangers of not being careful when Stacy gets pregnant after her tryst with Damone. And without this song being used, we who grew up in the 80s wouldn’t have “Somebody’s Baby” as shorthand to reference a time when someone is about to get busy.

Here is the song performed by Jackson Browne:

This song is pure 1980s wonderful. It is the centerpiece of a pretty solid soundtrack, which includes The Cars‘ “Moving in Stereo” which immediately triggers memories of another scene for most boys who grew up in the 1980s. Google it…

And I would be remiss if I didn’t at least add a picture of Spicoli and his friends drinking Hamm’s in a sweet ass van. Feast your eyes:

Here’s the trailer:

 

March 24, 1984…30 years ago today, The Breakfast Club fictitiously took place.

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ally sheedy, anthony michael hall, breakfast club, david bowie, emilio estevez, illinois, john hughes, judd nelson, march 24 1984, molly ringwald, shermer

“…And these children
that you spit on
as they try to change the worlds
are immune to your consultations.
They’re quite aware
of what they’re going through…” – David Bowie

I am a terribly nostalgic person and this is a movie I hold in the highest regard. As I trundle along in this life, I reflect back on my youth a fair amount. Movies are easily used signposts in this reflection. Thinking about this film, that I was 10 going on 11 when I saw it, gives me pause. In the intervening 29 years (29 FUCKING YEARS!!!) that have passed since then, I, like many of my peers, have come a long way. I honestly don’t think my child-self and therefore my adult-self would be the same without films like The Breakfast Club (or John Hughes‘ entire oeuvre for that matter).

A criminal, a princess, a brain, an athlete and a basket case…

Also, here‘s a great list of trivia about the film. That is all. Back to your standard programming…

I Shall Serve No Fries Before Their Time – Amy Heckerling’s Fantastic Fast Times at Ridgemont High

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80s, all-american burger, almost famous, amanda wyss, amy heckerling, anthony edwards, better off dead, brad hamilton, breakfast club, brian backer, cameron crowe, damone, drop dead fred, ER, eric stoltz, fast times at ridgemont high, forrest whitaker, gremlins, hamm's, jackson browne, jennifer jason leigh, john hughes, judge reinhold, last king of scotland, leaving las vegas, mark ratner, milk, moving in stereo, mpaa, mr. hand, mystic river, pg-13, phoebe cates, r-rated, ray walston, robert romanus, sean penn, somebody's baby, spicoli, stacy hamilton, stanley davis jr, superbad, the cars, the player, vhs, you dick

It’s hard to believe that Amy Heckerling‘s Fast Times at Ridgemont High was released 31 years ago (as of last week). Having recently re-watched it, it is a film that, even though it was filmed in 1982, still has an exceedingly large deal of relevance to today’s youth. Without the dramatic edge that John Hughes‘ The Breakfast Club has, Fast Times at Ridgemont High is so infused with humor and jokes that even the serious topics that the movie covers (teen sex, drugs, relationships, abortion) are funny. That’s a pretty hard thing to do. Based on a book by then unknown film guy, Cameron Crowe, who went undercover at a high school in California to get the skinny on what kids at that time were doing, the film version is infinitely better than the book, which is one of the few times I can actually say that (The Player being the only other example I can come up with). This film is the early 80s in a nutshell, and we’re all better for it.

It’s hard to know where to start with this movie because so much of it worthy of mention. The basic synopsis of the film is as such: Kids in Ridgemont are bored, like in most places. They fill their time working shitty jobs, drinking beer, fucking and trying to get through high school. So here are the main players in the film:

Brad Hamilton (Judge Reinhold)

Brad: an all-american guy.

Brad is entering his senior year, has a great girlfriend, Lisa (Amanda Wyss of Better Off Dead fame) “who’s great in bed” but he’s a senior now. He’s a single, successful guy and he’s got to be fair to himself. And he needs his freedom…or so he thinks. When things go down the shitter for him, Lisa ends up dumping him. Turnabout is fair play, I suppose. After losing his job at All-American Burger, and dumping his gig at Captain Hook’s Fish & Chips, he finally finds his niche a Mi-T Mart. Well played, Brad. Shoot for the stars.

Stacy Hamilton (Jennifer Jason Leigh)

I don’t want sex. Anyone can have sex. I want a relationship. I want romance.

Stacy, Brad’s sister, and the de facto center of attention in Fast Times, is a freshman who has been taken under the wing of senior Linda Barrett (Phoebe Cates) and taught the ways to use her wiles to capture men. When this backfires at least twice, she reconsiders her approach. After a tryst with a 26-year old stereo salesman, a failed attempt to bag Mark Rather (Brian Backer), a nerd in her biology class and her subsequent seduction of his best friend, the slimy Mike Damone (Robert Romanus) which gives her an unwanted pregnancy, Stacy decides to cool things off. Probably for the best, young lady. Fortunate are we that director Amy Heckerling and musician Jackson Browne created an anthem, “Somebody’s Baby,” for Stacy to cue us into when she is going to get freaky. My 9-year old self thanks you for this.

Here’s Linda dispensing her sage-like advice for Stacy:

Linda Barrett

Hi Brad. You know how cute I always thought you were…

Adequately described above, Linda coaxes Stacy out of her shell and into womanhood. Linda is confident and beautiful and it’s no wonder Stacy flocks to her. Linda seems to think she has it all figured out – after graduation, she will move to Chicago with her fiancee Doug and they will walk through the world together. Well, that’s not how it works out, of course. Linda is the object of what might well be the most famous scene from any teen movie ever when she appears in Brad’s self-love fantasy (click the above image to see…be forewarned, it is not safe for work). The Cars’ “Moving in Stereo” still triggers memories of this scene to this date for me (and I’m sure many others who saw this film back in the early 80s and beyond) from the first strum of the guitar. Cates is a fine actress and was fun in both Gremlins films as well as Drop Dead Fred. It’s a shame that the most remembered part of her career will be this scene.

Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn)

Just like I told the guy on ABC…danger is my business!

Spicoli may well be the best character in film history. The guy is a non-stop highlight reel from his first appearance until the final scene of the film. Cameron Crowe, who wrote the film and the book it was based on, really captured something with this character. A surfer who has “been stoend since the third grade”, Spicoli pretty much hijacks the film. His epic back-and-forths with history teacher Mr. Hand (Ray Walston) are the stuff that cinematic dreams are made of. Despite his battles with Mr. Hand, mutual respect is gained on both sides by the end of the film. One of the great mentor-mentee relationships on film. However, their first meeting will ALWAYS be my favorite scene in the movie:

Penn‘s delivery of the “You dick!” line is pitch perfect and it caused so much laughter the first time I saw this with friends (Lindells, surely you remember this?), that we rewound the VHS tape (yes, VHS) about 35 times and laughed equally hard each time. Mind you, this is a future two-time Oscar winner. There are so many clips I could post of him and it would probably never get old to anyone reading this. And of course that he’s drinking a Hamm’s whilst driving at 1:08 in this scene captured my heart. And who could forget his explanation of the American Revolution:

Bless you, Spicoli. Forever and ever, amen.

Mark Ratner

Well, naturally something happens. I mean, you put the vibe out to 30 million chicks, something is gonna happen.

Mark is the nerd who falls in love with Stacy upon first sight but is too chicken to ask her out, which is sort of an m.o. with him as we find out from his friend Damone. When he is finally able to go out with Stacy, he drops the ball when she is clearly ready to take a trip to Freakytown. So when Damone capitalizes on the chance, the two have a falling out (as one might expect). Of course everything is cleared up in the end and Mark, because he’s not a guy just trying to fuck anything that moves gets the girl in the end. Or at least that’s what the epilogue says. Good to see the nice guy finish first for once. Get yours, Rat. Prior to his Judas-like betrayal, Damone, much like Linda to Stacy, dispensed some very valuable advice to Rat. Take a look:

Mike Damone

Damone, lothario of Ridgemont.

Damone is what he is and he can’t help that. A ticket scalper on the side, he plies his trade while doing his best to bed the ladies of Ridgemont. After betraying what appears to be his only friend when he sleeps with and knocks up Stacy, he is a ship with no captain, floating aimlessly, bearing the brunt of Rat’s hatred as well as Stacy and her friends. Why you ask? He skipped out on taking Stacy and paying for her abortion. What a guy, right? That anyone would want to hang out with him is crazy. But fellas, he is your cautionary tale – be like Damone and you will get shit on. A tough role to play and Robert Romanus played it very well. Shame it pretty much torpedoed any career he might have had. It’s pretty hard to overcome playing such a douche. Type-casting anyone?

As I’ve mentioned there are a bevy of first or near first appearances of very famous actors in this film. There’s Nic Cage:

There’s Anthony Edwards of ER fame and Eric Stoltz:

And of course, Forrest Whitaker:

By my count, there are 4 future Oscar winners that were a part of this film – Whitaker (Best Actor – Last King of Scotland), Cage (Best Actor – Leaving Las Vegas), Sean Penn (Best Actor – Mystic River and Milk) as well as Cameron Crowe (Best Original Screenplay – Almost Famous). Not a bad pedigree, eh?

One of the things that I appreciate most about this film is that even though the characters do shitty things (Damone) and try to figure out who they are, they are never judged for it. I specifically mean the treatment of the female characters, in particular Stacy, who is coming into her sexuality and see what fits for her. We never see her called a slut, we never see her put down because she is experimenting sexually. These days, there would have to be a moral of some sort attached or these scenes would be pulled all together. It also seems almost utopian in its treatment of race. Spicoli and Charles Jefferson’s little brother (Stanley Davis, Jr.) are good friends and clearly come from two separate worlds (who didn’t come from a separate world from Spicoli?). Charles Jefferson is worshiped as a God on the football field and met with gasps when he is seen in the community. While this is not a new concept, it’s hard to imagine that if this film took place in Alabama, Louisiana or even in my home state of Indiana at the same time, you would not find near the reverence as we see in this film.

Dazed & Confused,Thirteen and Superbad may be the only other R-rated teen comedies out there, or at least those worth watching. Nonetheless, they are few and far between, which is a shame. It’s hard to capture the essence of the high school experience in PG-13 since few, if anyone’s, experience is really PG-13. Fucking MPAA and their bullshit. Fast Times at Ridgemont High is one of the classic films of the 1980s, continues to endure and bring the laughs as I’m sure it will continue to do so for another 31+ years. While the fashion has certainly gone out of style, the situations depicted in the film have not. And Spicoli never ages, his wisdom never eclipsed.

Here’s the trailer:

Get a Mean On – The Awesomeness of Johnny Be Good

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adidas, amc pacer, anthony michael hall, back to school, breakfast club, bret easton ellis, chaplin, chariots of fire, deborah may, disney, edward scissorhands, george hall, gigli, janusz kaminski, jim mcmahon, john hughes, john travolta, johnny be good, jr., less than zero, molly ringwald, mr. vernon, paul gleason, paul newman, pete rozelle, pickup artist, robert downey, robert downey sr., robert yeoman, roger ebert, rotten tomatoes, saturday night live, six pack, sixteen candles, slap shot, song of the south, tarantino, ted, the godfather, tim burton, trading places, uma thurman, vanilla ice, weird science, wes anderson

Roger Ebert (may he rest in peace) said this about Johnny Be Good: ” ‘Johnny Be Good‘ is completely bereft of comic imagination” and “There is no possible motivation for [the final] scene, except for the obvious one – artistic bankruptcy” as well as “The screenplay for this movie bears every sign of being a first draft – a quick and dirty one. The movie doesn’t feel written, it feels dictated.” Not exactly a ringing endorsement, eh? It currently sits at 0% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. To put in perspective what that means, Gigli sits at 7% fresh. So this film is widely recognized as a shit sandwich by pretty much everyone. Well, except me, I guess. I’ll agree to disagree with Mr. Ebert on this one.

Johnny arrives at UCC (the flimsy stand-in for USC) to pomp and circumstance.

The premise of this film is pretty simple – Johnny Walker (Anthony Michael Hall) is the best high school quarterback in the country. Every school is licking their chops at his talent and wants him at their school and they will do anything to get him. Johnny is a kid who comes from a humble home. His father has passed away and he lives with his mother (Deborah May), his grandfather (George Hall) and his brother and sister. So when colleges are offering big money for him to attend, he is listening, much to the chagrin of the family and his beautiful girlfriend Georgia (Uma Thurman, smoking hot in her first film role). Johnny considers himself a package deal with his best friend Leo (Robert Downey, Jr.), so both are getting propositioned from all sides, including overtures made by their high school coach Wayne Hisler (Paul Gleason, also Mr. Vernon from The Breakfast Club). Johnny’s recruitment circus is being followed closely by an NCAA recruitment investigator (Robert Downey Sr.), and shit blows up like The Godfather as it’s clear that violations abound in certain schools’ pursuit of him.

Here are four reasons that this film is still worthy of a watch:

4) Paul Gleason as Coach Hisler and his clothes

It’s a bar shaped like a piano…with a piano!

Paul Gleason is amazing in this. Not only does he build off his asshole performances in Trading Places and The Breakfast Club, he brings some kitsch to this one. As the clueless head coach of Johnny’s team, Hisler is married to Connie, played by Jennifer Tilly, a woman who throws Tupperware parties. Still. I know this was made in 1988, but didn’t that shit go out of style in 1972? Clad in some of the sweetest gear this side of Paul Newman‘s wardrobe in Slap Shot, Hisler really spells C-L-A-S-S. The shirt pictured above is really the tip of the iceberg. Screenshots were pretty scarce, but you should watch this film alone to see his yellow suit. It is unreal.

For all of his attempts at being sneaky, Hisler really just comes off looking like a dumbass. But don’t let that fool you as he’s still one of the best characters in the film. His lack of social awareness (he drives a Pacer for God’s sake) is actually kind of endearing. Obviously he’s a better football coach than he is a schemer or being a social animal.

Here is the speech he gives just before the state championship football game:

3) Jim McMahon‘s cameo

If you lived in the 80s and you don’t know who Jim McMahon is you might have been living under a rock…or just aren’t a sports fan. “The Punky QB” played for probably the best pro football team ever assembled, the 1985 Chicago Bears. He was known for his outrageous behavior and for being trouble for then NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle. Was he the best quarterback? No. But he had more personality than all of them. That he’s doing an Adidas commercial is comical because he was fined for wearing an Adidas headband which was against league rules.  Suck on that, Rozelle.

You can watch his cameo here.

2) Anthony Michael Hall is all growns up

From nerd to BMOC, a cycle complete.

From the time I saw him in Six Pack, shaking the dew off his lilly, to watching him in Johnny Be Good, Anthony Michael Hall completed a perfect transition from nerd extraordinaire or “King of the Dipshits” as his character Ted exclaims in Sixteen Candles, to the guys who dates the hottest girl in school and someone who everyone wants a piece of. His comedic timing evolved over the films he did with John Hughes (RIP) and works well in this film. Perhaps his stint on Saturday Night Live in 1985-1986 helped with this, although I recall those episodes to be below average. All the same, it’s nice to see AMH pick up where his character, Gary Wallace, left off in Weird Science. This was his last “big” leading role in film – he did play the villain in Tim Burton‘s Edward Scissorhands in 1990. A fitting way for a young talent to go out? I’d say no, but I think it provides ample humor despite the film’s serious shortcomings. I have always hoped he would have a big comeback. Perhaps Tarantino can write him into something. I mean, he helped out John Travolta‘s one-note ass. Why not AMH?

1) Robert Downey, Jr. is off his ass funny

What kind of boy do you think I am? I will hardly pop you without having met your father first. Get him on the horn.

As bad/good as this movie is, one thing is certain: Robert Downey Jr. had obvious talent. He steals the show as Leo Wiggins, Johnny’s best friend and back-up quarterback. His crazy monologues/diatribes are quite funny and his facial expressions are so expressive, it’s no wonder he was chosen to play Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin. It’s not strange that he appears in this film as he co-starred with AMH in Weird Science, Saturday Night Live and showed his own range between these two and Johnny Be Good when he appeared in Back to School (a character similar to Leo Wiggins), alongside fellow AMH–brat packer Molly Ringwald in the Hughes-ian The Pickup Artist and showed his more dramatic side in the adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis‘ debut novel Less Than Zero.

The funniest part besides when RDJ tries to “smell it” at the beginning in Coach Hisler’s speech, is the stories he tells the girls they pick up at Murf’s Better Burger:

All in all the production of this film is pretty sorry. It may have the worst sound production of any film I’ve seen in some time. The amount of ADR (additional dialogue recording) is so obvious, it hurts. Seems like half of the dialogue was redubbed. One astonishing thing about this film is that Robert Yeoman, the director of photography for all of Wes Anderson‘s films, shot this film as well, much like two-time Oscar-winner Janusz Kaminski shot Vanilla Ice‘s Cool As Ice.

This, like many of the movies of the time, are time capsules of the period in which they were shot. Looking back, it’s probably best that some stay that way. The events that occur in this film are so over-the-top and unbelievable, it’s hard to argue where Roger Ebert was coming from.  Still, I find this film fun to watch and laugh at. One of the best parts about this film to me is that I saw this in theater with my grandma. The only other films I remember seeing with her in the theater: Disney’s Song of the South and Chariots of Fire. Quite an eclectic set of movies, no? A cultured woman, for sure.

Anyhither, give this one a spin if you want to see Anthony Michael Hall right before he fell into oblivion.

Here’s the trailer:

Here is the entire movie, should you feel frisky:

Badass Breakfast Club Character Posters

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ally sheedy, anthony michael hall, basket case, brain, breakfast club, criminal, daniel norris, emilio estevez, jock, john hughes, judd nelson, molly ringwald, princess, sixteen candles, weird science

John Hughes‘ movies defined my pre-adolescent years. Weird Science, Sixteen Candles, and The Breakfast Club represent mile markers in my life. I hold each of those films very dearly. I usually don’t like people fucking with these films, but I have to admit when I saw these character posters for the Breakfast Club 5, I loved them. They have a 30 Days of Night poster/horror feel to them, which seems appropriate since plenty of people equate their high school years to something akin to a horror flick. Big ups to Daniel Norris who is responsible.

For good measure…