The Breakfast Club (1985)

Another stroll down 80's memory lane.

The Breakfast Club was the kind of movie I loved as a teenager.
I went back and watched it and absolutely hated it.
Whine, whine, whine.
Does anyone in this move do anything but whine?
Like any kids would act like this in detention.
Kids have their stupid clicks and I can't imagine a group of kids coming together for a group therapy session like they do in this movie.
It's 80's memories, yes.
So, if you've never seen it, go rent it.
I can't stand to watch a bunch of kids crying about how unfair their lives are.
You want unfair?
Go visit some of the victims of Hurricane Katrina or the Tsunami victims.
That's unfair, not kids crying because mommy and daddy won't buy them that new Vett.
Fun if you're a teen.
For adults, you'll wonder why the parents don't cuff em upside the head.
June 16, 2008

1 star for the edition five for the feature

Yeah, I know I'll receive flak for this, but I just don't care. This double-dipping has got to stop. FOR YEARS we've been asking for an s.e. of this film. And this isn't good enough. As the other reviewer says, this doesn't SEEM to have the "deleted scenes" released on TV (usually used to replace racier or more violent scenes on a TV broadcast, see the 4 disc edition of Superman (1977) as an example of re-cutting these scenes into a movie). Why waste your money when they'll just trot out another edition in a few years? June 3, 2008

Psst ... new Flashback Edition due out on September 16th 2008, will finally have special features, details here

A new release of The Breakfast Club is coming out in September with an audio commentary by Judd Nelson and Anthony Michael Hall, a couple features called "Sincerely Yours" and "Most Convenient Definitions: The Origins of the Brat Pack," and the theatrical trailer. These will be the first real special features to have been included with The Breakfast Club on DVD. It's known that there are deleted scenes (some have been shown on TV), but there was no mention of any in the announcement for the new DVD.

The Breakfast Club is considered by many the quintessential high school movie, which is quite a comment on high school, as almost the entire film takes place in detention. Five students, each representing a type but fleshed out into real characters as the film develops, are stuck together on a Saturday in detention. In terms they use themselves, there's a "criminal" (Judd Nelson), a "princess" (Molly Ringwald), a "jock" (Emilio Estevez), a "brain" (Anthony Michael Hall), and a "basket case" (Ally Sheedy). Effectively portrayed tension between the five builds to explosive levels before they finally discover how much they have in common. There is a lot of sharp humor, some hijinks, a lot of emotional release in the last third. The acting is very good. Nelson is especially good as the main catalyst for the tension, projecting a powerful personality and sharp mind turned in against self and back out at others.

I loved this movie in the '80s. I still like it and admire it now, though its formula seems a little more prominent to me than it used to. By today's standards it may seem to pull its punches when it comes to the reasons kids have to be unhappy and in trouble, but it strikes a fair balance between entertaining teen comedy and realism. It's also a fine time capsule from the '80s.

The new DVD will be 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen with English Dolby Digital 5.1 and English DTS 5.1. No indication has been given that this will be any different from the older DVDs.

New Flashback Editions of two other John Hughes classics, Sixteen Candles and Weird Science, are slated to come out on the same day as this one. Each will include a feature about the film. Weird Science will also have the Weird Science TV series pilot episode and the theatrical trailer. Apparently only this one gets an audio commentary. No Blu-ray announcements yet.

Amazon has a page to pre-order here. May 27, 2008

Definitely Rackworthy!

Best John Hughes movie ever! A bunch of teenagers get hurdled into detention together at school on a saturday. They collide with each other's differences, they share, they get closer, and they never forget. Easily in my top 5.
(more...) May 21, 2008

Breakfast Club DVD

I've always loved this movie, a must see for anyone who was in high school in the 80's, and the lessons still hold true today. April 23, 2008

More reviews at Amazon.com ...