Review of The Breakfast Club (1985) by Filipeneto — 23 Jan 2022

I had pretty low expectations for this movie, as I don't really like teen movies. However, I must admit that the film is good and well-made. It's not perfect or exceptional, but it works and entertains without our time being wasted. I can understand why so many people consider this movie a classic, but I don't agree. It's not such a good movie to have that designation, and it has maintained a certain aura to this day, this is due to a certain cult status it has acquired over the years. The film takes place in a school on a Saturday, in which five students who do not know each other will be grounded, each for their own reasons. The teacher, however, is an idiot, and they will end up enjoying the day, listening to music, talking and discovering that they are not so different from each other.

The film has weaknesses, starting with the thin script it presents. In fact, there is no story or action here. If the movie didn't have so many humorous scenes or where the characters escape and walk around the school, we would have an hour and a half of dialogue. Another problem is the use of all the most common stereotypes in high school movies: we have an idiotic teacher with no authority, a rebellious student with problems at home, a good student under pressure to have good grades, a beautiful and smug student from a wealthy family, an athletic student with anger issues, and a lonely, weird student. The only thing that saves them is, deep down, the way they gain depth and personality as the dialogues flow. And could I still speak of the illogicality of this punishment, in which five troubled students are left alone in a deserted school?

Regardless of the script's weaknesses and other issues, the film has a young cast that does a very committed and interesting job. Of them all, the one who impressed me the most was Judd Nelson, who managed to impart a genuine rebelliousness and irreverence to his character. I also really liked Ally Sheedy. She starts the film almost silently, letting her pose, and bizarre costume dominate our attention, but then she presents us with an intense, intelligent and pleasantly unpleasant and sarcastic character. Anthony Hall has a more palatable and emotional character, which he plays satisfactorily, as do Molly Ringwald and Emilio Estevez, and they also worked well in their respective characters. A word, more, for Paul Gleason, and the impeccable way in which he played a mediocre teacher.

Technically, it's a low-key film. It has good cinematography and was very well shot, with sharpness and good colors. It doesn't feature great visual or special effects, but what it brings us is well done and works pleasantly. The library set was well-built, and the school is credible. But what amazes us is, clearly, the soundtrack, and particularly the theme song "Don't You (Forget About Me)", which is heard in the credits and which became one of the biggest hits of that decade, in that many were young or (like me) born.