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{{Short description|1985 film by John Hughes}} | |||
{{two other uses|the 1985 film|the Don McNeill radio show|The Breakfast Club (radio)|the band which included Madonna|Breakfast Club (band)}} | |||
{{Other uses|Breakfast Club (disambiguation)}} | |||
{{Use American English|date=October 2023}} | |||
{{Infobox Film |] | |||
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2017}} | |||
| name = The Breakfast Club | |||
{{Infobox film | |||
| image = The Breakfast Club.jpg | |||
| |
| name = The Breakfast Club | ||
| image = The Breakfast Club poster.jpg | |||
| director = ] | |||
| alt = The five main characters huddled together, four seated in various poses and a girl lying across in front. | |||
| writer = John Hughes | |||
| caption = Theatrical release poster | |||
| starring = ]<br />]<br />]<br />]<br />]<br />] | |||
| |
| director = ] | ||
| producer = {{unbulleted list|]|John Hughes}} | |||
| writer = John Hughes | |||
| starring = {{plainlist|<!--Per poster billing. Please do not add John Kapelos who is not mentioned here--> | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
}} | |||
| music = ] | |||
| cinematography = ] | | cinematography = ] | ||
| editing = ] |
| editing = ] | ||
| studio = {{unbulleted list|]|]}} | |||
| distributor = ] | |||
| distributor = ] | |||
| released = ], ] | |||
| released = {{film date|1985|02|07|Los Angeles|1985|02|15|United States}} | |||
| runtime = 97 min | |||
| runtime = 97 minutes<!--Theatrical runtime: 97:03--><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/breakfast-club-1970-4 |title=The Breakfast Club |publisher=Bbfc.co.uk |access-date=July 30, 2014 |archive-date=January 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110230043/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/breakfast-club-1970-4 |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| language = English | |||
| country |
| country = United States | ||
| language = English | |||
| budget = | |||
| budget = $1 million<ref>{{cite web |url=http://soultrain.com/2014/09/25/80s-breakfast-club/ |title=The 80's: 'The Breakfast Club' |access-date=September 29, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006092148/http://soultrain.com/2014/09/25/80s-breakfast-club/|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 6, 2014}}</ref> | |||
| music = ] | |||
| gross = $51.5 million<ref name="mojo">{{cite web |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=breakfastclub.htm |title=The Breakfast Club |website=Box Office Mojo |access-date=June 2, 2018 |archive-date=May 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180531134831/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=breakfastclub.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| amg_id = 1:6997 | |||
| imdb_id = 0088847 | |||
}} | }} | ||
'''''The Breakfast Club''''' is a 1985 ] ] widely considered as the definitive work in the genre. Written and directed by ], the storyline follows five teenagers (each representing a different ] in ]) as they spend a Saturday in ] together and come to realize that they are all deeper than their respective ]s. The film has become a cult classic and has had a tremendous influence on many ] films since then. The film was shot entirely in sequence. Shooting began on ], ], and ended in May of 1984. | |||
'''''The Breakfast Club''''' is a 1985 American ]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.filmindependent.org/blog/undercover-indies-how-the-breakfast-club-went-small-scale-and-created-a-cult-classic/#:~:text=The%20Breakfast%20Club%20is%20the,a%20lasting%20cinematic%20success%20story. |title=Undercover Indies: How 'The Breakfast Club' Went Small-Scale and Created a Cult Classic |work=Film Independent |date=October 14, 2021 |access-date=April 18, 2023 |archive-date=April 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230418163654/https://www.filmindependent.org/blog/undercover-indies-how-the-breakfast-club-went-small-scale-and-created-a-cult-classic/#:~:text=The%20Breakfast%20Club%20is%20the,a%20lasting%20cinematic%20success%20story. |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="popculturehits">{{cite web |url=https://collider.com/indie-movies-that-became-hits/ |title=10 Indie Movies That Became Pop Culture Hits |website=] |date=March 6, 2023 |access-date=April 18, 2023 |archive-date=April 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230418165311/https://collider.com/indie-movies-that-became-hits/ |url-status=live}}</ref> ] ] ] written, produced, and directed by ]. It stars ], ], ], ], ], and ]. The film tells the story of five teenagers from different high school cliques who serve a Saturday ] overseen by their authoritarian ]. | |||
'''Taglines''': | |||
*They only met once, but it changed their lives forever. | |||
*They were five total strangers, with nothing in common, meeting for the first time: a brain, a beauty, a jock, a criminal, and a basketcase. Before the day was over, they broke the rules, bared their souls, and touched each other in a way they never dreamed possible. | |||
*Five strangers with nothing in common, except each other. | |||
Hughes had written the script in 1982, and began casting for the film after the release of '']'' (1984). Filming took place from March to May 1984, and the entire film was shot at ] in ]. | |||
==Plot== | |||
The film premiered in Los Angeles on February 7, 1985, and was theatrically released by ] on February 15, 1985. It grossed $51.5 million against a $1 million budget, and earned acclaim from critics, who consider it to be one of Hughes's most memorable and recognized works. The media subsequently referred to the film's five main actors as members of a group called the "]". In 2015, the film was digitally remastered and was re-screened in 430 theaters in celebration of its 30th anniversary.<ref>{{cite web |title=Breakfast Club 30 |url=http://www.BreakfastClub30.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150311040341/http://breakfastclub30.com/ |archive-date=March 11, 2015 |access-date=May 3, 2021 |publisher=BreakfastClub30.com}}</ref> | |||
The plot follows five students at fictional Shermer High School in the widely used ] setting of Shermer, Illinois (a fictitious suburb of ] based on Hughes' hometown of ], Shermer is a street in Northbrook, and the school in Northbrook, ] is on Shermer), as they report for Saturday detention on ], ]. Complete strangers, the five teenagers are all from a different clique or social group: | |||
In 2016, ''The Breakfast Club'' was selected for preservation in the United States ] by the ] as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/breakfast-club-rushmore-added-to-national-film-registry-w456002 |title='Breakfast Club,' 'Rushmore' Among Films Added to National Film Registry |author=Daniel Kreps |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=December 14, 2016 |access-date=December 21, 2017 |archive-date=December 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222053249/https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/breakfast-club-rushmore-added-to-national-film-registry-w456002 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/national-film-registry-honors-breakfast-club-rushmore-and-other-teen-angst-movies/2016/12/13/824a7fbe-be58-11e6-ac85-094a21c44abc_story.html |title=National Film Registry honors 'Breakfast Club,' 'Rushmore' and other teen angst movies |author=Michael O'Sullivan |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=December 14, 2016 |access-date=December 21, 2017 |archive-date=January 6, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106064753/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/national-film-registry-honors-breakfast-club-rushmore-and-other-teen-angst-movies/2016/12/13/824a7fbe-be58-11e6-ac85-094a21c44abc_story.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=2012 National Film Registry Picks in A League of Their Own|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-12-226/cinematic-firsts-enshrined-in-2012-film-registry/2012-12-19/|access-date=2020-09-18|website=Library of Congress|archive-date=November 26, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126213632/https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-12-226/cinematic-firsts-enshrined-in-2012-film-registry/2012-12-19/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Complete National Film Registry Listing |url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|access-date=2020-09-18|website=Library of Congress|archive-date=March 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305191832/https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|url-status=live}}</ref> The film has been considered as one of the best films of the 1980s, and one of the best teen films of all time. | |||
{| class="wikitable" | |||
! Name !! Actor (Age) !! Label !! Reason for Detention | |||
|- | |||
| Claire Standish || ] (16) || ''The Princess'': a wealthy, popular and spoiled girl || Skipping school to go shopping at a ] | |||
|- | |||
| Andrew Clark || ] (21) || ''The Athlete'': a varsity wrestler || Taping a fellow student's (Larry Lester's) buttocks together | |||
|- | |||
| Brian Johnson || ] (15)|| ''The Brain'': a nerd || Bringing a ] to school (in a ] gesture) that accidentally discharged in his locker, causing minor property damage | |||
|- | |||
| John Bender || ] (24) || ''The Criminal'': a troublemaker who continually causes problems at school || Pulling the fire alarm. It is implied that Bender is often in detention | |||
|- | |||
| Allison Reynolds ||| ] (21)||| ''The Basketcase'': a misfit and self-described "compulsive liar" ||| Nothing better to do (according to her) | |||
|} | |||
The students pass the hours in a variety of ways: they dance, harass each other, tell stories, fight, smoke ], and speak on a variety of subjects. Gradually they open up to each other and reveal their inner secrets (for example, Allison is a ]c and a ] and Brian and Claire are ashamed of their ]). They also discover that they all have strained relationships with their parents and are afraid of making the same mistakes as the adults around them. However, despite these developing friendships, the students are afraid that once the detention is over, they will return to their very different cliques and never speak to each other again. | |||
==Plot== | |||
At the request and consensus of the students, Brian is asked to write the essay Mr. Vernon assigned earlier (the subject of which was to be a synopsis by each student detailing "who you think you are"), which challenges Mr. Vernon and his preconceived judgments about all of them. Brian does so, but instead of writing about the actual topic he writes a very motivating letter that is in essence, the main point of the story. He signs the essay as "The Breakfast Club" and leaves it at the table for Mr. Vernon to read when they leave. There are two versions of this letter, one read at the beginning and one at the end, and they are slightly different; illustrating the change in the student's judgments of one another, and their realization that they truly have things in common. | |||
<!-- The plot summary should be 400–700 words. Please see WP: FILMPLOT for more information. --> | |||
On Saturday, March 24, 1984, five students at ] in Shermer, Illinois, report for an all-day detention: socially awkward Brian Johnson, jock Andrew Clark, shy loner Allison Reynolds, popular girl Claire Standish, and rebellious delinquent John Bender. They gather in the school library and meet with their vice principal Richard Vernon, who warns them not to talk or move from their seats and assigns each of them the task of writing a thousand-word essay describing "who you think you are." | |||
Bender ignores the rules and spends his time antagonizing the others and defying Vernon, who gives him eight additional weekends of detention. The students sneak off to retrieve Bender's ] stash from his locker. When they see Vernon returning to the library, Bender deliberately gets caught to allow the others to sneak back in. Locked in a storage closet as punishment, Bender is berated by Vernon even further who tells him that he wants Bender to prove how ] he is and is offered a chance to punch Vernon but fails to act. He soon escapes into the ceiling panels and falls into the library, where the others hide him from Vernon. | |||
The beginning letter is as follows: | |||
The students pass the time arguing, listening to music, and smoking marijuana, gradually opening up about their home lives and their reasons for being in detention: | |||
:'''Brian Johnson''' (although that is unknown at this point): Saturday, ], ]. Shermer High School, Shermer, Illinois. 60062. | |||
* Claire's popularity subjects her to intense ], while her bickering parents use her against each other. She received detention for skipping school to go shopping. | |||
Dear Mr. Vernon, we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was that we did wrong. What we did WAS wrong. But we think you're crazy to make us write this essay telling you who we think we are. What do you care? You see us as you want to see us... in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at seven o'clock this morning. We were brainwashed. | |||
* Bender reveals the ] he and his mother suffer at the hands of his father, including ], as well as other injuries he has sustained from his father physically abusing him. He is serving detention for pulling a false fire alarm. | |||
* Andrew became influenced by jock culture and is intimidated by his father to succeed in ]. He was given detention for taping a student's ] together in an attempt to win both his teammates' and his father's approval. | |||
* Brian is under so much academic pressure from his parents to get good grades that he contemplated suicide after getting an F in ]. He was sent to detention for bringing a ] to school. | |||
* Allison is compulsively dishonest with ] parents, constantly stealing things to use should she ever run away from home. She admits that she showed up to detention for lack of anything better to do. | |||
Despite their differences, the students realize they all face similar problems; Andrew and Allison bond over their complex relationships with their parents; Brian and Claire each feel anxiety over being a virgin. Still, the group suspects that their new friendships will end once detention is over. Meanwhile, Vernon complains to the janitor, Carl, that students have become less disciplined and more arrogant compared to the ones he had when he was a teacher, but Carl suggests that Vernon is the one who has changed and cares too much about what the students think of him. | |||
The end letter is as follows: | |||
The others convince Brian to complete Vernon's essay on the group's behalf. Claire gives Allison a ], which sparks romantic interest from Andrew, and Bender crawls back to the closet, where Claire challenges her "pristine" reputation by kissing him. As the students part ways, Allison and Andrew kiss, and she rips the state championship patch off his letterman jacket to keep; Claire gives Bender one of her diamond earrings, and they share their own kiss. | |||
:'''Brian Johnson:''' Dear Mr. Vernon, we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong, but we think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us... In the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain... <br /> | |||
:'''Andrew Clark:''' ...and an athlete... <br /> | |||
:'''Allison Reynolds:''' ...and a basket case... <br /> | |||
:'''Claire Standish:''' ...a princess... <br /> | |||
:'''John Bender:''' ...and a criminal... <br /> | |||
:'''Brian Johnson:''' Does that answer your question?... Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club. | |||
Vernon reads Brian's essay, which asserts that the vice principal has made ] about all of them and declares that "each one of us is a brain (Brian), an athlete (Andrew), a basket case (Allison), a princess (Claire), and a criminal (Bender)." "Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club." Finally, Bender walks home across the school's football field and raises his fist in the air triumphantly as he leaves. | |||
The letter is the ] of the film, as it demonstrates and illustrates the changes the students went through during the course of the day; their attitudes and perspectives have changed and are now completely different. The movie ends as the characters leave detention. | |||
==Cast== | |||
==Main characters== | |||
{{div col}} | |||
* '''John Bender:''' (]) The "]" of the group, in detention for pulling a false fire alarm. John Bender starts many of the events throughout the film. While he is hostile at first towards the others in the room with him, he defends Allison against Principal Vernon. Despite Bender's constant needling of the others in detention, they lie to Vernon to protect John. At home, John is a victim of child abuse, particularly by his father, who (he says) administered a cigar burn to his arm for spilling paint in the garage. | |||
* ] as Andrew Clark, an "athlete" who is in Saturday detention for taping another student's butt cheeks together | |||
* ] as Richard Vernon, the domineering vice principal of Shermer High School who oversees the Saturday detention | |||
* ] as Brian Johnson, a "brain" who is in Saturday detention for taking a ] to school | |||
* ] as Carl Reed, a janitor at Shermer High School who is on friendly terms with Brian | |||
* ] as John Bender, a "criminal" who is in Saturday detention for setting off the fire alarm | |||
* ] as Claire Standish, a "princess" who is in Saturday detention for skipping school | |||
* ] as Allison Reynolds, a "basket case" who was not in Saturday detention but goes anyway | |||
* ] as Mr. Clark, Andrew's father | |||
* Mercedes Hall as Mrs. Johnson, Brian's mother | |||
* Mary Christian as Brian's sister | |||
* Tim Gamble as Mr. Standish, Claire's father | |||
* Perry Crawford & Fran Gargano as (respectively) Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds, Allison's parents | |||
* ] as Mr. Johnson (uncredited cameo), Brian's father | |||
{{div col end}} | |||
==Production== | |||
] | |||
* '''Claire Standish:''' (]) The "]" of the group, in detention for skipping class to go shopping. She is used to being sheltered by her group of friends and doting parents who only pamper her in order to spite each other, a fact of which she is painfully aware. Claire is caught between her parents who seem to use her to get back at each other. Claire likes to eat suichi and seaweed for lunch. | |||
===Development=== | |||
* '''Andrew Clark:''' (]) Andrew is the film's "]", in detention for beating a fellow student and taping his buttocks together. Andrew, like Claire, is ashamed of being in detention and is used to the better end of social life at school. Andrew hates his father for pushing him so hard to succeed and even wants his bum knee to give so his father could not drive him to be the best athlete. | |||
The title was originally ''The Lunch Bunch'', but a friend of John's from another school had a detention class called "The Breakfast Club", so he decided to go with that.<ref name="huffpost.com">{{cite web | url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-breakfast-club-anniversary_n_6647566 | title=15 Things You Didn't Know About 'The Breakfast Club' | date=February 12, 2015 }}</ref> Hughes wrote the script around the time when he was writing ''Sixteen Candles'', but he wrote the ''Sixteen Candles'' script in mere days and it impressed the studio executives and they chose it to be his directorial debut.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2010/03/john-hughes-201003 | title=David Kamp on John Hughes | website=] | date=February 10, 2010 }}</ref> | |||
===Casting=== | |||
* '''Allison Reynolds:''' (]) The "]" of the group, in detention apparently because she had nothing better to do. She is the most socially isolated and claims to have no friends. She hides her face under her hair and the hood of her parka when frightened, and amuses herself by using her flakes of dandruff as snow on a pictures she draws. For the first half of the film she is quiet, save for occasional chipmunk-like "squeaks" of fear and a few random outbursts, but later on she opens up, particularly to Andrew. Allison enjoys eating cereal sandwiches covered in sugar from sweet sticks. She is the least hesitant to talk openly about her home life and is not afraid of being different. At home, Allison is a victim of child neglect from her workaholic parents, and as a result carries a large bag with her to school every day in case she feels like running away. She claims to be in therapy, but because of her compulsive lying it is unknown if her claim is true. She even said her therapist "nailed her" and that she drinks "tons" of vodka. Her purse is filled with sanitary napkins. | |||
] and ] both starred in Hughes's 1984 film '']''. Towards the end of filming, Hughes asked them to be in ''The Breakfast Club''. Hall became the first to be cast, agreeing to the role of Brian Johnson; his real-life mother and sister played his character's mother and sister in the film. Ringwald was originally approached to play the character of Allison Reynolds, but she was "really upset" because she wanted to play Claire Standish (then named "Cathy" in the first draft of the script), which saw the auditions of ], ], ] and ]. She eventually convinced Hughes and the studio to give her the part.<ref name="Itzkoff"/> The role of Allison ultimately went to ].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://decider.com/2015/02/13/the-breakfast-club-that-might-have-been/ | title='The Breakfast Club' That Might Have Been | Decider | date=February 13, 2015 }}</ref> | |||
] was originally cast in the role of John Bender, but when Hughes was unable to find someone to play Andrew Clark, Estevez was recast. ] was considered for the role of John Bender, which was the last role to be cast, though the role was narrowed down to ] and ]. ] also auditioned for the role.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-07-03-8602170641-story.html | title=Ruck Just Put Himself into His 'Day Off' Role | website=] | date=July 3, 1986 }}</ref> Hughes originally cast Cusack, but decided to replace him with Nelson before shooting began, because Cusack did not look intimidating enough for the role. At one point, Hughes was disappointed in Nelson because he stayed in character and harassed Ringwald off-camera, with the other actors having to convince Hughes to not fire him.<ref name="Itzkoff">{{cite news |last=Itzkoff |first=Dave |title=She Won't Forget About Him: Molly Ringwald Remembers John Hughes |work=] |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/17/she-wont-forget-about-him-molly-ringwald-remembers-john-hughes/ |date=September 17, 2010 |access-date=September 4, 2011 |archive-date=November 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126030544/https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/17/she-wont-forget-about-him-molly-ringwald-remembers-john-hughes/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="wsj"/> ] was originally cast as the janitor but was released by Ned Tanen, who felt that Moranis' portrayal as an over-the-top Russian caricature didn't suit the serious nature of the film. Moranis was replaced by ].<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2015/03/the-breakfast-club-rick-moranis |title=How the Female Stars of The Breakfast Club Fought to Remove a Sexist Scene, and Won |date=March 12, 2015 |magazine=]}}</ref><ref name="Gora">{{cite book |last=Gora |first=Susannah |year=2010 |title=You Couldn't Ignore Me If You Tried |publisher=Three Rivers Press |isbn=9780307408433}}</ref>{{rp|56–57}} | |||
* '''Brian Johnson:''' (]) The group's "]", in detention partly because of his flare gun. He tries to keep the peace. At home, Brian is pressured by his parents to be a perfect academic. Every grade has to be an "A" regardless of what the assignment was. Once made a ceramic elephant in shop which did not light when the trunk was moved. According to him, this one failing grade turned his life upside down. "Taking shop would be an easy way to maintain my GPA. Have you seen some of the dopes that take shop?" | |||
===Filming=== | |||
* '''Principal Richard "Dick" Vernon:''' (]) The aggravated principal who mainly dislikes Bender because of his smart-mouth and threats. In the movie, he is seen reading the private school files, for which Carl the janitor blackmails him out of $50. Despite this, he bonds with Carl, confessing various fears about the current generation. "Someday these kids are gonna be runnin' the country. This is the thought that wakes me up every night." "Carl don't be a goof." | |||
In 1999, Hughes said that his request to direct the film met with resistance and skepticism because he lacked filmmaking experience.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://home.comcast.net/~aimsters4/bclub.html|title=Premiere, December 1999, Oral history "Breakfast Club"|publisher=comcast.net|access-date=March 14, 2011|archive-date=June 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629170732/http://home.comcast.net/~aimsters4/bclub.html|url-status=live}}</ref> He ultimately convinced the film's investors that due to the modest $1 million budget and its single-location shoot, he could greatly minimize their risk. Hughes originally thought that ''The Breakfast Club'' would be his directorial debut. He opted for an insular, largely one-room set and wrote about high school students, who would be played by younger actors.<ref name="Gora" />{{rp|47}} | |||
] began on March 28, 1984, and ended in May. Filming took place at ] in ], which had been closed in May 1981. The same setting was used for interior scenes of Hughes's 1986 film '']'', which featured exterior shots from nearby ]. The appearance of the library at Maine North High, considered too small for use in the film, prompted the crew to build a virtually identical but larger set in the school's gymnasium.<ref name="Gora" />{{rp|58}} The actors rehearsed for three weeks and then shot the film in sequence.<ref name="Gora" />{{rp|59, 69}} Nelson tried other opinions for the ending scene until eventually landing the fist pump.<ref name="huffpost.com"/> On the ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' DVD commentary (featured on the 2004 DVD version), Hughes revealed that he shot the two films concurrently to save time and money, and some outtakes of both films feature elements of the film crews working on the other film. The first print was 150 minutes in length.<ref name="new">{{cite web |last=Dameron |first=Emerson |title=John Hughes: The Director's Cut |url=http://newcityfilm.com/2009/08/11/john-hughes-the-directors-cut/ |url-status=live |publisher=Newcity Film |date=August 11, 2009 |access-date=March 28, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011050130/http://newcityfilm.com/2009/08/11/john-hughes-the-directors-cut/ |archive-date=October 11, 2011}}</ref> | |||
* '''Carl:''' (]) The school janitor who tells the kids he is the eyes and ears of the school. He hears all of their conversations. A brief shot at the beginning of the movie reveals he was once voted "Man of the Year" when he attended the high school years before. Although Bender mocks Carl a bit (as he does with everybody) they end the day on a friendly note. | |||
During a cast reunion in honor of the film's 25th anniversary, Ally Sheedy revealed that a director's cut existed; but Hughes's widow, who was also present, did not disclose any details concerning its whereabouts.<ref name="wsj">{{cite web |last=Steinberg |first=Julie |title='The Breakfast Club' Cast Reunites, But Where's Emilio? "Working on 'Mighty Ducks 5'" |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2010/09/21/the-breakfast-club-cast-reunites-but-wheres-emilio-working-on-mighty-ducks-5/ |url-status=live |work=] |date=September 21, 2010 |access-date=March 28, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110817090725/http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2010/09/21/the-breakfast-club-cast-reunites-but-wheres-emilio-working-on-mighty-ducks-5/ |archive-date=August 17, 2011}}</ref> In 2015, the first draft of the film's script was discovered in a Maine South High School cabinet as district employees were moving offices to a new building.<ref name=JohnsonJenfirstdraft>{{cite news |last=Johnson |first=Jennifer |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/park-ridge/news/ct-prh-breakfast-club-script-tl-0423-20150420-story.html |title=Original 'Breakfast Club' screenplay found in District 207 cabinet during move |newspaper=] |date=April 21, 2015 |access-date=January 20, 2017 |archive-date=February 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201235052/http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/park-ridge/news/ct-prh-breakfast-club-script-tl-0423-20150420-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Cast== | |||
Each of the film's young stars became part of the ] (whose other members include ], ] and ]), a group of actors who all hit stardom at the same time and tended to star in movies together. John Hughes appeared in an uncredited role as Brian's father. Of the entire cast, only Hall and Ringwald were actually high school age upon the movie's release; Nelson was twenty-five while Sheedy and Estevez were both twenty-two years old. | |||
===Poster=== | |||
Judd Nelson’s performance was influenced by his method style technique of staying in character off set. He was accused of bullying Molly Ringwald off camera due to his insistence on remaining in character off-camera. This behavior nearly forced Hughes to fire Nelson, but Nelson was defended by Paul Gleason, his on-screen nemesis, who stated that Nelson was just trying to stay in character and did not mean anything by it.<ref></ref> | |||
The film's poster, featuring the five characters huddled together, was photographed by ] toward the end of shooting. The shot of five actors gazing at the camera influenced the way teen films were marketed from that point on.<ref name="Gora" />{{rp|79–80, 325–326}} The poster refers to the five "types" of the story using slightly different terms than those used in the film, and in a different sequence, stating "They were five total strangers with nothing in common, meeting for the first time. A brain, a beauty, a jock, a rebel and a recluse". ''The Breakfast Club'' poster "family shot", notably including Bender's raised fist, was satirized in the poster for the comedy-horror film '']''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092076/trivia|title=The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)|work=IMDb|access-date=October 11, 2021|archive-date=October 24, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161024151829/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092076/trivia|url-status=live}}</ref> It also inspired the title page of chapter 29 of the manga series '']''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.viz.com/blog/posts/mangaka-musings-9-11-2022|title=Mangaka Musings 9/11/2022|website=]|date=September 11, 2022|access-date=September 17, 2022|archive-date=September 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920171453/https://www.viz.com/blog/posts/mangaka-musings-9-11-2022|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Themes== | |||
Ringwald and Hall dated briefly after filming ended.<ref></ref> | |||
The main theme of the film is the constant struggle of the American teenager to be understood, both by adults and by themselves. It explores the pressure put on teenagers to fit into their own realms of high school social constructs, as well as the lofty expectations of their parents, teachers, and other authority figures. On the surface, the students have little in common with each other, but they eventually bond over a common disdain for the aforementioned issues of peer pressure and parental expectations.<ref name="Loukides">{{cite book |last=Loukides |first=Paul |year=1996 |title=Beyond the Stars 5: Themes and Ideologies in American Popular Film |publisher=Popular Press |isbn=9780879727017 |pages= |url=https://archive.org/details/beyondstars00louk/page/30}}</ref><ref>Barsanti, Chris (2010). '' {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140503083437/http://books.google.com/books?id=ZPW4VhjQ0iIC&printsec=frontcover |date=May 3, 2014}}''. Adams Media. p. 49.</ref> Stereotyping is another theme. Once the obvious stereotypes are broken down, the characters "empathize with each other's struggles, dismiss some of the inaccuracies of their first impressions, and discover that they are more similar than different".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oup.com/us/companion.websites/9780195309928/instructorresources/filmstorage/breakfastclub/ |title=The Breakfast Club |publisher=Oup.com |access-date=September 9, 2013 |archive-date=October 30, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081030044100/http://www.oup.com/us/companion.websites/9780195309928/instructorresources/filmstorage/breakfastclub/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The main adult character, Mr. Vernon, is portrayed with arguably no redeeming qualities; throughout the film, he consistently talks down to students, accesses private student information (then attempts to cover his tracks when confronted by a fellow employee) and forcefully flaunts his authority at each opportunity. He continually and aggressively challenges Bender, who is the only one of the group who chooses to stand up to him.<ref name="Loukides"/> | |||
==Release== | |||
The school used in the filming of ''The Breakfast Club'' was also used for some of the school-based scenes in ]' '']'', which was released just a year after ''The Breakfast Club''. Some of the posters on the walls during filming of ''The Breakfast Club'' were still there when ''Ferris Bueller'' was filmed. The giveaway is that the sign on the front of the school reads "Shermer High School" in both films. On the ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' DVD commentary (featured on the 2004 DVD version) John Hughes reveals that he filmed the two movies back to back to save time and money, and some outtakes of both films feature elements of the film crews working on the other film in each case. Hughes has never disclosed, however, whether Ferris Bueller was implied to be a student at the "same" school as The Breakfast Club students a year later. | |||
The film premiered in Los Angeles on February 7, 1985. ] released the film in cinemas on February 15, 1985, in the United States.<ref name="numbers">{{cite web |title=The Breakfast Club (1985) - Financial Information |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Breakfast-Club-The#tab=summary |website=]}}</ref> | |||
In 2005, ] announced that the film would be rewarded with the "Silver Bucket of Excellence Award" in honor of its twentieth Anniversary at the '']''. To coincide with the event, MTV attempted to reunite the original cast. Sheedy, Ringwald, and Hall appeared together on stage, with Kapelos in the audience, and Gleason personally gave the award to his former castmates. Estevez could not attend the reunion because of other commitments, and Nelson appeared earlier in the show but left before the on-stage reunion for reasons unknown, prompting Hall to joke that the two were "in Africa with ]." This show was taped on ], ] and aired on ]. | |||
===Home media=== | |||
Rumors of a sequel where the characters return for a class reunion have been circulating for years, with allegations that Judd Nelson is the lone cast member holding out. {{Fact|date=April 2007}} | |||
''The Breakfast Club'' was first released on ]<ref name="numbers" /><ref>{{cite book |title=Breakfast Club |asin=630018403X}}</ref> and ].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Breakfast Club (Laserdisc) 1985 |url=https://www.amazon.com/Breakfast-Club-Laserdisc-1985/dp/B0079126B4 |website=Amazon.com |access-date=March 10, 2020 |archive-date=April 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230415044507/https://www.amazon.com/Breakfast-Club-Laserdisc-1985/dp/B0079126B4 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2003, the film was released on ] as part of the "High School Reunion Collection".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000A98ZP |title=The Breakfast Club (High School Reunion Collection): Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, John Kapelos, Paul Gleason, John Hughes, Ned Tanen: Movies & TV |website=Amazon |date=September 2, 2003 |access-date=July 30, 2014 |archive-date=April 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210422040924/http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000A98ZP |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2008, a "Flashback Edition" DVD was released with several special features, including an ] with Anthony Michael Hall and Judd Nelson.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/Breakfast-Club-Flashback-Emilio-Estevez/dp/B001AEF6BI/ |title=The Breakfast Club (Flashback Edition): Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson, Paul Gleason, Mercedes Hall, John Kapelos, Ron Dean, Perry Crawford, Fran Gargano, John Hughes, Tim Gamble, Jackie Burch, Thomas del Ruth: Movies & TV |website=Amazon |date=September 16, 2008 |access-date=July 30, 2014 |archive-date=March 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323104748/https://www.amazon.com/Breakfast-Club-Flashback-Emilio-Estevez/dp/B001AEF6BI/ |url-status=live}}</ref> A 25th Anniversary Edition ] was released in 2010,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003IWYOF4 |title=The Breakfast Club (25th Anniversary Edition) ] in 2012 as part of Universal's 100th Anniversary series.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003IWYOF4 |title=The Breakfast Club (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy) : Universal's 100th Anniversary |website=Amazon |date=August 3, 2010 |access-date=March 26, 2013|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308140036/https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003IWYOF4 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.universal100th.com/ |title=Celebrating 100 years of iconic movie moments |publisher=Universal 100th |access-date=July 30, 2014 |archive-date=August 28, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140828190421/http://www.universal100th.com/ |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
On March 10, 2015, the 30th Anniversary Edition was released. This release was digitally remastered and restored from the original 35mm film negatives for better picture quality on DVD, Digital HD and Blu-ray.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=15732|title=The Breakfast Club 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray|publisher=Blu-ray.com|access-date=December 30, 2014|archive-date=December 31, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141231074922/http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=15732|url-status=live}}</ref> ] released a special edition two-disc DVD set and a ] disc on January 2, 2018. The transfer was the same as the previous release but included new features such as fifty minutes of new, deleted and extended scenes, an ], new and archival interviews, a 1985 excerpt of the '']'' program, a new video essay and an episode of '']''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2017/10/the-criterion-collection-the-breakfast-club-i-daniel-blake-1201887970/amp/ |first=Michael |last=Nordine |title=The Criterion Collection Announces January 2018 Titles, Including 'The Breakfast Club' and 'I, Daniel Blake' |work=] |date=October 16, 2017 |access-date=March 24, 2020 |archive-date=March 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200324140011/https://www.indiewire.com/2017/10/the-criterion-collection-the-breakfast-club-i-daniel-blake-1201887970/amp/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Breakfast-Club-Blu-ray/191181|title=The Breakd Club Blu-ray|website=Blu-ray.com|access-date=March 24, 2020|archive-date=March 22, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200322012442/https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Breakfast-Club-Blu-ray/191181/|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
==Deleted Scenes== | |||
==Reception== | |||
John Hughes' first draft of the film was originally scripted out to be a 2-1/2 hour movie. However, many of the scenes were cut out and the negatives destroyed. John Hughes has stated that he has the only complete copy of The Breakfast Club on film. Among the cut scenes from the movie (some filmed, some only written): | |||
===Critical response=== | |||
*Carl predicts where the five kids will be in 30 years. Bender will have killed himself, Claire will have had "2 boob jobs and a face lift," Brian will have become very successful but die of a heart attack. Allison will be a great poet but no one will care, and Andrew will marry a gorgeous airline stewardess who becomes fat. | |||
] awarded three stars out of four and called the performances "wonderful", adding that the film was "more or less predictable" but "doesn't need earthshaking revelations; it's about kids who grow willing to talk to one another, and it has a surprisingly good ear for the way they speak."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-breakfast-club-1985 |title=The Breakfast Club movie review |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=February 15, 1985 |website=] |access-date=December 28, 2019 |archive-date=February 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200212073926/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-breakfast-club-1985 |url-status=live}}</ref> ] of the '']'' gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, and wrote: "This confessional formula has worked in films as different as '']'', '']'', and '']'' and it works here too. It works especially well in ''The Breakfast Club'' because we keep waiting for the film to break out of its claustrophobic set and give us a typical teenage movie sex-or-violence scene. That doesn't happen, much to our delight."<ref>Siskel, Gene (February 15, 1985). {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215231911/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-02-15-8501090715-story.html |date=February 15, 2023}}. '']''. Section 7, Page A.</ref> Kathleen Carroll from the '']'' stated, "Hughes has a wonderful knack for communicating the feelings of teenagers, as well as an obvious rapport with his exceptional cast–who deserve top grades."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/breakfast-club-endearing-comedy-1985-review-article-1.2529922|title='The Breakfast Club' is an endearing teenage comedy: 1985 review|first=Cathleen|last=Carroll|work=]|date=February 15, 1985|access-date=March 6, 2018|archive-date=March 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307151116/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/breakfast-club-endearing-comedy-1985-review-article-1.2529922|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
Other reviews were less positive. ] of '']'' wrote, "There are some good young actors in ''The Breakfast Club'', though a couple of them have been given unplayable roles", namely Ally Sheedy and Judd Nelson, adding, "The five young stars would have mixed well even without the fraudulent encounter-group candor towards which ''The Breakfast Club'' forces them. Mr. Hughes, having thought up the characters and simply flung them together, should have left well enough alone."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maslin |first=Janet |author-link=Janet Maslin |date=February 15, 1985 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/02/15/movies/john-hughes-s-breakfast-club.html |title=Film: John Hughes's 'Breakfast Club' |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191228074634/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/02/15/movies/john-hughes-s-breakfast-club.html |archive-date=December 28, 2019 |newspaper=] |page=C18 }}</ref> James Harwood of '']'' panned the film as a movie that "will probably pass as deeply profound among today's teenage audience, meaning the youngsters in the film spend most of their time talking to each other instead of dancing, dropping their drawers and throwing food. This, on the other hand, should not suggest they have anything intelligent to say."<ref>Harwood, James (February 13, 1985). "Film Reviews: The Breakfast Club". '']''. 19.</ref> | |||
*In a dream sequence, Allison imagines Andrew as a gluttonous Viking, Bender as a prisoner, Claire as a bride, and Brian as an astronaut. In an unfilmed alternative to this dream sequence, all five kids imagine random things, including cars, naked women, beer, and fighter planes, and these things end up filling the room until Vernon interrupts. | |||
Among retrospective reviews, ] wrote in 1998: "Few will argue that ''The Breakfast Club'' is a great film, but it has a candor that is unexpected and refreshing in a sea of too-often generic teen-themed films. The material is a little talky (albeit not in a way that will cause anyone to confuse it with something by ]), but it's hard not to be drawn into the world of these characters."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/breakfast-club-the |title=The Breakfast Club |last=Berardinelli |first=James |website=Reelviews |access-date=December 28, 2019 |archive-date=December 29, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191229153955/http://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/breakfast-club-the |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
*During the scene where everyone gets high, Allison locks herself in a small room, hugs herself and hums. A portion of this scene can be seen in the trailer. | |||
On the ] website ], the film holds an approval rating of 89% based on 65 reviews, with an average rating of 7.70/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "''The Breakfast Club'' is a warm, insightful, and very funny look into the inner lives of teenagers".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/breakfast_club/ |title=The Breakfast Club (1985) |work=] |access-date=February 17, 2023 |archive-date=June 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604173528/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/breakfast_club |url-status=live}}</ref> ] gave the film a ] score of 66 out of 100 based on 25 reviews from mainstream critics, considered to be "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-breakfast-club |title=The Breakfast Club Reviews |work=] |access-date=March 6, 2018 |archive-date=May 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200514004243/https://www.metacritic.com/video/titles/breakfastclub?q=the%2Bbreakfast%2Bclub |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
*John Bender was not going to walk to school in the original script. He was going to be driven by his dad in a rusty tow truck, and have a brief fight with him before his dad drives off. Bender is also tossed a bagged lunch, his father saying "You are a waste of lunchmeat!" | |||
Writing in 2015, ] called ''The Breakfast Club'' and ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' "Hughes's masterwork". He described the former film as an example of Hughes's politics, in that the students do not organize a protest, but "present themselves, like good ]s do, as individuals and place the highest value, like this conservative does, on goofing off. Otherwise known as individual liberty."<ref name="orourke20150322">{{cite news |last=O'Rourke |first=P.J. |author-link=P. J. O'Rourke |title=Don't You Forget About Me: The John Hughes I Knew |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/03/22/how-john-hughes-made-conservatism-funny |url-status=live |website=The Daily Beast |date=March 22, 2015 |access-date=April 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503021001/https://www.thedailybeast.com/dont-you-forget-about-me-the-john-hughes-i-knew |archive-date=May 3, 2021}}</ref> | |||
* After Bender demonstrates "Life at Big Bry's house" Brian stops Bender and corrects him with a much more pessimistic version of the skit. Claire then proceeds to act out her life before asking Bender to demonstrate his version. Bender's routine changes as well here. After Bender mimics his mom, he stops, commenting that "then they make me work to pay off the dentist for the teeth HE busts." | |||
===Box office=== | |||
*The scene with Andrew and Allison walking to get the sodas is extended to a point where Allison pulls out a pack of cigarettes and smokes one. | |||
In February 1985, the film debuted at No. 3 at the box office (behind '']'' and '']'').<ref>{{cite web|title=Weekend Box Office: February 15-18, 1985—4-day President's Day Weekend|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?view=&yr=1985&wknd=07a&p=.htm|website=]|access-date=September 3, 2011|archive-date=October 23, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023063337/http://boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?view=&yr=1985&wknd=07a&p=.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Grossing $45,875,171 domestically and $51,525,171 worldwide, the film was a box office success, given its $1 million budget.<ref name="mojo" /> | |||
===Accolades=== | |||
*After getting the sodas, Bender shakes his can violently and places it among the five to see who gets the rigged one. Allison ends up getting it, and when she opens the can, all the soda squirts directly into her mouth. | |||
{{Unreferenced section|date=September 2024}} | |||
], ], ], ] and ] all won a Silver Bucket of Excellence Award at the ]. | |||
{| class="wikitable sortable" | |||
! Award | |||
! Nominee | |||
! Result | |||
|- | |||
| rowspan="1" |] | |||
| Anthony Michael Hall<br />Judd Nelson<br />Paul Gleason<br />Molly Ringwald<br />Ally Sheedy|| {{Won}} | |||
|} | |||
==Legacy== | |||
*After Vernon asks who has to use the lavatory, the five go to the bathroom. Vernon gives the boys 2 minutes and the girls 3 minutes. Claire catches Allison in a stall eating a bag of chips, repulsing her. Bender mocks Brian for sitting down to pee instead of using a urinal. | |||
''The Breakfast Club'' has been called the quintessential 1980s film.<ref>{{cite book|author=Dunkleberger, Amy|date=2007|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AZNqWBiZwCEC|title=So You Want to Be a Film Or TV Screenwriter?|publisher=Enslow Publishers, Inc.|page=73|isbn=9780766026452|access-date=October 16, 2016|archive-date=May 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503020931/https://books.google.com/books?id=AZNqWBiZwCEC|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2008, '']'' magazine ranked it at number 369 on their ''The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time'' list.<ref>{{Cite web | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119034539/https://www.empireonline.com/500/25.asp | archive-date=2012-01-19 |title=''Empire's'' The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.|work=] |url=https://www.empireonline.com/500/25.asp |url-status=dead |access-date=August 5, 2010 }}</ref> It later ranked at number 38 on their 2014 list.<ref> '']'' via ]. Retrieved July 12, 2014.</ref> Similarly, '']'' placed the film on its ''Best 1000 Movies Ever'' list<ref> '']'' via ]. Published April 29, 2003. Retrieved June 12, 2008.</ref> and '']'' ranked the film number 1 on its list of the 50 Best High School Movies.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.filmsite.org/50besthsfilms2.html |title=Entertainment Weekly's The 50 Best High School Movies |publisher=]'s ] |access-date=August 5, 2010 |archive-date=November 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112142042/http://www.filmsite.org/50besthsfilms2.html |url-status=live}}</ref> In the 2001 parody film '']'', Gleason reprised his role as Assistant Principal Vernon in a short scene that parodies ''The Breakfast Club''.<ref>{{cite news |author-link=A. O. Scott |first=A. O. |last=Scott |title=FILM REVIEW; Pretty in Prank: A Spoof of a Lampoon of a Satire of... |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/14/movies/film-review-pretty-in-prank-a-spoof-of-a-lampoon-of-a-satire-of.html |work=The New York Times |date=December 14, 2001 |access-date=March 28, 2012 |archive-date=May 17, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517205556/http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/14/movies/film-review-pretty-in-prank-a-spoof-of-a-lampoon-of-a-satire-of.html |url-status=live}}</ref> To emphasize its eminent position within the canon of American coming-of-age films and its continued influence to this day, scholar Björn Sonnenberg-Schrank called ''The Breakfast Club'' "the '']'' of the teen film genre".<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-31287-9 |title=Actor-Network Theory at the Movies |date=2020 |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-31287-9 |last1=Sonnenberg-Schrank |first1=Björn |isbn=978-3-030-31286-2 }}</ref> | |||
In 2005, the film received the Silver Bucket of Excellence Award in honor of its 20th anniversary at the '']''. For the event, MTV attempted to reunite the original cast. Sheedy, Ringwald, and Hall appeared together on stage, with Kapelos in the audience; Gleason gave the award to his former castmates. Estevez could not attend because of other commitments, and Nelson appeared earlier in the show but left before the on-stage reunion, prompting Hall to joke that the two were "in Africa with ]". Yellowcard performed Simple Minds' anthem for the film, "]", at the awards. At the ] (March 7, 2010), Sheedy, Hall, Ringwald, and Nelson all appeared in a tribute to John Hughes—who had died the prior year—along with other actors who had worked with him, including ] from '']'', ] from '']'', and ] from '']''. In 2012, the ] television series '']'' had their own spoof on the film, in the episode titled "The Breakfast Bunch". | |||
*Several staff members were cut out of the script before filming. Dr. Lange, a social studies teacher who dresses oddly, and Robin, a gym teacher. Robin helps Vernon on a few workout machines until Vernon injures his back, and she eventually visits the students while they are in their circle in the library. Robin initially replaced many of Carl's scenes and Carl was originally set to be a minor character with only 2 scenes. | |||
In 2018, '']'' published an article written by Ringwald in which she critiqued Hughes's films "in the age of ]", beginning with a discussion of how she explained to her ten-year-old daughter what happened in the scene when her character seems to be sexually assaulted under a desk.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/personal-history/what-about-the-breakfast-club-molly-ringwald-metoo-john-hughes-pretty-in-pink | first=Molly | last=Ringwald | author-link=Molly Ringwald | magazine=The New Yorker | date=April 6, 2018 | title=What About 'The Breakfast Club'? | access-date=March 26, 2019 | archive-date=March 27, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327090118/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/personal-history/what-about-the-breakfast-club-molly-ringwald-metoo-john-hughes-pretty-in-pink | url-status=live}}</ref> The essay provoked some to claim that Ringwald was criticising the director who made her into a film star, but she was defended by ] for a "tender, fair-minded piece".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/apr/07/molly-ringwald-revisiting-the-breakfast-club-was-troubling|last=Slawson|first=Nicola|title=Molly Ringwald says The Breakfast Club is troubling in #MeToo era|date=7 April 2018|access-date=18 December 2022|newspaper=The Guardian|location=UK|archive-date=December 18, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218231925/https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/apr/07/molly-ringwald-revisiting-the-breakfast-club-was-troubling|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
A full preliminary draft including these scenes can be found at Simply Scripts (www.simplyscripts.com). | |||
==Cultural impact== | |||
''The Breakfast Club'' was ranked number 1 on ]'s list of the 50 Best High School Movies<ref>http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,1532588_17,00.html</ref> and has had a tremendous impact on both the teen film genre and on popular culture since the 1980s. | |||
In addition, its theme song titled "]", performed by Simple Minds, reached #1 in the U.S. billboards in 1985 and has since then become a symbol of teen films. ] performed a cover of the song during a special tribute to the movie The Breakfast Club at the ]. It has also been repeatedly used in several teen films as well as television programs. | |||
===References in media=== | |||
<!-- Deleted image removed: ] --> | |||
* In the ] episode ''First Day of High School'', a male student was asked how he got detention by Cody. He tells him that he had nothing better to do. | |||
* '']'': The song 'Kid' contains the line, "is it true when we get old, our hearts die? I heard it in a movie once, and I think I know why." The Bouncing Souls are known to have a soft spot for 80's movies in general, as evidenced by 'These Are The Quotes From Our Favorite 80's Movies' released on 1994's The Good, Bad, and the Argyle. | |||
* "'In Love With The 80's", a song by ]: A line in the song goes: "When you're the president of The Breakfast Club and you're not hesitant to fall in love." | |||
* "]", a song by ], popularized by ]: the second verse begins, "She's seen all the classics, she knows every line, Breakfast Club, ], even ]." Bowling for Soup's version features slightly different lyrics, but retains the reference to The Breakfast Club. | |||
* The band '']'': used this quote on their 2003 CD '']'': "God, are we gonna be like our parents?" "It's unavoidable...it just happens..." "What happens?" "When you grow up...Your heart dies..." The song is titled * '']'' | |||
* '']'': In the episode "]", The scene in which Peter sees ], ], ], ] and ] "''The Breakfast Club''" - is a parody of the scene in which Judd Nelson's character is talking about what he got for Christmas one year. Also episode's end features Peter posing in a similar manner as Bender while ] plays. Also in the episode "]" Peter wishes that he could have another chance to be 18, Death sends him back to 1984 where instead of going on a date with Lois, he goes to a bar and meets Molly Ringwald. When he returns to the present he and Molly are married. At this point Judd Nelson walks in and says "Hi I'm Judd Nelson, I crash here once of twice a week." Peter then spends the rest of the episode trying not to be married to Molly Ringwald. In the extended DVD edition of Family Guy's ] parody "]", Judd Nelson reprises his role as John Bender in the scene where the Rebels go over the Death Star attack strategy, with Bender & the Rebel Commander directly quoting the "Does Barry Manilow know you raid his wardrobe?" exchange. | |||
* '']'': In the episode "]", the reading of the letter is featured. | |||
* '']'': In his graphic novel and then his film, respectively, ] has the stoner duo ] attempt to visit the fictional town of ], ], where many of Hughes' films (including ''The Breakfast Club'') were set, in order to deal marijuana. Multiple scenes within the graphic novel, including one set in a high school, contain some references of Hughes and ''Club'', as does the diner scene in ]. | |||
* '']'': In the episode "]", Fry hides his lucky clover in the sleeve of The Breakfast Club soundtrack, looks at the cover and comments: "Man I can't wait till I'm old enough to feel ways about stuff". Later his older brother, Yancy, discovers the clover while looking for music to play at his wedding, claiming the soundtrack will "clear out the room at the end of the reception". At the end of the episode, the song "]" begins to play after Fry learns the truth about his nephew. Also, the robot ] was inspired by John Bender, as admitted by Groening himself, who stated this in the DVD audio commentary of the episode.<ref></ref> | |||
* '']'': In the film, one of the characters asks Claire if she's a virgin, to which she replies: "What? Oh, The Breakfast Club. Funny." | |||
* '']'': A Saturday ] episode of the British children's drama bears a striking resemblance to scenes from the movie, even including the quip "Welcome to the Breakfast Club...!" | |||
* '']'': In episode 221, Ted finally wins in an argument with Dr. Kelso and imitates the very last scene of the movie, where Bender raises his fist and walks away as "Don't You (Forget About Me)" plays in the background. | |||
* '']'': The phrase "Eat my shorts" is used to insult the principal in the film and has since been adopted by its cartoon character ]. In addition, stated that it is possible that creator ] based the character of ] on Principal Vernon. Another reference is the detention scene, when Homer is in detention with Marge. The principal increases Homer's detention, similarly to Principal Vernon increasing Bender's number of detentions. An identical situation occurs in an exchange between Skinner and Bart in a different episode. | |||
* '']'': During episode 316, the school shooting episode, Jimmy Edwards makes reference to the movie stating "This ain’t… breakfast club! You know, we’re not all gonna… fire up a joint and be pals." | |||
* '']'': During the episode "The Fight", Michael Scott says to Dwight Schrute, "Two punches: me punching you and you hitting the floor." | |||
* '']'': In one episode, Butthead tries to quote the Breakfast Club, but gets it wrong. He says, "Two hits, me hitting you, and, uh... me hitting you." | |||
*In the film '']'', forgotten child star Sandy Lyle has a poster from a (non-existent) movie he was in called "Crocodile Tears". The poster is clearly based upon that of ''The Breakfast Club''. ''Don't You (Forget About Me)'' can also be heard playing in the background. | |||
*'']'': In one episode, Ichigo implies class 1-C should have a club when they take breakfast at school. In another episode, Himeko says she that the town where The Breakfast Club was (Shermer, Illinois) is not real, and the rest don't believe her although it's true. | |||
*'']'': In a scene where the kids are plotting to steal the SAT scores, Kyle says, "Everyone has their reasons for being here. We don't need to know them." Francesca replies, "Really? I think we do. It'll be like that scene in The Breakfast Club where they all get stoned and make confessions to each other." | |||
*'']'': In a scene where Doug (]) refers to himself as ] and Carrie (]) as ] because he was "popular" in high school and she was not. | |||
*'']'': The girls or Dumbarton are forced into a weekend detention without being allowed to leave their dorm due to a keg party, during which time they have to write essays on what it means to be a member of the school's community. When one of the character's suggests that they all collectively write an essay, another replys with "I think they've seen The Breakfast Club" | |||
===Media with a similar plot=== | |||
* '']'': In the first season, an episode entitled "Detention" is a takeoff of the movie. In the episode, the characters talk about the actors who had appeared in the movie and the fact that none of them had really done any work recently. Pacey, portrayed by Joshua Jackson says, talking about Emilio Estevez, that "he made those 'Duck' movies. Those were classic!" Jackson and Estevez co-starred in the Mighty Ducks movies. | |||
* '']'': The third season episode "Take On Me" borrows from the film, with Toby(the Brain), Hazel(the Princess), Sean(The Criminal), Jimmy(The Jock) and Ellie(The Basket Case) all serving Saturday detention. | |||
* '']'': In the episode "Secrets and Lies", originally aired on ], ], five of the characters were forced into an "all-day Saturday" detention (actually a sexual harassment sensitivity seminar) to which the instructor arrived over two hours late. | |||
* '']'': The episode in which Sadie has her first Saturday detention is a parody of the movie.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} | |||
* '']'': One episode of it is based on the movie, in which Larry, Kate and Lizzie are all stuck in the cafeteria after a food fight. Their principal says that they have to either tell who started the fight or clean up the cafeteria. They make a connection with each other, clean the cafeteria together and write their principal a note signed as "The Lunch Bunch". | |||
* '']'' episode ''Abduction'' involves a similar set of characters alone in a school albeit with a ] twist.<ref></ref> | |||
* '']'' comic series, issue #65: The issue takes place in Saturday detention as a tribute to ''The Breakfast Club'', where the five in detention are ] ("The Brain"), ] ("The Criminal"), ] ("The Basket Case"), ] ("The Princess") and ] ("The Athlete"). However, they all got into detention for a single incident: Flash unadvertently mocked Mary Jane about ]'s recent death, and she picked a fight with him - Liz, Peter and Kong involved too. Writer ] has had homage to other ] movies. At one convention when talking about these references Bendis self-mockingly said "John Hughes is my life". It should be noted that this was about a year before the Breakfast Club issue was published.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} | |||
* '']'': an episode of the G4TV show parodied the movie, except that the characters were forced to write reviews of "retro" (mid-late '80s, early '90s) video games. Character roles were performed by G4 personalities ] ("The Brain"), ] ("The Princess"), ] ("The Rebel"), Michael Leffler ("The Jock"), and ] ("The Basket Case"). Vernon also appeared in the episode, but the name of his actor is unknown at this point. Instead of leaving at the end of the day, they take pills and kill themselves. | |||
* '']'': In episode 413 "Pictures of You" a class assignment tries to get the students break the stereotypes classified by High School: The Jock, Prom Queen, Geek, Loner, and slut or Friendly. The students pair off by drawing names from a hat and during the 50 minute class they perform tasks in an attempt to redefine how the "world" sees them. The actor playing the teacher in this episode played the part of Carl "the janitor" in the Breakfast Club. | |||
*'']'': A 1992 Australian film, described by '']'' as a cross between ''The Breakfast Club'' and '']'', in which five young ] fans are locked in the basement of a Melbourne hotel, and gradually open up to each other. The film stars ] (whose character resembles Allison), and ] (resembling Brian). | |||
* ''Light It Up'': Judd Nelson plays a rogue teacher in an inner city school with a gun crisis that culminates in the library and has distinct parallels to Breakfast Club. | |||
===Media that parodies the original=== | |||
* '']'': The music video for "]" features a plot very similar to the film, and features a ] by Paul Gleason. | |||
* Short lived punk band ]'s video for the song "A Punk Named Josh" features spoofs of the movie, mainly the dancing sequence towards its end. | |||
* '']'': One of its episode in which Ginger has Saturday detention mimics scenes from ''The Breakfast Club''. | |||
* ''Boston Magazine'': Its September 2006 issue makes a parody of the film.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} | |||
* '']'': In "]", after nearly getting killed, game programmer and ] fanatic Todd abducts Molly Ringwald to make an offering to ]. He interrupts the criminal's monologue from the movie during this. | |||
* '']'': In the series of graphic novels, ''The Breakfast Club'' was parodied as "The Rebel Club". | |||
* '']'': A promotional photo for the short-lived FOX series featured its cast in a parody of the Breakfast Club poster. | |||
* '']'': The cover to issue number one of the Marvel comic series parodies the movie poster. | |||
*'']'' In it, six friends, Edward (the child of divorce), Natie (the brain), Ziba (the Israeli fashion queen), Doug (the jock), Kelly (the ex-cheerleader), and Paula (the high-school graduate) get together to help pay for Ed's Julliard tuition. | |||
*'']'': In this teen movie parody film, a scene featuring a group of boys who are desperate to lose their virginity end up in detention together with one of the boys called Mitch acting out the part as John Bender. Paul Gleason, who originally played Vernon stars in the role of Vernon once more as he begins to question "Bender" about wanting more detentions. However, in this scene it is more crass and abusive than in the original scene in The Breakfast Club. | |||
==Soundtrack== | ==Soundtrack== | ||
{{Infobox album | |||
*#Don't you Forget About Me - ] | |||
| name = The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |||
*#Waiting - ] | |||
| type = soundtrack | |||
*#Fire in the Twilight - ] | |||
| artist = various artists | |||
*#I'm the Dude - ] | |||
| cover = | |||
*#Heart Too Hot to Hold - ], ] | |||
| alt = | |||
*#Dream Montage - ] | |||
| released = February 19, 1985 | |||
*#We are not Alone - ] | |||
| recorded = 1984 | |||
*#Reggae - ] | |||
| genre = ], ] | |||
*#Didn't I Tell You? - ] | |||
| length = 37:59 | |||
*#Love Theme - ] | |||
| label = ] | |||
| producer = various artists | |||
| prev_title = | |||
| prev_year = | |||
| next_title = | |||
| next_year = | |||
| misc = {{Singles | |||
| name = The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |||
| type = soundtrack | |||
| single1 = ] | |||
| single1date = February 1985 (US) | |||
| single2 = Fire in the Twilight | |||
| single2date = May 1985 | |||
}} | |||
{{Audio sample | |||
| type = soundtrack | |||
| file = Simple Minds - Don't You Forget About Me.ogg | |||
| description = "Don't You (Forget About Me)" by ] | |||
}} | |||
}} | |||
The film's ], '''''The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)''''', was produced by British pop musician ] and released on February 19, 1985, by ]. The album peaked at No. 17 on the US ] album chart. The song "]", performed by Scottish rock band ], was released as a single on February 23, 1985, in the United States and reached No. 1 on the ].<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/simple-minds/|title=Simple Minds - Biography, Music & News|magazine=Billboard}}</ref> It was released on April 8, 1985, in the United Kingdom. | |||
===Track listing=== | |||
== Possible sequel == | |||
{{Track listing | |||
Regarding a potential sequel to ''The Breakfast Club'', ] stated in 1999 that he was against it, saying: | |||
| headline = Side one | |||
| extra_column = Performer | |||
| title1 = ] | |||
| writer1 = ], Steve Schiff | |||
| extra1 = ] | |||
| length1 = 4:20 | |||
| title2 = Waiting | |||
| writer2 = K. Forsey, S. Schiff | |||
| extra2 = ] | |||
| length2 = 4:37 | |||
| title3 = Fire in the Twilight | |||
| writer3 = {{hlist|]|K. Forsey|S. Schiff}} | |||
| extra3 = ] | |||
| length3 = 3:51 | |||
| title4 = I'm the Dude | |||
| writer4 = K. Forsey, S. Schiff | |||
| extra4 = ] | |||
| length4 = 2:10 | |||
| title5 = Heart Too Hot to Hold | |||
| writer5 = {{hlist|Johnson|K. Forsey|Laurie Forsey|Michael Frondelli}} | |||
| extra5 = ] & Stephanie Spruill | |||
| length5 = 4:25 | |||
| all_writing = | |||
| title6 = | |||
| length6 = | |||
| title7 = | |||
| length7 = | |||
| title8 = | |||
| length8 = | |||
| title9 = | |||
| length9 = | |||
| title10 = | |||
| length10 = | |||
| total_length = 19:23 | |||
}} | |||
{{track listing | |||
| headline = Side two | |||
| extra_column = Performer | |||
| title1 = Dream Montage | |||
| writer1 = Chang | |||
| extra1 = ] | |||
| length1 = 2:37 | |||
| title2 = We Are Not Alone | |||
| writer2 = {{hlist|DeVito|Robbie Benson|Steve Goldstein}} | |||
| extra2 = ] | |||
| length2 = 3:39 | |||
| title3 = The Reggae | |||
| writer3 = Forsey | |||
| extra3 = Keith Forsey | |||
| length3 = 3:07 | |||
| title4 = Didn't I Tell You | |||
| writer4 = {{hlist|K. Forsey|L. Forsey|S. Schiff}} | |||
| extra4 = ] | |||
| length4 = 4:47 | |||
| title5 = Love Theme | |||
| writer5 = Forsey | |||
| extra5 = Keith Forsey | |||
| length5 = 4:26 | |||
| all_writing = | |||
| title6 = | |||
| length6 = | |||
| title7 = | |||
| length7 = | |||
| title8 = | |||
| length8 = | |||
| title9 = | |||
| length9 = | |||
| title10 = | |||
| length10 = | |||
| total_length = 18:36 | |||
}} | |||
=== Overview === | |||
:''I thought about it. I could do it in prose. I know what will happen to them. I know them. But to do it with real actors ... they'd never come back together again. There's no excuse that could ever put them in the same room ever again. There isn't anything in their lives after high school relevant to that day.'' <ref>{{cite web | |||
The album contains ten songs that are played partially throughout the movie, performed by bands and singers of the ] and ] genre, including three instrumental songs by record producer Keith Forsey.<ref name="allmusic" /> ]'s international hit "]" is played in the opening and closing credits.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wdrv.com/episode/the-song-simple-minds-didnt-want-to-record-for-the-breakfast-club-soundtrack/|title=The song Simple Minds didn't want to record for The Breakfast Club soundtrack – 97.1fm The Drive – WDRV Chicago|date=January 26, 2022|website=97.1fm The Drive - WDRV Chicago}}</ref> A music video was made for this song and for ]'s "Fire in the Twilight" (reached No 110 on the US '']'').<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.musicvf.com/Wang+Chung.art |title=Wang Chung Songs ••• Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography ••• Music VF, US & UK hits charts |access-date=April 24, 2020 |archive-date=July 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200717171126/https://www.musicvf.com/Wang+Chung.art |url-status=live}}</ref> Not included on the soundtrack is the "]" that the students are ] when Principal Vernon walks into the room.<ref>{{cite news|title=25 Of Cinema's Catchiest Earworms|url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/catchiest-movie-earworms/|access-date=16 April 2022|work=Empire|archive-date=April 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220416095151/https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/catchiest-movie-earworms/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Coyne |first1=Tom |title=A Course Called Scotland: Searching the Home of Golf for the Secret to Its Game |date=2019 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |page=246}}</ref> | |||
| url=http://www.riverblue.com/hughes/trivia2.html | |||
| title= The John Hughes Files - Trivia | |||
| accessdate=September 2007 | |||
| last= | |||
| first= | |||
| date=1999 | |||
| work=}}</ref> | |||
=== Critical reception === | |||
In 2005, however, ] (the actor who played Andrew Clark) stated that Hughes has an idea for a ''Breakfast Club 2'', with the characters now attending college and "doing time again." Estevez looked forward to the project at the time, saying "If it happens, I'm there." <ref>{{cite web | |||
In a June 25, 1985 review for '']'', music critic ] gave the album a "D−" and said that it has "utterly negligible" songs, and he commended ] for trying to distance themselves from their song, "]", best known for being played during the film's opening and closing credits.<ref>{{cite web |last=Christgau |first=Robert |date=June 25, 1985 |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv6-85.php |title=Christgau's Consumer Guide |work=] |location=New York |access-date=December 16, 2016 |archive-date=September 14, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150914130732/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv6-85.php |url-status=live}}</ref> In a retrospective review for ], ] gave the soundtrack three out of five stars and wrote that, apart from Simple Minds' "undisputed masterpiece," the album is largely "disposable" and marred by "'80s artifacts" and "forgettable instrumentals".<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web |first=Stephen Thomas |last=Erlewine |title=''The Breakfast Club'' |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-breakfast-club-mw0000193096 |website=AllMusic |access-date=December 16, 2016 |archive-date=October 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008032134/https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-breakfast-club-mw0000193096 |url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| url=http://www.cinecon.com/news.php?id=0507126 | |||
| title= Estevez on "The Breakfast Club 2" | |||
| accessdate=September 2007 | |||
| last= | |||
| first= | |||
| date=July 12, 2005 | |||
| work=}}</ref>. | |||
== Cancelled sequel == | |||
Shortly thereafter, however, it was reported that Estevez had dropped out of the project.<ref>{{cite web | |||
Hughes had considered a sequel to the film, focusing on the teens reuniting years later in their 30s while serving detention in university. Only now the polar opposite of how they were in the first film. The film was never made prior to Hughes' death.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Busch |first=Jenna |date=2023-11-01 |title=Is The Breakfast Club 2 Happening, Or Is School Out Forever? |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/1434121/the-breakfast-club-2-is-it-happening/ |access-date=2024-01-02 |website=/Film |language=en-US}}</ref> | |||
| url=http://www.canmag.com/news/4/3/1976 | |||
| title= No Breakfast Club 2 | |||
| accessdate=September 2007 | |||
| last= | |||
| first= | |||
| date=September 14, 2005 | |||
| work=}}</ref> As a result, "there is no longer a project but there will be a sequel starring John Hughes himself."{{fact|date=December 2007}} | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{ |
{{Reflist}} | ||
==Further reading== | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
* {{cite magazine|last1=Ringwald|first1=Molly|author-link1=Molly Ringwald|title=What About 'The Breakfast Club'?—Revisiting the movies of my youth in the age of #MeToo.|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/personal-history/what-about-the-breakfast-club-molly-ringwald-metoo-john-hughes-pretty-in-pink|magazine=]|access-date=April 9, 2018|date=April 6, 2018|archive-date=April 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180409022748/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/personal-history/what-about-the-breakfast-club-molly-ringwald-metoo-john-hughes-pretty-in-pink|url-status=live}} | |||
{{refend}} | |||
== |
==External links== | ||
{{wikiquote}} | {{wikiquote}} | ||
* {{IMDb title}} | |||
* | |||
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|2=The Breakfast Club}} | |||
* | |||
* {{AFI film}} | |||
* {{imdb title|id=0088847|title=The Breakfast Club}} | |||
* {{TCMDb title}} | |||
* | |||
* – an essay by David Kamp at ] | |||
* | |||
{{John Hughes |
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Latest revision as of 08:03, 22 December 2024
1985 film by John Hughes For other uses, see Breakfast Club (disambiguation).
The Breakfast Club | |
---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | John Hughes |
Written by | John Hughes |
Produced by |
|
Starring | |
Cinematography | Thomas Del Ruth |
Edited by | Dede Allen |
Music by | Keith Forsey |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 97 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $1 million |
Box office | $51.5 million |
The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American indie teen coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes. It stars Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy. The film tells the story of five teenagers from different high school cliques who serve a Saturday detention overseen by their authoritarian vice principal.
Hughes had written the script in 1982, and began casting for the film after the release of Sixteen Candles (1984). Filming took place from March to May 1984, and the entire film was shot at Maine North High School in Des Plaines, Illinois.
The film premiered in Los Angeles on February 7, 1985, and was theatrically released by Universal Pictures on February 15, 1985. It grossed $51.5 million against a $1 million budget, and earned acclaim from critics, who consider it to be one of Hughes's most memorable and recognized works. The media subsequently referred to the film's five main actors as members of a group called the "Brat Pack". In 2015, the film was digitally remastered and was re-screened in 430 theaters in celebration of its 30th anniversary.
In 2016, The Breakfast Club was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film has been considered as one of the best films of the 1980s, and one of the best teen films of all time.
Plot
On Saturday, March 24, 1984, five students at Shermer High School in Shermer, Illinois, report for an all-day detention: socially awkward Brian Johnson, jock Andrew Clark, shy loner Allison Reynolds, popular girl Claire Standish, and rebellious delinquent John Bender. They gather in the school library and meet with their vice principal Richard Vernon, who warns them not to talk or move from their seats and assigns each of them the task of writing a thousand-word essay describing "who you think you are."
Bender ignores the rules and spends his time antagonizing the others and defying Vernon, who gives him eight additional weekends of detention. The students sneak off to retrieve Bender's marijuana stash from his locker. When they see Vernon returning to the library, Bender deliberately gets caught to allow the others to sneak back in. Locked in a storage closet as punishment, Bender is berated by Vernon even further who tells him that he wants Bender to prove how tough he is and is offered a chance to punch Vernon but fails to act. He soon escapes into the ceiling panels and falls into the library, where the others hide him from Vernon.
The students pass the time arguing, listening to music, and smoking marijuana, gradually opening up about their home lives and their reasons for being in detention:
- Claire's popularity subjects her to intense peer pressure, while her bickering parents use her against each other. She received detention for skipping school to go shopping.
- Bender reveals the physical abuse he and his mother suffer at the hands of his father, including cigar burns, as well as other injuries he has sustained from his father physically abusing him. He is serving detention for pulling a false fire alarm.
- Andrew became influenced by jock culture and is intimidated by his father to succeed in wrestling. He was given detention for taping a student's buttocks together in an attempt to win both his teammates' and his father's approval.
- Brian is under so much academic pressure from his parents to get good grades that he contemplated suicide after getting an F in shop class. He was sent to detention for bringing a flare gun to school.
- Allison is compulsively dishonest with neglectful parents, constantly stealing things to use should she ever run away from home. She admits that she showed up to detention for lack of anything better to do.
Despite their differences, the students realize they all face similar problems; Andrew and Allison bond over their complex relationships with their parents; Brian and Claire each feel anxiety over being a virgin. Still, the group suspects that their new friendships will end once detention is over. Meanwhile, Vernon complains to the janitor, Carl, that students have become less disciplined and more arrogant compared to the ones he had when he was a teacher, but Carl suggests that Vernon is the one who has changed and cares too much about what the students think of him.
The others convince Brian to complete Vernon's essay on the group's behalf. Claire gives Allison a makeover, which sparks romantic interest from Andrew, and Bender crawls back to the closet, where Claire challenges her "pristine" reputation by kissing him. As the students part ways, Allison and Andrew kiss, and she rips the state championship patch off his letterman jacket to keep; Claire gives Bender one of her diamond earrings, and they share their own kiss.
Vernon reads Brian's essay, which asserts that the vice principal has made petty assumptions about all of them and declares that "each one of us is a brain (Brian), an athlete (Andrew), a basket case (Allison), a princess (Claire), and a criminal (Bender)." "Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club." Finally, Bender walks home across the school's football field and raises his fist in the air triumphantly as he leaves.
Cast
- Emilio Estevez as Andrew Clark, an "athlete" who is in Saturday detention for taping another student's butt cheeks together
- Paul Gleason as Richard Vernon, the domineering vice principal of Shermer High School who oversees the Saturday detention
- Anthony Michael Hall as Brian Johnson, a "brain" who is in Saturday detention for taking a flare gun to school
- John Kapelos as Carl Reed, a janitor at Shermer High School who is on friendly terms with Brian
- Judd Nelson as John Bender, a "criminal" who is in Saturday detention for setting off the fire alarm
- Molly Ringwald as Claire Standish, a "princess" who is in Saturday detention for skipping school
- Ally Sheedy as Allison Reynolds, a "basket case" who was not in Saturday detention but goes anyway
- Ron Dean as Mr. Clark, Andrew's father
- Mercedes Hall as Mrs. Johnson, Brian's mother
- Mary Christian as Brian's sister
- Tim Gamble as Mr. Standish, Claire's father
- Perry Crawford & Fran Gargano as (respectively) Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds, Allison's parents
- John Hughes as Mr. Johnson (uncredited cameo), Brian's father
Production
Development
The title was originally The Lunch Bunch, but a friend of John's from another school had a detention class called "The Breakfast Club", so he decided to go with that. Hughes wrote the script around the time when he was writing Sixteen Candles, but he wrote the Sixteen Candles script in mere days and it impressed the studio executives and they chose it to be his directorial debut.
Casting
Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall both starred in Hughes's 1984 film Sixteen Candles. Towards the end of filming, Hughes asked them to be in The Breakfast Club. Hall became the first to be cast, agreeing to the role of Brian Johnson; his real-life mother and sister played his character's mother and sister in the film. Ringwald was originally approached to play the character of Allison Reynolds, but she was "really upset" because she wanted to play Claire Standish (then named "Cathy" in the first draft of the script), which saw the auditions of Robin Wright, Jodie Foster, Diane Lane and Laura Dern. She eventually convinced Hughes and the studio to give her the part. The role of Allison ultimately went to Ally Sheedy.
Emilio Estevez was originally cast in the role of John Bender, but when Hughes was unable to find someone to play Andrew Clark, Estevez was recast. Nicolas Cage was considered for the role of John Bender, which was the last role to be cast, though the role was narrowed down to John Cusack and Judd Nelson. Alan Ruck also auditioned for the role. Hughes originally cast Cusack, but decided to replace him with Nelson before shooting began, because Cusack did not look intimidating enough for the role. At one point, Hughes was disappointed in Nelson because he stayed in character and harassed Ringwald off-camera, with the other actors having to convince Hughes to not fire him. Rick Moranis was originally cast as the janitor but was released by Ned Tanen, who felt that Moranis' portrayal as an over-the-top Russian caricature didn't suit the serious nature of the film. Moranis was replaced by John Kapelos.
Filming
In 1999, Hughes said that his request to direct the film met with resistance and skepticism because he lacked filmmaking experience. He ultimately convinced the film's investors that due to the modest $1 million budget and its single-location shoot, he could greatly minimize their risk. Hughes originally thought that The Breakfast Club would be his directorial debut. He opted for an insular, largely one-room set and wrote about high school students, who would be played by younger actors.
Principal photography began on March 28, 1984, and ended in May. Filming took place at Maine North High School in Des Plaines, Illinois, which had been closed in May 1981. The same setting was used for interior scenes of Hughes's 1986 film Ferris Bueller's Day Off, which featured exterior shots from nearby Glenbrook North High School. The appearance of the library at Maine North High, considered too small for use in the film, prompted the crew to build a virtually identical but larger set in the school's gymnasium. The actors rehearsed for three weeks and then shot the film in sequence. Nelson tried other opinions for the ending scene until eventually landing the fist pump. On the Ferris Bueller's Day Off DVD commentary (featured on the 2004 DVD version), Hughes revealed that he shot the two films concurrently to save time and money, and some outtakes of both films feature elements of the film crews working on the other film. The first print was 150 minutes in length.
During a cast reunion in honor of the film's 25th anniversary, Ally Sheedy revealed that a director's cut existed; but Hughes's widow, who was also present, did not disclose any details concerning its whereabouts. In 2015, the first draft of the film's script was discovered in a Maine South High School cabinet as district employees were moving offices to a new building.
Poster
The film's poster, featuring the five characters huddled together, was photographed by Annie Leibovitz toward the end of shooting. The shot of five actors gazing at the camera influenced the way teen films were marketed from that point on. The poster refers to the five "types" of the story using slightly different terms than those used in the film, and in a different sequence, stating "They were five total strangers with nothing in common, meeting for the first time. A brain, a beauty, a jock, a rebel and a recluse". The Breakfast Club poster "family shot", notably including Bender's raised fist, was satirized in the poster for the comedy-horror film The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. It also inspired the title page of chapter 29 of the manga series Akane-banashi.
Themes
The main theme of the film is the constant struggle of the American teenager to be understood, both by adults and by themselves. It explores the pressure put on teenagers to fit into their own realms of high school social constructs, as well as the lofty expectations of their parents, teachers, and other authority figures. On the surface, the students have little in common with each other, but they eventually bond over a common disdain for the aforementioned issues of peer pressure and parental expectations. Stereotyping is another theme. Once the obvious stereotypes are broken down, the characters "empathize with each other's struggles, dismiss some of the inaccuracies of their first impressions, and discover that they are more similar than different". The main adult character, Mr. Vernon, is portrayed with arguably no redeeming qualities; throughout the film, he consistently talks down to students, accesses private student information (then attempts to cover his tracks when confronted by a fellow employee) and forcefully flaunts his authority at each opportunity. He continually and aggressively challenges Bender, who is the only one of the group who chooses to stand up to him.
Release
The film premiered in Los Angeles on February 7, 1985. Universal Pictures released the film in cinemas on February 15, 1985, in the United States.
Home media
The Breakfast Club was first released on VHS and LaserDisc. In 2003, the film was released on DVD as part of the "High School Reunion Collection". In 2008, a "Flashback Edition" DVD was released with several special features, including an audio commentary with Anthony Michael Hall and Judd Nelson. A 25th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray was released in 2010, and the same disc was re-released with a DVD and digital copy in 2012 as part of Universal's 100th Anniversary series.
On March 10, 2015, the 30th Anniversary Edition was released. This release was digitally remastered and restored from the original 35mm film negatives for better picture quality on DVD, Digital HD and Blu-ray. The Criterion Collection released a special edition two-disc DVD set and a Blu-ray disc on January 2, 2018. The transfer was the same as the previous release but included new features such as fifty minutes of new, deleted and extended scenes, an Electronic Press Kit, new and archival interviews, a 1985 excerpt of the Today program, a new video essay and an episode of This American Life.
Reception
Critical response
Roger Ebert awarded three stars out of four and called the performances "wonderful", adding that the film was "more or less predictable" but "doesn't need earthshaking revelations; it's about kids who grow willing to talk to one another, and it has a surprisingly good ear for the way they speak." Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, and wrote: "This confessional formula has worked in films as different as Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Big Chill, and My Dinner with Andre and it works here too. It works especially well in The Breakfast Club because we keep waiting for the film to break out of its claustrophobic set and give us a typical teenage movie sex-or-violence scene. That doesn't happen, much to our delight." Kathleen Carroll from the New York Daily News stated, "Hughes has a wonderful knack for communicating the feelings of teenagers, as well as an obvious rapport with his exceptional cast–who deserve top grades."
Other reviews were less positive. Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote, "There are some good young actors in The Breakfast Club, though a couple of them have been given unplayable roles", namely Ally Sheedy and Judd Nelson, adding, "The five young stars would have mixed well even without the fraudulent encounter-group candor towards which The Breakfast Club forces them. Mr. Hughes, having thought up the characters and simply flung them together, should have left well enough alone." James Harwood of Variety panned the film as a movie that "will probably pass as deeply profound among today's teenage audience, meaning the youngsters in the film spend most of their time talking to each other instead of dancing, dropping their drawers and throwing food. This, on the other hand, should not suggest they have anything intelligent to say."
Among retrospective reviews, James Berardinelli wrote in 1998: "Few will argue that The Breakfast Club is a great film, but it has a candor that is unexpected and refreshing in a sea of too-often generic teen-themed films. The material is a little talky (albeit not in a way that will cause anyone to confuse it with something by Éric Rohmer), but it's hard not to be drawn into the world of these characters."
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 89% based on 65 reviews, with an average rating of 7.70/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "The Breakfast Club is a warm, insightful, and very funny look into the inner lives of teenagers". Metacritic gave the film a weighted average score of 66 out of 100 based on 25 reviews from mainstream critics, considered to be "generally favorable reviews".
Writing in 2015, P. J. O'Rourke called The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off "Hughes's masterwork". He described the former film as an example of Hughes's politics, in that the students do not organize a protest, but "present themselves, like good conservatives do, as individuals and place the highest value, like this conservative does, on goofing off. Otherwise known as individual liberty."
Box office
In February 1985, the film debuted at No. 3 at the box office (behind Beverly Hills Cop and Witness). Grossing $45,875,171 domestically and $51,525,171 worldwide, the film was a box office success, given its $1 million budget.
Accolades
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Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, Paul Gleason and Ally Sheedy all won a Silver Bucket of Excellence Award at the 2005 MTV Movie Awards.
Award | Nominee | Result |
---|---|---|
Silver Bucket of Excellence Award | Anthony Michael Hall Judd Nelson Paul Gleason Molly Ringwald Ally Sheedy |
Won |
Legacy
The Breakfast Club has been called the quintessential 1980s film. In 2008, Empire magazine ranked it at number 369 on their The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time list. It later ranked at number 38 on their 2014 list. Similarly, The New York Times placed the film on its Best 1000 Movies Ever list and Entertainment Weekly ranked the film number 1 on its list of the 50 Best High School Movies. In the 2001 parody film Not Another Teen Movie, Gleason reprised his role as Assistant Principal Vernon in a short scene that parodies The Breakfast Club. To emphasize its eminent position within the canon of American coming-of-age films and its continued influence to this day, scholar Björn Sonnenberg-Schrank called The Breakfast Club "the Citizen Kane of the teen film genre".
In 2005, the film received the Silver Bucket of Excellence Award in honor of its 20th anniversary at the MTV Movie Awards. For the event, MTV attempted to reunite the original cast. Sheedy, Ringwald, and Hall appeared together on stage, with Kapelos in the audience; Gleason gave the award to his former castmates. Estevez could not attend because of other commitments, and Nelson appeared earlier in the show but left before the on-stage reunion, prompting Hall to joke that the two were "in Africa with Dave Chappelle". Yellowcard performed Simple Minds' anthem for the film, "Don't You (Forget About Me)", at the awards. At the 82nd Academy Awards (March 7, 2010), Sheedy, Hall, Ringwald, and Nelson all appeared in a tribute to John Hughes—who had died the prior year—along with other actors who had worked with him, including Jon Cryer from Pretty in Pink, Matthew Broderick from Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Macaulay Culkin from Home Alone. In 2012, the Nickelodeon television series Victorious had their own spoof on the film, in the episode titled "The Breakfast Bunch".
In 2018, The New Yorker published an article written by Ringwald in which she critiqued Hughes's films "in the age of #MeToo", beginning with a discussion of how she explained to her ten-year-old daughter what happened in the scene when her character seems to be sexually assaulted under a desk. The essay provoked some to claim that Ringwald was criticising the director who made her into a film star, but she was defended by Jenny Han for a "tender, fair-minded piece".
Soundtrack
The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
---|---|
Soundtrack album by various artists | |
Released | February 19, 1985 |
Recorded | 1984 |
Genre | Rock, new wave |
Length | 37:59 |
Label | A&M |
Producer | various artists |
Singles from The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
| |
Audio sample | |
"Don't You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds | |
The film's soundtrack, The Breakfast Club (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), was produced by British pop musician Keith Forsey and released on February 19, 1985, by A&M Records. The album peaked at No. 17 on the US Billboard 200 album chart. The song "Don't You (Forget About Me)", performed by Scottish rock band Simple Minds, was released as a single on February 23, 1985, in the United States and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was released on April 8, 1985, in the United Kingdom.
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Performer | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Don't You (Forget About Me)" | Keith Forsey, Steve Schiff | Simple Minds | 4:20 |
2. | "Waiting" | K. Forsey, S. Schiff | Elizabeth Daily | 4:37 |
3. | "Fire in the Twilight" |
| Wang Chung | 3:51 |
4. | "I'm the Dude" | K. Forsey, S. Schiff | Keith Forsey | 2:10 |
5. | "Heart Too Hot to Hold" |
| Jesse Johnson & Stephanie Spruill | 4:25 |
Total length: | 19:23 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Performer | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Dream Montage" | Chang | Gary Chang | 2:37 |
2. | "We Are Not Alone" |
| Karla DeVito | 3:39 |
3. | "The Reggae" | Forsey | Keith Forsey | 3:07 |
4. | "Didn't I Tell You" |
| Joyce Kennedy | 4:47 |
5. | "Love Theme" | Forsey | Keith Forsey | 4:26 |
Total length: | 18:36 |
Overview
The album contains ten songs that are played partially throughout the movie, performed by bands and singers of the rock and new wave genre, including three instrumental songs by record producer Keith Forsey. Simple Minds's international hit "Don't You (Forget About Me)" is played in the opening and closing credits. A music video was made for this song and for Wang Chung's "Fire in the Twilight" (reached No 110 on the US Billboard Hot 100). Not included on the soundtrack is the "Colonel Bogey March" that the students are whistling when Principal Vernon walks into the room.
Critical reception
In a June 25, 1985 review for The Village Voice, music critic Robert Christgau gave the album a "D−" and said that it has "utterly negligible" songs, and he commended Simple Minds for trying to distance themselves from their song, "Don't You (Forget About Me)", best known for being played during the film's opening and closing credits. In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the soundtrack three out of five stars and wrote that, apart from Simple Minds' "undisputed masterpiece," the album is largely "disposable" and marred by "'80s artifacts" and "forgettable instrumentals".
Cancelled sequel
Hughes had considered a sequel to the film, focusing on the teens reuniting years later in their 30s while serving detention in university. Only now the polar opposite of how they were in the first film. The film was never made prior to Hughes' death.
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Further reading
- Ringwald, Molly (April 6, 2018). "What About 'The Breakfast Club'?—Revisiting the movies of my youth in the age of #MeToo". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on April 9, 2018. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
External links
- The Breakfast Club at IMDb
- The Breakfast Club at Rotten Tomatoes
- The Breakfast Club at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
- The Breakfast Club at the TCM Movie Database
- The Breakfast Club: Smells Like Teen Realness – an essay by David Kamp at The Criterion Collection
- 1985 films
- 1985 comedy-drama films
- 1980s American films
- 1980s coming-of-age comedy-drama films
- 1980s English-language films
- 1980s high school films
- 1980s teen comedy-drama films
- A&M Films films
- American coming-of-age comedy-drama films
- American high school films
- American teen comedy-drama films
- Films about juvenile delinquency
- Films directed by John Hughes (filmmaker)
- Films produced by John Hughes (filmmaker)
- 1985 independent films
- Films set in 1984
- Films set in Illinois
- Fictional quintets
- Films set in libraries
- Films shot in Illinois
- Films with screenplays by John Hughes (filmmaker)
- United States National Film Registry films
- Universal Pictures films
- American independent films
- Des Plaines, Illinois
- English-language comedy-drama films
- English-language independent films
- Fictional janitors