Watched the Criterion copy of "The Breakfast Club" that just came in.
I never saw it in the theater when it came out -- there are so many things I wish I had done when younger, I feel like my rural upbringing + religious upbringing prevented me from experiencing a lot of things first-hand like others of my generation (when I get together with my Chicago cousin, who is two years younger in me, I wish I had done half the things she had done even if her religious mom thought she was the "bad kid," she grew up near the urban Philly centers so she had access to a lot more urban culture than I did) and I missed out. I had the squeaky goody-two shoes intro to life (even if my mind was very free in terms of what I read about and thought about), while she was pretty much into anything regardless of how society felt about it. I wish we lived closer, I would see her a lot more often.
Anyway, for what it was at the time, this film is so great at summing up feelings and attitudes, while maintaining both a funny and very serious tone. We were all trying to carve our our own identities over that time, and even if we had our own groups, we were also open to challenges so that everyone might have a place. At least that's how I feel about Generation X, we were "latchkey" kids and grew up mostly unsupervised.
I really identify (unsurprisingly) with the nerd/geek sector in this film, personally. Brian Johnson (Anthony Michael Hall) is such a Nine type, he's always using his rationality to try to get everyone just to be friends and not fight, to treat each other equally. I like it near the end when they are all being honest about whether they will ditch each other on Monday, and some admit the peer pressure is too great... and the idea to him is honestly astonishing; he would never dream of it. because his mentality and thought process is that they shared this experience and a lot of truth with each other, and he can't undo that, hence he will feel connected to them and they have a place with him. Also, out of all the problems expressed by kids in the film, the "getting straight A's" and being tempted to pad your grades is something I totally identify with, including how awful the shame is when you fail something and your parents are on your case about it. (I really love his acting in the scene where he talks about why he got sent to detention. It's so god-awful and yet hilarious at once, and AMH pulls it off, he is even able to laugh at himself by the end.)
Not sure how I feel about the VERY end, a few things wrap up a little too neat.
I do find it funny that most of the kids (and of course John Hughes, the director) are not really Generation X. I think the only two true Gen X folks in there are Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall -- we were all born in the same year, actually. The generations are kind of rigid in how they are treated, but they don't IRL break that cleanly, and people at the end points might fall into either.
