80's teen trifecta

Nothing beats teen movies from the 80's. Or more so, the teen movies made by our favorite teen angst director John Hughes. For most of my friends and older family, we grew up with some of the best teen generation of films of our time. It was a time before crazy green screens and special effects. Where romance and love was raw, sometimes sleazy but not often as it is seen in today's millennial world. I recently had the pleasure of re-watching 3 of my all time favorite 80's teen movies over the weekend (all which star Molly Ringwald) and it's safe to say, no matter how many times I watch these films, I never get sick of them! So I am dedicating this blog post to these 3 flicks.

Sixteen Candles - 1984 Universal Pictures

We've all been there. Dorky high school student, surrounded by annoying family life. You feel like you don't quite fit in and you have some weird and wonderful friends. Have a major crush on the popular guy who most likely doesn't know you exist. May sound familiar! Well, I may be speaking for myself (haha) but the above description sets the scene for Samantha (Ringwald) as her 16th birthday is upon her. Thinking this particular birthday is a life changing experience, she wakes on this glorious Friday, gets ready for school just like any other day. Her house is thrown into a bit of disarray with her older sister getting married the following day. Grandparents are due to flood the house in the afternoon and among it all of this, her parents and siblings completley forget that it is her birthday even though she hints and ahh's at them. Nope, nada. No birthday wishes for you. She finds this highly odd and expresses her frustration but without actually coming out and saying it. So with this intro setting the tone of the movie (and Ringwald plays the angry angsty teen so well) she set's off on her Friday school day.

Jake, Ted and Sam - Sixteen Candles

You're introduced to Sam's rocker friend while they are in class and while they are sitting there, Sam fills out a teen sex quiz someone has asked her to do. She's meant to hand it to her friend cheekily but her friend doesn't get the note and it ends up in the hands of Jake Ryan, the senior rich guy who she has a crush on. Nervously after class her friend admits to not having the note so Sam freaks out a bit. On her way home from school on the dreaded school bus, Sam runs into Ted, a freshman (junior) who seems to have a major crush on her but is not at all shy in showing his affections towards her. Sam is totally put off by Ted's geekiness and forwardness, completley brushes him off and hopes that she won't see him again for a while. Later that afternoon the grandparents decent on her house and her gran and pa bring Long Duck Dong (Watanabe) an exchange student from China. When the film came out, there was a bit of controversy about the depiction of Watanabe's character, as the script written for him came across quite racist. Needless to say, the scenes with Watanabe are still quite hilarious (especially when he trashes the grandparents car and gets ridiculously stoned). Later that night, Sam attends the school dance where you see Ted (Michael Hall) in his geek glory trying to win the affections of Sam, even though Jake has eyes for Sam and Sam is too nervous to actually speak to him.

Sam gets her guy - Sixteen Candles

Theres an endearing scene where Sam runs off and is sitting in the schools car workshop, this is where Ted decides to try and make his move, but learns of Sam's crush on Jake. You see, Ted's bet his geekoid friends that he can "go all the way" with Sam so in exchange for having a trusted D and M, Sam reluctantly loans Ted her underwear to put to rest the bet he has hedged with his geek buddies. From there Ted and his geek buddies crash Jakes after party and its there that Jake learns from Ted how keen Sam really is on him. Jake wants a serious girlfriend and not the party girl Caroline who is he supposed to be dating. And then you can guess the ending and what happens from there on in. While completley predictable, Sixteen Candles still lights that torch for our eternal first love which is why so many of us can relate to it! John Hughes knows how to subtly add that comedy to an already nervous emo storyline and he does it perfectly in this film. The soundtrack to this film is a great addition too. They released a full soundtrack of all the great 80's hits like Altered Images, The Dyvinals and Billy Idol just to name a few. Thats one thing you can count on for 80's movies is the soundtracks were always awesome.

The Breakfast Club - 1985 - Universal Pictures

I only ever watched the Breakfast club at the age of 13 or 14 and when I first watched it I thought "oh...group of high school kids, in detention on a weekend, running a muck, smoking drugs, getting crushes etc. It wasn't until in my 20's and I re-watched this movie that everything made more sense. After dealing with the rush of emotions and hormones growing up as a teen, the penny dropped where anyone who watched this film could relate to one or more than one of the characters and the angst they were feeling within their own sphere of growing into young adults. The nerd, the jock, the basket case, the princess and the criminal. Any present teen at any one moment is living one of these persona's. 

The Breakfast Club

Hughes loved featuring Ringwald and Michael Hall in his teen flicks and this film is no different. Since he saw the eternal geek in Michael Hall from the previous film Sixteen Candles, he cast him as the feature nerd, originally wanted to cast Ringwald as the basket case, but Ringwald fiercely objected and wanted to play the princess role so the basket case was given to Ally Sheedy (one of her first acting roles). There were some casting drama's too when Hughes was casting 'the criminal' as this role was between Judd Nelson and John Cusack. Nelson scored the role as he came across as more "bad" even trying to hit on Ringwald long after the camera's were off! The film's soundtrack only featured 3 stars when it was released in 85 with the hit song "Don't you forget about me" by Simple Minds making its way upon debut to no 1 on the US Billboard charts.

Paul Gleason who plays the assistant principal 'Vernon' who has to oversee the misfits makes it clear to them he isn't going to put up with their nonsense and you get an instant sense of loathing him from 5 minutes into the film. The funny thing about his role is that EVERY school kid can relate to having that one teacher or authoritarian body who they just couldn't stand nor get a break from. It was almost like that one teacher constantly woke up on the wrong side of the bed every single day and slay their wrath on any student which pressed their buttons. 

It isn't until you see Vernon run into the janitor Carl in the afternoon, where you learn on his tough stance with the kids. And that wise wise janitor who tries to reason with Vernon, has become a hero to many of us grown up adults because he speaks truth of oppression of which most young teens of today experience from the older generation. I don't think it matters if you watch this film in your teens, or as an adult. Hughes has a genius way of evoking the inner adolescent in all of us through how he builds his characters. I really wish this was a staple film in every high school because if goes so much further than just another teen film, more so an entry level insight into the tribulations of growing.

Pretty in Pink - 1986 - Paramount Pictures

Girl is senior. Girl is weird, comes from a broken home. Has an equally whacky best friend (Ducky) who she's known since primary school who coat tails on her every move (and secretly likes her too) they both have a whacky 80's dress sense and are both certainly not one of the more conservative or preppy types.

Girl gains the attention of senior popular guy and he then gets a crush on her. Another one of Hughes classic teen flicks where Ringwald leads the cast as Andy, the weird fashion loving gal described above. Andrew McCarthy plays Blane, the preppy guy with the crush. His best friend disapproved of Blane's new found admiration for the weird girl which sparks. You can guess the rest of the general vibe of this movie. Does Andy end up with Ducky or Blane? Who will she take to her final prom?

I recently went to the 30 year viewing of this film with my husband and I was surprised to learn at the time, that Hughes had actually planned the alternate ending for the film and part of the showing was that they viewed what the ending would have looked like had Andy picked the "other guy". It seemed awkward and after a peer group review of the alternate ending way back then, Hughes decided to go with..... aha! You will have to watch to find out if you haven't already seen this classic.

Time travellers

Oh what a fantasy to be a time traveller back to past centuries and decades, disguised as someone from that era only to try have some sort of mission or trying to get back home. Maybe it was Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure which sparked my interest as a young kid back in the 80's. In this blog post I'm going to feature 2 current TV series which I've really taken a liking to which touch on the above mentioned themes, and one cult movie which to this day, remains one of my favourite films of all time.

11.22.63 - Hulu 2016 (TV Series based on the story by Stephen King

James Franco heads the cast of this time travelling drama thriller first set in our modern day millennium but then spins back into 1963. I've always really liked the roles Franco has played, he has a certain old school charm about him, that gracious smile and classic character appeal (maybe it's the fact he's born and raised in Palo Alto! A valley boy at heart). I guess my least favourite movie he starred in was 127 hours (because no one wants to watch a guy saw his arm off!) and his character in that was a bit cocky.

Franco spying on Oswald - 11.22.63

In a nutshell the plot of this series goes something like this: Jake Epping is an everyday school teacher in2016 who's friend Al (Templeton) that owns an old diner, entrusts him with a secret before he passes on due to illness. He shows Jake that he has a very special...broom closet(?) in his diner...which is actually a worm hole which leads back to 1960. Before Al passes, he gives Jake a run down on what he has been trying to achieve for the last 15 years....to try and prevent the assassination of JFK (1963). Without giving too much more away, you kind of then get the idea that Jake now is entrusted a mission and travels back to 1960 and stays there establishing his life as a teacher back in that decade.

There are a number of intense scenes in the lead up to him slowly crossing paths attempting to spy on the accused Lee Harvey Oswald. The one thing I enjoy with this series is that Jake is immersed in staying in the era he's travelled to and the thought of him travelling back to 2015 doesn't really cross his mind too much, enabling the viewer to really get into the plot for him to try and put that curve ball into histories time line. Of course there is a love interest and a few heart stopping moments in episodes 4 and 5 and this is much needed to keep the momentum rolling. Still watching this one but I highly recommend to give it a go if you like the time traveller concept (and US political history).

Outlander - Starz 2014 (TV Series based on the novels by Diana Gabaldon)

Recommended to me by a friend who knew I absolutely adored the drama, mystique and vintage appeal of Downton Abbey, I thought I'd give this english / Scottish series a whirl and I was pleasantly surprised to be hooked by the end of the first episode. This series also follows the time traveller theme and ties in Pagan ritual to attributing to the sacred stones of which act as a wormhole back into the year 1743. The main character Claire (Catrionia Balfe) is a war nurse working on the WW2 front in 1945. The war ends and she returns to her life back in London where she is re-united with her husband Frank (Tobias Menzies) who was an english war captain responsible for arranging the secret missions into Europe. Being separated for 5 yrs thanks to the war, they decide to renew their marriage vows and take to the Scottish countryside to celebrate their second honeymoon. They stay in a quaint village where Frank knows the priest and there are many lazy days spent discussing ancient Scottish history and the victorian era when the English were under the rule of King Arthur and trying to over-throw the Clans to regain Scottish land. 

Jamie and Claire - Season 1: Outlander

While Frank and the priest discuss the history of the countryside, Claire is taken into the kitchen to speak with the priests housekeeper who reads her tea leaves and her palm and reveals an unusual premonition about Claire's future. There are a few more strange instances which follow this encounter and in the middle of the night, Frank and Claire decide to see if the fable of Pagan rituals run true by visiting the ancient rocks of Craig Ne Dun. They secretly discover an ancient female ceremony of dancing in the moonlight within the circle of the rocks and this ritual fascinates Claire to the point where she ventures back there the next day. After hearing a strange thunder role, she is drawn to touch the stones and then is thrown back into time to the year 1743. 

On her travel back to the 1700's and in a daze, she comes across the english army who think of her as a spy and the Captain tries to rape Claire in the process until the handsome red haired Jamie (Sam Heughan) appears. A fight ensues and Jamie is able to fight off the captain but is hurt by gun-fire. Claire is able to rescue him and treat several war wounds he attains from the English "redcoats" or soldiers. And from there....the story is born. I adore the antique styling and edict of the time. The sexism for me is highly confronting (I am feminist in nature) so the way the men treat the women in this time is appalling (and Claire seems to think so too!) yet she is vocal about this and does call it out (much to the dismay of the men) and makes you realise how forward 1945 actually was for women's rights (even though to this very day us ladies are still fighting for some pretty basic equality). The romantic chemistry between Claire and Jamie is intense and when telling my husband about the unfolding plot, he seemed a little jealous of my newfound "man crush" on the red head hehe. I highly recommend this series, especially now Game of Thrones has made its Season 6 appearance. It's a nice little filler in between waiting for other series to commence. Amazon has the entire 16 episode first season available for a small fee. Season 2 has commenced but I am yet to watch. You will find watching this show that every episode will be more intense than the last. 

Donnie Darko - 2001 (Flower films) 

Not sure what other folks think of this, but I hail Donnie Darko as one of the epic cult movies of the early millennium. The cast of a few familiar faces (Barrymore and Swayze) joins the brother and sister team Gyllenhaal's. They actually play brother and sister in the movie so this adds a real raw dynamic to the relationship between Donnie and Elizabeth. This film boasts of a timeless and haunting movie soundtrack which stays with you long after the film has ended. Set in the year 1988, the setting and scenes are strangely futuristic yet still have that 80's charm about them without being too over the top. Donnie isn't your run of the mill typical teenager. He's not a jock, a bit weird and has a number of different talents. He could even be mistaken for slightly autistic but this doesn't stop him from embarking on a series of unfortunate events which ultimately pave the way for him discovering the power of time. His parents think he needs psychiatric help as he references an imaginary friend "Frank" who when he sees him is dressed as a scary bunny rabbit.

Donnie and Gretchen  - Donnie Darko 2001

It's a movie with so many symbols and sub plots which fit together like a broken puzzle that I found myself needing to watch it a second time after my first viewing as there were so many scenes where if you blinked, you would miss something essential to figuring out. You learn about Donnie's alter ego, his visions, flashbacks and early in the plot, an aeroplanes engine actually falls through his bedroom ceiling. From there the story then spirals into weirdness with Donnie trying to piece together clues to why all these things are happening to him under the guidance of his imaginary friend "Frank" and some of the clues provided pointing to time and how it can be altered.

Barrymore plays Donnie's english teacher and her role in the movie is one of support for Donnie and his weird teen behaviour. Swayze makes an appearance as a do-gooder motivational speaker sent in to talk to the students about life and his cameo role is actually quite comical, as he explains to the teens about the 2 extreme's of life - "Love and fear". Donnie in his quest for protecting those he loves and holds dear, finds he needs to complete his search to be able to 'edit' time. Once with the help of 'Frank' he realises he has the power to do this and brings the tale of these 2 teen star crossed lovers to its finale.

When I first watched this film, I actually thought it was a twisted love story. Donnie has a love interest Gretchen in the film...she's the "new girl" at school and is almost as weird as Donnie. They both hit it off straight away and she becomes embroiled in Donnie's world. The emphasis on their teen connection is so strong that I guess that's what drove me to think of it as a twisted kind of love story, until I watched the directors cut which came out shortly after the main film and there are added scenes in it which then really reveal the "time travel" theme. Without rambling on too much more, this is really a film you have to see with your own eyes. There are a crazy amount of awesome one liners in it too and there are moments of comedy, sadness and disbelief. All the big emotions you would expect from this kind of cult film. Grab the popcorn and really enjoy it!