As much as we all love "The Breakfast Club", there is more to John Hughes than just the criminal, the athlete, the basket-case, the princess, and the brain. Dive deep into some well-known and some not-so well-known John Hughes movies that seem to have been apocalypsed with time as well as other more famous movies of the legendary coming-of-age storyteller.
1. Uncle Buck
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I wanted to start the list with a bang, and what bigger bang is there than the 1989 John Hughes classic "Uncle Buck", starring the one and only John Candy as the titular character. Buck is a humorous slob, yet good-natured bachelor who is the last person the family would call to watch the kids but when an emergency strikes it seems he is the only one who can do the babysitting job. Crazy antics, funny dialogue, and laugh-out-loud moments follow. Slowly throughout the movie you see the family's utter annoyance at Uncle Buck morph into true appreciation and (somewhat) love for him. What I love so much about this particular John Hughes film is family as one of the major themes and showing the growth of a familial relationships, compared to his other films such as "Breakfast Club" where family is an underlying theme but not majorly explored or shown the growth of any familial relationships. So, if you are in the mood for a family movie that is simultaneously light-hearted and emotionally charged like only John Hughes can do, I recommend Uncle Buck one hundred percent.
2. Mr. Mom
Yes, the title may be a little outdated. Yes, the concept behind the film may be a little outdated. But, there is still something about the organic sentiments and corniness that helps this movie to make the list. Michael Keaton stars as "Mr. Mom" in this 1983 flick written by John Hughes, where after being laid off at his job it is decided that his wife will go back into the workforce while he tackles on the role of "stay at home Mom." Just like "Uncle Buck" this movie is also a light-hearted comedy with familial ties running as one of the main themes of the film. However, instead of focusing on a wacky uncle trying to protect his nieces and nephews it focuses on a father trying to navigate manhood and fatherhood while staying at home and taking on more "mom"-like tasks. Though this seems archaic and sexist in many ways the performance Michael Keaton brings to the screen makes it funnier than anything.
3. Weird Science
Weird is definitely one of the best ways to describe "Weird Science", the 1985 movie directed and written by Hughes. The movie centers around two prototypical nerdy best friends, Gary Wallace played by the Hughes-favorite Anthony Michael Hall (a.k.a. Farmer Ted in "Sixteen Candles") and Wyatt Donnelly played by Ilan Mitchell-Smith. Gary and Wyatt cannot really talk to girls due to their extremely awkward and geeky nature. So, one night while hanging out in Wyatt's room they figure why don't we electronically make the perfect girl (yes, that gigantic insanely outdated 80's computer you are picturing in your head right now is spot on). And as if on cue ergo lighting sounds and cheesy Frankenstein references during a montage of Wyatt and Gary piecing together the perfect girl both anatomically and intellectually. How sweet of them to care about a women's brain too...well, I guess that's as much as you can ask for from a 1985 nerd-to-heroes-due-to-a-hot-woman story. So, if you haven't figured it out by now due to the picture featured above this and the context clues of my description the fake girl Gary and Wyatt thought they were only pretend making becomes a real life women, Lisa played by the fierce Kelly LeBrock. Come to life just to make them cooler and realize yes they can actually talk to the girls they like. Whatever way you want to look at it, this movie is at it's core goofy, ridiculous, funny, and (slightly sexist) as corny as the mid-80's themselves. A true testament to the time.
4. Some Kind of Wonderful
It would be cheesy to say this movie is all kinds of wonderful because it is "Some Kind of Wonderful." Definitely a lesser known, darker Hughes film but still great all the same. In this 1987 Hughes flick Keith, an artsy high-school outcast, desperately likes popular girl Amanda (played by Lea Thompson, a.k.a Marty McFly's Mom) with the help of his tomboy best-friend Watts (played by Mary Stuart Masterson). All three are pictured above. The plot thickens as Amanda's snobby ex-boyfriend hears about Keith's plans of pursuing her and tries to stop it at all costs, while Watts also realizes her true feelings for Keith are much more than friendship. I think you see where this is going, drama drama drama. Oh how I don't miss high school at all, even the made-up movie version by John Hughes. However, what separates this Hughes film from the others is how it focuses on darker aspects of social and economic class within the high school setting. Any way you view it though this 80's love triangle hits a chord in the heart, so whenever you're feeling down or feeling lonely why not watch "Some Kind of Wonderful."
5. Maid in Manhattan
I had to include Maid in Manhattan, not because it is an obscure movie, but because it is a movie I never the story was by John Hughes before sitting down to write this article. The basic aspects of the plot are quite similar, a poor girl and a rich guy fall in love, but of course there's problems and fights and eventually resolution. Similar to 1986's "Pretty in Pink" in those most basic aspects; however, the similarities really end there. Instead of two teenagers struggling with the social classes of high school it is two adults sturggling with the difference of economic classes. Namely, Jennifer Lopez as Marisa Ventura, a single mother who is a maid (in case you couldn't guess it from the title) that falls in love with Ralph Fiennes (yes, it is weird seeing Voldemort playing a love interest) as Christopher Marshall, a very rich heir to a political throne. Of course, when Marisa meets Christopher goofy circumstances lead to a confusion where Christopher thinks Marisa is also rich, troubles ensue from this false premise not corrected by Marisa. Of course by the time Christopher finds the truth out he is already madly in love with Marisa so money becomes no problem in the face of true love (classic Hughes). If you haven't seen "Maid in Manhattan" it is a good rom-com with lovable characters.
So, the next time you sit down to watch "The Breakfast Club" for the one-hundredth time, why not think twice and watch a lesser viewed John Hughes instead?
Going to the cinema alone is good for your mental health, says science
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