"As you walk on by... will you call my name..."
My all time favorite movie is, and always has been, "The Breakfast Club." We follow 5, very different high school students while they suffer through Saturday detention. The director, John Hughes, created the most amazing characters in all of his movies. "Pretty in Pink," "Sixteen Candles," "St. Elmo's Fire," all incredible movies, but "The Breakfast Club" has to take the cake. There are so many reasons why this the best movie of all time and they are all still relevant today. After 31 years, it is the characters that make this movie what it is because they are ALL so relatable.
The Brain
This is Brian Johnson, and to everyone else is he is nothing but a geeky little boy. He is undeniably awkward and has absolutely zero social skills. It is no wonder that people jump to the wrong conclusion. We find out in this movie that Brian is more than an awkward nerd. He is under tremendous pressure from his family to be perfect at everything, especially school. Everybody has a little Brian in them. A little anxiety, a little pressure, and a little awkward. But that's why we love him.
The Athlete
Meet Andrew Clark, star wrestler and king of the school. He is the guy that every girl wants to date and the one that every guy wants to be. From the outside, it looks as if Andy has his whole life together, great looks, athletic skills, and the money to go to a great school. But, like Brian, Andy is under so much pressure to be the BEST. He needs to surpass all other wrestlers so that he can stand out and get into school. Without wrestling, he doesn't have the grades to make it to school. He even goes as far as hurting others in order to impress his dad. Like Andy, we all are afraid to disappoint our parents and of what the future may hold.
The Basket Case
This is Allison Reynolds and she is certifiably insane. This girl made a sandwich out of various meets and captain crunch. She drew a picture of a house and then shook her dandruff out of her hair as the snow. She says absolutely anything that pops into her crazy little head and startles every one with each word. But don't even try to say that you are nothing like her because "we're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it that's all."
The Princess
Claire Standish is as close to a celebrity as any high school student can be. She is the most popular girl and gets basically anything that she wants. Her father is rich and even though she is in detention for skipping school to go shopping, he says he will take her shopping as soon as she is done. From the outside, she looks like she has it all and then some. However, we learn that Claire is under tremendous pressure from her peers to be this goddess of a person. She feels as if she is forced to act, dress, and behave a certain way for other people. We all have something inside of us that worries about how we will be seen and judged by other people. No matter how small that piece is, it is always there. On some level, we all understand the pressure that Claire feels.
And The Criminal
John Bender is a criminal, a low-life, a deadbeat; at least that is how everyone else sees him. What no one cares to find out is that Bender grew up in with an alcoholic mother and a abusive father. In his home he was forced to fight for what he needed and to take care of himself and himself only. Bender tells the truth and does not beat around the bush. He has a fight in him that every one should have but instead of congratulating his strength and independence, people shun and ridicule him. Maybe if he did not feel so judged, he would not commit the crimes that he does.
These five people come together to show the world that we stigmatize and group people without truly knowing them. It is these stigmas that make people feel pressured to be someone that they not. These stigmas make people feel trapped and confined. These stigmas make people feel like that cannot love themselves for who they really are. These stigmas separate our world.
We are not just criminals or athletes. We are awkward and funny. A little crazy and sometimes spoiled. We are under pressure and we worry. We are all individual people. We are all a little bit of every stigma.
"You see us as you want to see us - in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain... an athlete... a basket case... a princess... and a criminal."
This movie is hilarious and will make you laugh until you cry. And then just five minutes later it will make you just plain cry from all of the emotion. But most of all, this movie teaches us lessons that will remain relevant for all of time.
"Screws fall out all the time, the world is an imperfect place."
"Spend a little more time trying to make something of yourself and a little less time trying to impress people."
Sincerely yours,
The Breakfast Club
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