I have to admit that I used to be jealous of John Hughes. He had a much bigger career in Hollywood than I did and, envious me, I used to disparage his films occasionally as thin teen gruel. I was completely wrong, of course, and pretty much knew it then, even before The Breakfast Club came out and it became painfully honest that he was as good as anybody at any level. In our PPoliwood memoriam to Hughes, Lionel says he was better than Spielberg and that a hundred years from now that will be acknowledged. Who knows? One thing is sure – Hughes was more politically sophisticated than Spielbeg. You can see some evidence in the Poliwood episode if you missed it. I am posting here for that reason, even though it’s been up on PJTV for a couple of days and linked various places. There are some good clips of Hughes’ films too. Have a look.
I thought he was a New Wave snob who wished American kids could be just like English kids, but I don’t think he had the mean spirit of the “geniuses” moviegoers must endure. (I gave up seven years ago.)
Even with a DSL connection, I can’t watch your PJTV clips. I’d really appreciate it if you could give us a link to a transcript.
Sam: try switching video formats in the menu on the left.
Roger: Good Poliwood episode on Hughes. Where would you place the writer/director Whit Stillman among the Hollywood heterodox? Closeted Republican or not?
Regards
Sam L, assuming your email is correct, you will hear from our tech people who will help you get PJTV. All others having problems should feel free to contact me here. We can probably help.
I seem to be having trouble posting comments here.
I liked the Breakfast Club when it came out, but I don’t think it’s lasted well over the years. It know comes off to me as a whinny teenage drivel.
But for Ferris Buller, Mr. Hughes will have my undying gratitude.
Actually, Breakfast Club holds up remarkably well for its target demographic, and the way to demonstrate this is to have teens watch it today. I have two, and when it was on TV a while ago they were fascinated and enjoyed it immensely. (They both said the only person missing from the kids in the library was the band nerd. That made me laugh.)
Yeah, the styles of clothes might have changed. But the kids – the goth, the jock, the brain, the princess, the bad boy – are “types” my kids know and (sometimes) love. Hughes tapped into high school teen angst on a visceral level.
What the hell?
Every positive comment I leave about John Hughes is not posted?
I love John Hughes.
It’s hard for me to believe that Roger Simon dislikes John Hughes to the point that he would censor my positive comments.
So, I choose to believe there is some other problem.
What it is, I’d like to know.
I can’t tell from the picture if John Hughes is a man or woman. Honestly. But I suppose it doesn’t matter. I never heard of him. In his column, Roger quotes a film critic, “…he was better than Spielberg and that a hundred years from now that will be acknowledged. Who knows?” I would add: Who cares? In 100 years, there will be so many movies out there, as the cost of filming and distributing goes down, that Spielberg himself will be long forgotten. We are seeing today the same kind of angst among movie critics that literary critics had about Ernest Hemingway, John O’Hara, and Pearl Buck in the 1930s and 1940s. Today, we think: what was the big deal? And, some will ask: who are you talking about?
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