The Breakfast Club: a movie review

First, a 500-peso update.

If there's one thing I learned this week, it's that I cannot stretch 500 pesos into a week. I barely have 30 pesos left in my pocket today. Oh well, I have to get funding from my coin bank and chase those who owe me. Salary day seems so far, far away ...

I think my wife hasn't been reading my blog lately ... I'd better alert her :-).

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"They were five students with nothing in common, faced with spending a Saturday detention together in their high school library. At 7AM, they had nothing to do, but by 4PM, they had bared their souls to each other and become good friends. John Hughes, creator of the critically acclaimed Sixteen Candles, wrote, directed, and produced this hilarious and often touching comedy starring Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy. To the outside world they were simply the Jock, the Brain, the Criminal, the Princess and the Kook, but to each other, they would always be The Breakfast Club."

So runs the introduction to the story at the back of the CD. Don't check the current movie listings, for this one came from the jolly old 80s, 1984 to be exact. I have never watched this movie before so when I saw it last Friday while browsing through a video store, I simply had to buy it (along with Some Kind of Wonderful which a friend was looking for).

I wondered: why Breakfast Club? There was no scene of them having breakfast together (duh). They did have lunch though, each bag reflecting their lifestyle and character. The entire movie happens in the library on that fateful day where they all meet. Strangers at first with diverse family backgrounds, they display animosity towards each other. They question each other's beliefs and convictions.

Eight hours is quite a long time to just sit still. The professor monitoring them eventually found that he had his hands full with these rowdy students. But while in conflict, they stood for each other against this professor who was trying to catch who loosened the screw on the hallway door to his office, making it difficult to keep watch from his chair. Later on, they finally had an opportunity to sit down and share the reason for their detention and its even deeper cause. No cheesy dialogues. Just a batch of people looking for acceptance from their family, their friends, and questioning why they are who they are, and what if they meet each other in the corridors come Monday, will they still greet each other like friends? What will their other friends say about it? It surely hits the spot when it comes to stereotyping people based on how they dress, their family background, and the people they get along with.

I enjoyed watching this movie. No special effects, no guns blaring, no bombs going off. Just plain watching a bunch of kids spending detention and getting on with their lives. It was actually like sitting in detention with them too.

The movie even starts with the song "Dont you forget about me" by Simple Minds, taking me back to the fun 80s. There was even dancing, 80s style. What a treat!

Catch The Breakfast Club on HBO, or buy your copy (VCD format only, no DVD available) from your favorite video shop for only P100.00.