Five students: a jock (Emilio Estevez), a brainy nerd (Anthony Michael Hall), a popular "prom queen" (Molly Ringwald), a misfit (Ally Sheedy) and a "bad boy" (Judd Nelson) are thrown together at an early Saturday morning detention class. Though seemingly different, by the end of the day, they've opened up to each other and bonded. Arguably the best high school movie ever made, over 25 years later the film holds up surprisingly well. Although stereotypes defined by the exterior images they project, anyone who's ever been to high school knows these types exist and chances are were fit into one of the five. The director John Hughes (who also wrote the script) slightly panders to his demographic by stacking the deck. While the students are represented by the five different types, the one teacher we're provided with is a total jerk. I suspect to the 2012 teen audience, some of the film has a "you had to be there" quality to it. Specifically, the rebellious "bad boy" who seemed so cool in 1985 now comes across a uncouth bully. It doesn't help that he's played by the supremely untalented Judd Nelson. Fortunately, the other four actors ace it (Hall and Sheedy are pretty awesome) and the big confessional scene between the five is beautifully played out. There's simply no excuse for the phony as Hell ending. The MTV music video style montages date the film but the soundtrack is comprised of a terrific selection of mid 80s pop rock.
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