The Breakfast Club

John Hughes (1985)

92min

15 Certificate

Review

Our Score

by David Parkinson

One of the high-water marks of the 1980s Brat Pack cycle, this Saturday detention drama from director John Hughes has lost some of its freshness in the face of time and endless inferior imitations. Yet this chat-fest still rings true often enough to be relevant to both overgrown teenagers and the disgruntled kids of today. Brat Packers Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson and Ally Sheedy are joined by teen favourite of the time Molly Ringwald and the underestimated Anthony Michael Hall for a mix of justified grievances, self-pitying whinges and hard-hitting home truths. The girls easily outshine the boys, but everyone manages to breathe a little life into their essentially clichéd characters.

Summary

Five teenagers who occupy different areas of their school's social structure are thrown together for a Saturday morning detention. During the day, they analyse their behaviour and find unexpected common ground. Drama, directed by John Hughes and starring Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy and Paul Gleason.

Cast & Crew

Andrew Clark Emilio Estevez

Claire Standish Molly Ringwald

John Bender Judd Nelson

Allison Reynolds Ally Sheedy

Brian Johnson Anthony Michael Hall

Richard Vernon Paul Gleason

Carl John Kapelos

Allison's father Perry Crawford

Brian's sister Mary Christian

Andy's father Ron Dean

Claire's father Tim Gamble

Allison's mother Fran Gargano

Brian's mother Mercedes Hall

Brian's father John Hughes

Director John Hughes

Other Information

Language: EnglishColourTheatrical distributor: U.I.P. (UK)Guidance: Swearing and drug abuse.Available on: video, DVD and Blu-ray

Drama

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