During the 1980’s, two standout films, The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles, were released. To this day, they are still being watched across the globe. What is it that is making these movies timeless? The storyline of both films has been something that teens and adults of all generations can relate. The films also display some fantastic film techniques that convey theme and character brilliantly. Film techniques play a huge role in making films a success, and both films I will be examining are prime examples of this.
Colour is a film technique displayed in The Breakfast Club. In the film, the characters all have nicknames based on their personality. The criminal, the basket case, the athlete, the princess and the brain. The colour of clothing that these characters each wear in the film reflects their role. The criminal dressed in denim, red plaid, black gloves and sunglasses, the basket case in all black, the athlete in blue from head to toe, the brain in green, and the princess in pink. When you envision these types of people, these are the colours you would associate with them. Cinematographer, Thomas Del Ruth, also uses a specific colour palette throughout the film. The colours range from light blues and greys, to dark maroons and beiges. The general spectrum consists of mainly blues,
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purples, greys, beiges and maroons, which all blend together wonderfully. Music was also used to convey the message and change the atmosphere in both films.
The final scene in The Breakfast Club shows all the Characters leaving detention happier than they were when they arrived. After a day of self-discovery and making new friends, the students asked if they would still be friends went school went back on Monday. At first some of them were hesitant, but they all got along in the end. During the final scene, “Don’t You Forget About Me” by Simple Minds plays to set the tone of the scene. Lyrics like "slow change may pull us apart”, “tell me your troubles and doubts”, and “don’t you forget about me” sums up the film and creates a fantastic
ending. Symbolism is a film technique where an object in a film is used to address a different meaning to its usual and literal sense. In The Breakfast Club, Bender (the criminal), sets things straight Claire (the princess), and criticises her for wearing diamond earrings. Bender is not a fan of people flaunting their wealth as he is on the opposite end of the spectrum. As the movie progresses, Bender and Claire have grown some level of respect for each other and their background stories. Claire decides to give one of her diamond earrings to Bender. She places it in his hand and he puts it in his ear. This is symbolising the differences they have turning into something that won’t separate them any longer. Sixteen Candles also portrays this film technique. It is shown more vaguely, but the symbolism is still there. In the film, the main character Samantha’s best friend says to her, “I hope you get a car for your birthday, and a license.” Later in the film, Samantha finds herself upset and sitting in an old, broken car that is sitting in the auto shop at her high school. Sam is soon joined by the geek. They sit in the car and get into deep conversation, sharing their secrets. Samantha’s life is broken and falling apart, just like the car she finds herself sitting in. Her parents have forgotten her birthday, and this wasn’t the car she thought she would end up sitting in on her 16th birthday. What is it that is making these movies timeless? The secret ingredient to making a remarkable, ageless film that is just as relevant as it was 30 years ago, is using film techniques to convey the themes and characters. It is always great to know and understand what techniques were used to create what you see. It gives you a deeper understanding and a greater appreciation for film.
In the iconic film, The Breakfast Club, five random high school students must spend their Saturday together in detention. Each teen is in detention for a different reason. The Jock (Andrew), the Princess (Claire), the Brain (Brian), the Basket Case (Allison), and the Criminal (Bender) must put aside their differences to survive their grueling eight-hour detention with their psychotic and rash principal Mr. Vernon. While in detention, they are expected to write about “who they really are” in one thousand words. Throughout the day, their actions reveal their innermost struggle involving their cliques and their home lives. As the movie progresses, we find out the reason each teen is in detention that culminates in a climactic discussion about
From the lavish mansions of Hollywood stars to the cigarette smoke filled offices of broke screenwriters, the 1950 noir movie Sunset Boulevard remains a timeless classic with a stunning story of an actress gone mad, and a screenwriter just trying to squeak by. This film is the first pre-1960’s flick that has left me with a feeling of awe. The first word that comes to mind after the credits begin to roll is just“wow!”. I was struck by the intriguing plotline and brilliant execution of the story. Not only is the film a classic for its gripping story, and twisted power dynamics, it also shows amazing camera work and brilliant acting.
Frank Baums, The Wizard of Oz is arguably one of the most popular films made. Even though it was released in 1939, nearly three-quarters of a century ago, the film continues to entertain audiences and speak to them in a personal way. The question that comes to the mind when analyzing this film is: What is it about this film that gives it such timelessness? When reflecting on the film’s timeless qualities, it seems clear the plot is one of the things that enable it to maintain its relevance. Primarily, the plot of The Wizard of Oz is timeless because it is such an excellent example of the heroic journey, both in literally and cinematically. This journey of self-awareness is a metaphor for growth, which is something we all search to discover at some time in our lives.
In the film "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" directed by Lasse Hallstrom in 1993, one of the main ideas is that of struggle and hardship. This idea is significant to the film because it relates to each character in a different way, making the storyline more interesting. Three different techniques used by Lasse Hallstrom to illustrate the idea of struggle and hardship include Gilberts voice over, the extra close-ups of Bonnie as she climbs the stairs and the double up of dialogue, where Mrs Carver is talking to Gilbert, and Mr Carver is heard tying to entertain their children in background.
In this paper I will offer a structural analysis of the films of Simpson and Bruckheimer. In addition to their spectacle and typically well-crafted action sequences, Simpson/Bruckheimer pictures seem to possess an unconscious understanding of the zeitgeist and other cultural trends. It is this almost innate ability to select scripts that tap into some traditional American values (patriotism, individualism, and the obsession with the “new”) that helps to make their movies blockbusters.
Stanley, Robert H. The Movie Idiom: Film as a Popular Art Form. Illinois: Waveland Press, Inc. 2011. Print
producers of the last fifty years. Many of John Hughes's most well-known films are his teen films, such as The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles. In the 1980s, John Hughes was setting a new trend for the way teenagers are depicted onscreen. He managed to subvert the sensationalized portrayals of teenagers and teenage life that dominated the screen in the 1980s. Movies about teenagers coming to terms with their lives were a welcome change from the excesses of the slasher genre. John Hughes's timing was right, since audiences seemed to be growing weary of these portrayals around the same time that he emerged on the scene.
The Breakfast Club is a movie made in nineteen eighty-five, directed by John Hughes. The plot follows five students at Shermer High School, as they attend for Saturday detention on March 24 on nineteen eighty-four. The students are not complete strangers to each other, but the five of them are from completely different cliques or social groups. John Bender “The Criminal” is one of the worst behaved kids in school, does drugs and is always involved in some kind of trouble, Claire Standish “The Princess” is one of the most popular girls in school, all the guys want to date her. Brian Johnson “The Brain” is the typical nerd, he is really smart in school, but has no idea about relationships, parties or drugs. Andy Clark “The Athlete” is a really popular kid in Shermer High, he is the varsity letterman, captain of wrestling team and a ladies man. Finally the last student in the detention is Allison Reynolds “The basket Case” she barely talks to anyone in the school and act really weird when approached.
The movie The Breakfast Club was released in 1985, and is based on a group of five high school students from stereotypical cliques; the popular, jock, nerd and the outcasts, who all wind up stuck together for Saturday detention. Throughout the movie many themes present themselves such as teenage rebellion, peer pressure and family issues as the students get to know each other. The most prominent theme throughout the movie is the student’s placement in the social structure of the school. From the very different reasons why they are in detention to the way that they are all treated differently by the principle, their social placement is evident.
BIBLIOGRAPHY An Introduction to Film Studies Jill Nelmes (ed.) Routledge 1996 Anatomy of Film Bernard H. Dick St. Martins Press 1998 Key Concepts in Cinema Studies Susan Hayward Routledge 1996 Teach Yourself Film Studies Warren Buckland Hodder & Stoughton 1998 Interpreting the Moving Image Noel Carroll Cambridge University Press 1998 The Cinema Book Pam Cook (ed.) BFI 1985 FILMOGRAPHY All That Heaven Allows Dir. Douglas Sirk Universal 1955 Being There Dir. Hal Ashby 1979
Despite an inappropriate music-video sequence and a phony up-tempo finale, The Breakfast Club offers a breakthrough portrait of the pain and misunderstanding which result from the social hierarchy created by youth themselves. The lookers and the jocks are popular and can do whatever they want — except relate to those outside their social circle of winners.
The Breakfast Club is a coming-of-age movie. This movie follows five high school students who all have school detention on a Saturday morning. They all come from various types of group. There is the anxious and bizarre girl, Allison; the sporty guy, Andrew; the hard-acting guy, John; the popular girl, Claire; and the nerd, Brian. They all saw each other that way too because they were “brainwashed” into accepting that. Since they are all from different types of groups, they don’t know each other, nor do they want to. At first they think they don’t have anything in common, but as time passes, that proves to be wrong. Since they were the only people in the library, they can’t help but slowly get to know each other. This movie was written and directed by the brilliant John Hughes, who in my opinion is the “King of 80’s movies.” He has directed great 80’s teen movies like 16 Candles, Ferris Beuller’s Day Off, and Pretty in Pink. This movie has mix of genres any individual could possible enjoy: drama, comedy, and even romance. The actors in the movie performed to be tremendous in their roles. The actors in the movie are known as “the brat pack”. The movie is starring: Emilio Estevez, known for popular movies like The Outsiders; Molly Ringwald, who starred in movies like Pretty in Pink and 16 Candles; Anthony Michael Hall, who was in the movie 16 Candles with Molly Ringwald; and Ally Sheedy and Judd Nelson, they both starred in St. Elmo’s Fire. There couldn’t be anyone better to portray the characters in the movie than these actors.
... time retain one outstanding quality---they are empowering, first in how much power they give to the youth of that time. These are films for them and about them. They reflect their everyday experiences or those they long to have, with the best films knowing exactly what their young audiences want to see on screen and never judging them for it because the mistakes, struggles, and imperfections of young adulthood are timeless too. Second, coming-of-age films also give so much back to young audiences and empower them. These films’ characters have taught audiences what to do, how to feel, and essentially given them the tools by which to navigate the transition from childhood to adulthood and how to make it as painless as possible. As ‘coming-of-age’ changes or stays the same in meaning over time, youth culture, as a genre and subject, will remain a necessity in film.
According to historians like Neil Burch, the primitive period of the film industry, at the turn of the 20th century was making films that appealed to their audiences due to the simple story. A non-fiction narrative, single shots a burgeoning sense
The ‘New Hollywood Cinema’ era came about from around the 1960’s when cinema and film making began to change. Big film studios were going out of their comfort zone to produce different, creative and artistic movies. At the time, it was all the public wanted to see. People were astonished at the way these films were put together, the narration, the editing, the shots, and everything in between. No more were the films in similar arrangement and structure. The ‘New Hollywood era’ took the classic Hollywood period and turned it around so that rules were broken and people left stunned.