“The Breakfast Club” Hits It’s 40th Anniversary This Year

This past February marked the 40 year anniversary of one of the most popular coming of age movies to ever come out of the 1980's - “The Breakfast Club.” In 2016, the John Hughes film was selected in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

The 1985 film is also widely regarded as one of the greatest teen films ever made and a quintessential work of 1980's American cinema. So, let’s dive into this popular 80's classic!

Five high school students from different walks of life endure a Saturday detention under a power-hungry principal. The disparate group includes rebel John, princess/popular girl Claire, outcast Allison, brainy Brain and Andrew, the jock.

Each has a chance to tell his or her story, making the others see them a little differently - and when the day ends, they question whether school will ever be the same.

Upon its release, “The Breakfast Club” has received generally positive reviews, with the performances being highly praised and the insightful portrayal of teenage dynamics. This 1985 classic does continue to resonate with audiences because it explores themes of finding common ground, overcoming stereotypes and the experience of high school cliques. And, there are a few aspects in the movie that are definitely dated.

“The Breakfast Club” also features quite a few moments throughout the movie that can be both a little humorous and also thought-provoking. The moments where we see the five teenagers talk about their lives and the reasons why they’re in detention can also get a little on the emotional side.

In between the emotional and, sometimes, thought-provoking moments, this memorable teen classic also has a few moments that can give you a good laugh. One of the most memorable moments is when tough guy Bender is crawling in the ceiling sneaking around the principal and ultimately falls through. 

The Bender character also delivers some more laughs with some of his sarcastic remarks involving Principal Vernon and a few of the others. And, once again, a couple of the other remarks are a little outdated. All of the other characters have a few humorous moments which also builds onto the on-screen chemistry that they provide.

The humor in this movie can do a decent job off-setting the heavier themes and helps provide a relatable and enjoyable experience for the viewers. So, despite some dated aspects, “The Breakfast Club” remains a popular and influential 80's classic and is a cultural landmark in the realm of teen movies.

Trivia: The scene in which all the characters sit in a circle on the floor in the library

about why they were in detention, wasn’t scripted. Writer/director John Hughes told them all to ad-lib. Another improvised moment also comes at the very end of the film where Bender throws up his fist, which ultimately has become an iconic symbol of the 1980's as well as cinema history.

Simple Minds were initially reluctant to record “Don’t You Forget About Me,” believing that it was just a throwaway song for a forgettable movie. They recorded the song within three hours and then quickly forgot about it, as they continued to work on their next album. After the movie came out, they discovered that the song had reached No. 1 in the US charts.

MPA: Rated R   (running time 97 minutes)

You can currently stream “The Breakfast Club” on Netflix or rent it through Amazon Prime, YouTube, AppleTV or Fandango At Home.

• The scene in which all characters sit in a circle on the floor in the library and tell stories about why they were in detention was not scripted. Writer and director John Hughes told them all to ad-lib.

• Judd Nelson improvised the part at the closing of the film where Bender raises his fist in defiance. He was supposed to just walk away, but John Hughes asked him to play around with a few actions. When they were finishing up, Nelson threw up his fist.

• John Hughes wrote the screenplay to this movie in just two days (July 4 and 5, 1982).

• It was originally suggested that there would be several sequels to this movie, occurring every ten years, in which "The Breakfast Club" would get back together. This did not come to pass, due to the volatile relationship between John Hughes and Judd Nelson (John Bender). Hughes stated that he would never work with Nelson again. Also, it was unclear whether or not Hughes still held ill will against his oft-cast starlet, Molly Ringwald (Claire Standish). They had a falling out in the late eighties, after Ringwald decided to move on from the teen film genre to pursue more adult roles, thus severing her relationship with Hughes.

• It was Ally Sheedy (Allison Reynolds)'s idea to put Cap'n'Crunch cereal in the sandwich to give it an extra crunch sound.

• Anthony Michael Hall (Brian Johnson) hit a growth spurt during production. According to Judd Nelson (John Bender), Hall was shorter than him at the start of production, but at the end of it, he was taller than him. The same thing happened with Hall during production of National Lampoon's Vacation.

• The joke that Bender tells (while crawling through the ceiling), but never finishes, actually has no punchline. According to Judd Nelson, he ad-libbed the line. Originally, he was supposed to tell a joke that would end when he came back into the library and said, "Forgot my pencil," but no one could come up with a punchline for the joke.

• Emilio Estevez (Andrew Clark), Judd Nelson (John Bender), and Ally Sheedy (Allison Reynolds) played high school students in this film, the same year that they would portray college graduates in St. Elmo's Fire (1985). John Hughes recommended all three for their roles.

• After Andrew finishes pulling out his lunch from the paper bag then turns around to Bender, audience can see for a second Judd Nelson breaking character when he smiles at Emilio Estevez.

• The marijuana the actors smoke in the film was actually oregano.

• Simple Minds was so unimpressed with the prospects for the soundtrack entry "Don't You (Forget About Me)" that the lead singer recorded the "La la la la" out-bridge chorus as gibberish to fill out the track after the initial recording session. He planned to replace it with proper lyrics the next day, but the rest of the band loved it and convinced him to keep the "la la la la" in place. It ended up being an iconic part of the song.

• Ranked at #1 for Entertainment Weekly's 50 Best High School Movies (2006).