JOHN HUGHES

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BBB.5. 

USA, 1986.  Paramount Pictures.  Screenplay by John Hughes.  Cinematography by Tak Fujimoto.  Produced by John Hughes, Tom Jacobson.  Music by Arthur Baker, Ira Newborn, John Robie.  Production Design by John W. Corso.  Costume Design by Marilyn Vance.  Film Editing by Paul Hirsch.  

Teenagers have always been huge fans of this John Hughes comedy, and those who were teenagers when it was first released are still quite fond of it.  Matthew Broderick plays a slick youngster who has made cutting school an art form:  the faked parental voices speaking to the teachers, the dummies in the bed, etc., have made it possible for him to play hookie from high school totally undetected on more than one occasion. Convincing his best friend (Alan Ruck) to join him on one particular self-made holiday, the two conspire to help bust out pal Mia Sara out of class while avoiding detection by their anally retentive principal (Jeffrey Jones). Broderick also gets Ruck to ‘borrow’ his dad’s new Ferrari, and the threesome spend a day having a ball at Chicago’s Art Institute, crashing a parade and eventually landing themselves in a police station.  Jennifer Grey is delightful as Broderick’s sister, a less-intelligent scam artist who finds it unfair that her brother gets away with things she never can. Lots of fun.

Golden Globe Award Nomination:  Best Actor-Musical/Comedy (Matthew Broderick)