Career Opportunities is a film worth a watch for a few key reasons. One reason is because the film is one of the last major projects of the great John Hughes. I wanted to take time out to watch this film recently because I never saw it when it was released back in 1991. I do not think I was ever aware of the film back then. As I watched the film, I asked myself why John Hughes chose to write and produce it. I think John wanted movie goers to explore the question, "How would his teenage characters, from films like "Pretty in Pink," "Sixteen Candles," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," and "The Breakfast Club" feel about their lives and their prospects for their future after their high school years are behind them?"
The Jim Dodge character is like many memorable characters created by John Hughes: A handsome, witty, fast-talking, and extroverted charlatan. Unlike The popular and successful Ferris Bueller character, Jim Dodge doesn't fool most of the people in his life. People see through his charlatan antics and regard him as a disingenuous liar. Jim Dodge is also from a modest working class family. The Jim Dodge character is as engaging as the Ferris Bueller character, but he is not as funny or as entertaining to watch because his charlatan behavior is unsuccessful. Jim Dodge was not cool in high school, he doesn't have any friends his age, and he doesn't have a gorgeous girlfriend like the Sloane Peterson character from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." I think Hughes wrote the Jim Dodge character to represent the slacker stereotype of Generation X. The Jim Dodge character is in his early 20s, he lives at home, he has few job prospects, and he lacks tangible goals other than a general wish to be credible and successful.
The Josie McClellan character is strong-willed female lead who is similar to a lot of other John Hughes characters. Josie is an effortlessly beautiful young woman with a bad attitude. She believes her ideal high school experience means that her best days are behind her. She and Jim Dodge share a tremendous uncertainty about their futures, and they are both loners. Despite Josie's beauty and wealth, she feels as alone as Jim Dodge and she is also a slacker without clear goals. Jim and Josie find each other and bond within strange circumstances in "Career Opportunities." I think the film is really about how these two characters connect as fellow struggling Gen-Xers.
I think this movie failed to be a big hit because Hughes offers no clear answers for the Jim and Josie characters other than the idea that falling in love offers hope for both of their futures. The laughs are not frequent enough in the film and the music sequences are too numerous. The title of the film is also misleading. Regardless, this film is definitely worth a watch if you were born between 1966 and 1974.
The Jim Dodge character is like many memorable characters created by John Hughes: A handsome, witty, fast-talking, and extroverted charlatan. Unlike The popular and successful Ferris Bueller character, Jim Dodge doesn't fool most of the people in his life. People see through his charlatan antics and regard him as a disingenuous liar. Jim Dodge is also from a modest working class family. The Jim Dodge character is as engaging as the Ferris Bueller character, but he is not as funny or as entertaining to watch because his charlatan behavior is unsuccessful. Jim Dodge was not cool in high school, he doesn't have any friends his age, and he doesn't have a gorgeous girlfriend like the Sloane Peterson character from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." I think Hughes wrote the Jim Dodge character to represent the slacker stereotype of Generation X. The Jim Dodge character is in his early 20s, he lives at home, he has few job prospects, and he lacks tangible goals other than a general wish to be credible and successful.
The Josie McClellan character is strong-willed female lead who is similar to a lot of other John Hughes characters. Josie is an effortlessly beautiful young woman with a bad attitude. She believes her ideal high school experience means that her best days are behind her. She and Jim Dodge share a tremendous uncertainty about their futures, and they are both loners. Despite Josie's beauty and wealth, she feels as alone as Jim Dodge and she is also a slacker without clear goals. Jim and Josie find each other and bond within strange circumstances in "Career Opportunities." I think the film is really about how these two characters connect as fellow struggling Gen-Xers.
I think this movie failed to be a big hit because Hughes offers no clear answers for the Jim and Josie characters other than the idea that falling in love offers hope for both of their futures. The laughs are not frequent enough in the film and the music sequences are too numerous. The title of the film is also misleading. Regardless, this film is definitely worth a watch if you were born between 1966 and 1974.