"16 Candles" was one of a bunch of movies that I didn't get to see in the time of their initial release in the 1980s. I was technically underaged. It also ended up being one of quite a few movies which I have subsequently never seen (outside of excerpts) in all the years since.
I finally watched it on Amazon Prime the other day.
Some 40 years later (I was 10 at the time), while I can say that the film is pretty good for the genre, it just doesn't hit me the same way as it might have if I had seen it much earlier. I spent much of the time listening closely to the dialogue and how so many outlandish scenarios were portrayed in a matter-of-fact manner, how many boundaries-are-irrelevant expressions take center stage. (The wise guy younger brother in particular.. wow.. that would not have flown in my household.. or any household I knew, back then, lol.. ) . Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald and several other characters look like several kids I eventually went to high school with; it's uncanny. (John Cusack in a smaller supporting role? Wild..)
Written and directed by baby boomer John Hughes, the film's narrative takes place either in far-northern Chicago or its suburbs.
Samantha (Molly Ringwald), a high school sophomore, wakes up on her 16th birthday to a heckling younger brother, oblivious parents, transgressive grandparents and a ditzy older sister whose wedding takes place in less than a week. Once it's clear that nobody has remembered her birthday by the time she leaves home, she feels unduly humiliated: only, there's more humiliation coming, in the form of "The Geek" (Anthony Michael Hall), an obnoxious, lecherous freshman who seems monomaniacally focused on making time with Samantha, even when she openly rejects him. During a class, Samantha tries to pass along a note to a buddy about a guy she likes; but it's intercepted.. by the guy she likes, Jake (Michael Schoeffling, a Matt Dillon lookalike). Only, she doesn't know it. Can the both of them find a way to express their like for one another, despite Jake, a senior, dating the beautiful prom queen Caroline (Haviland Morris)?
A series of loosely connected, lengthy comedic skits take place in which one teen character or another takes center stage with having to endure some form of outrageous misfortune or another. A wild card comic relief element is on glaring display with Gedde Watanabe's portrayal of Chinese exchange student Long Duk Dong (the actor, who was a Utah native, was 28 by the time this film came out in 1984). Long's broken English, racially coded scene entrances (a gong sounds off) and unfettered lust for partying (and the company of cute girls) are the subject of much academic debate about the ethnic stereotyping to be found in this film.
Eventually, by the end, nominal lessons are learned:
The Geek gets to score with the prom queen.. or did he? I still couldn't exactly tell.
The Nice Girl finally gets to spend time with Dream Guy.. though not without enduring galling mayhem from family, Farmer Ted and the rest.
Long's fate being untold is probably for the best; it would not likely have been kind, having wrecked his sponsors' automobile. (Then again, those folks had to have had insurance. So, no worries?)
... And,, finding out that Gedde Watanabe was pushing 30 when he took on this role, and now is pushing 70.. Good lord.. (!!!)
John Hughes would go on to direct several more successful films, but is considered unusually gifted for crafting coming-of-age-themed stories about 1980s teenagers that have become enduring, popular titles.
Viewers who are Generation X may find something to like from a time that they directly remember: Younger viewers may or may not, and they may find some of the scenarios on display problematic in some form.
I finally watched it on Amazon Prime the other day.
Some 40 years later (I was 10 at the time), while I can say that the film is pretty good for the genre, it just doesn't hit me the same way as it might have if I had seen it much earlier. I spent much of the time listening closely to the dialogue and how so many outlandish scenarios were portrayed in a matter-of-fact manner, how many boundaries-are-irrelevant expressions take center stage. (The wise guy younger brother in particular.. wow.. that would not have flown in my household.. or any household I knew, back then, lol.. ) . Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald and several other characters look like several kids I eventually went to high school with; it's uncanny. (John Cusack in a smaller supporting role? Wild..)
Written and directed by baby boomer John Hughes, the film's narrative takes place either in far-northern Chicago or its suburbs.
Samantha (Molly Ringwald), a high school sophomore, wakes up on her 16th birthday to a heckling younger brother, oblivious parents, transgressive grandparents and a ditzy older sister whose wedding takes place in less than a week. Once it's clear that nobody has remembered her birthday by the time she leaves home, she feels unduly humiliated: only, there's more humiliation coming, in the form of "The Geek" (Anthony Michael Hall), an obnoxious, lecherous freshman who seems monomaniacally focused on making time with Samantha, even when she openly rejects him. During a class, Samantha tries to pass along a note to a buddy about a guy she likes; but it's intercepted.. by the guy she likes, Jake (Michael Schoeffling, a Matt Dillon lookalike). Only, she doesn't know it. Can the both of them find a way to express their like for one another, despite Jake, a senior, dating the beautiful prom queen Caroline (Haviland Morris)?
A series of loosely connected, lengthy comedic skits take place in which one teen character or another takes center stage with having to endure some form of outrageous misfortune or another. A wild card comic relief element is on glaring display with Gedde Watanabe's portrayal of Chinese exchange student Long Duk Dong (the actor, who was a Utah native, was 28 by the time this film came out in 1984). Long's broken English, racially coded scene entrances (a gong sounds off) and unfettered lust for partying (and the company of cute girls) are the subject of much academic debate about the ethnic stereotyping to be found in this film.
Eventually, by the end, nominal lessons are learned:
The Geek gets to score with the prom queen.. or did he? I still couldn't exactly tell.
The Nice Girl finally gets to spend time with Dream Guy.. though not without enduring galling mayhem from family, Farmer Ted and the rest.
Long's fate being untold is probably for the best; it would not likely have been kind, having wrecked his sponsors' automobile. (Then again, those folks had to have had insurance. So, no worries?)
... And,, finding out that Gedde Watanabe was pushing 30 when he took on this role, and now is pushing 70.. Good lord.. (!!!)
John Hughes would go on to direct several more successful films, but is considered unusually gifted for crafting coming-of-age-themed stories about 1980s teenagers that have become enduring, popular titles.
Viewers who are Generation X may find something to like from a time that they directly remember: Younger viewers may or may not, and they may find some of the scenarios on display problematic in some form.
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