Sixteen Candles (1984)

Such a frustrating disappointment

Strong and Moving!

Excellent adaptation.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

John Hughes was the genius behind such great 80's comedies like 'Pretty in Pink', 'Ferris Bueller' and of course 'The Breakfast Club', and this was his first attempt at the genre.All the elements that would make his latter films so beloved are here, as of course is the ever delightful Molly Ringwald. There are some lovely moments of comedy, and some real heart behind it.I didn't feel that this film was as complete as some of the later Hughes outings. It was almost as if he was trying lots of things out to see what worked. This therefore made for a bit of a mishmash of a film.You can't argue that the final scenes are lovely though. They are romantic, they're funny - John Hughes just excelled at writing these films. It's perfectly, enjoyable, and while it didn't grab me like some of the formerly mentioned films, it is still an example of a genius at work.

John Hughes' first film as director is SIXTEEN CANDLES, a fast-moving and complex high school romance with a little salt and verve to make it eminently watchable. I certainly found it to be a superior piece of work, better than later and better-known movies like FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, because it has a little more edge and hardness to do which makes it a more realistic movie.The story is your usual stuff about loves and rivalries with sex, of course, playing a big part in the proceedings. Where this film shines is in the characterisation; everyone feels real and raw, dealing with real-life issues that anyone who's been a teenager will be readily able to identify with. The cast have been well chosen for their parts and Molly Ringwald is a particular delight here. The likes of John and Joan Cusack show up in support and Anthony Michael Hall is as goofy as ever. The only real flaw with this film is the racist depiction of the Asian kid, which is over the top and leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Otherwise, as a celebration of the 1980s complete with great music and outlandish fashions, this is fun.

Time to boogie down in this 80s hip comedy classic sixteen candles.Molly Ringwald (Samantha Baker) stars in this smash hit about a girl who is about to turn sixteen and finds her life isn't filling.She wants to fit in with the cool kids, avoid the mayhem in her home as they get ready for her sister's wedding and make the guy of her dreams fall in love with her.The soundtrack consists predominately of alternative punk rock and adds an edge to an otherwise simple film.Aside Molly, the Donger felt like the true star providing hilarious outrages lines and getting caught up American culture.Some complain his character is a stereotype of another race and I have to disagree. He was up tight at the start who knew no one and once he hits the dance floor with a beautiful woman he starts to open up becoming a party animal.Michael Anthony Hall didn't do to bad and showed his acting chops becoming a ladies man instead of the typical need who can't find a date. His comic timing was top notch.Join a few familiar faces for a comedy that will have you rolling on the floor.

It is a John Hughes teen movie, so even during the opening scenes many will have sketched a good idea of how Sixteen Candles will conclude. The usual archetypes are all there; the prissy older sister, the bratty, fast talking younger brother, the mopey middle child, the high school power couple and so on. Hughes would build a career from these - in fact he subscribes to these roles so much that he would later cast Hall in practically the exact same role a year later in Breakfast Club, as the brain, or, as he is constantly referred to here, the geek. The two would have the climatic scene in the car, where they realise they are more than their labels. Conventionally we expect that they will somehow end up together romantically after Jake is found to be less than the noble pretty boy; you know, the whole 'what you were looking for was right beneath your eyes' shtick. But Hughes doesn't fully commit to these expectations, but flips them around, winking slightly. The father is not stuffy or stuck up, and remarks that it is good that his son is being educated in the areas of female sexuality, albeit crudely. The whole film seems to conspire against Sam, with even the grandparents forgetting her birthday. She shows a sarcastic awareness: "They live for that sh*t!".So there is decent groundwork. Hughes sprinkles these little knowing touches, which are familiar and make sense; the sex quizzes that teenagers pass around, still all the rage these days, and in the way that two jocks can only hold an even slightly in-depth conversation whilst alternating on the pull-up bar. Even the geeks, the lowest of the low on the proverbial food chain, make crude sexual wagers amongst themselves. Sexuality for them is a strange, scary and curious thing, and Sam's laughter is a gentle mockery of sorts, transcending the boundaries of the screen. The audience too can giggle at how inexperienced they are, and how they are completely ruled by these expectations of them. But we also understand, and sympathise, which is what Hughes is known for. The secondary character, however, are a different story. The queen bee is predictable enough, a blonde bombshell that holds the star quarterback type in her claws and smiles sweetly to the rest of the world. But the mistake is to afford Jake the exact same personality. He knows nothing of Sam except for a little note she wrote in, and the phone-calls to her grandfather, whilst humorous, ultimately just confirm our suspicions that this power couple is exactly as they appear: shallow as a kiddy pool, in both characterisation and attitude. So no one cares when they break-up amicably. The worst of the film is easily the Asian exchange student, Long Duk Dong, whose every word is followed by a loud and distracting gong, and whose broken English, hideous haircut and lack of social etiquette immediately brands him as the designated punching bag. This is not only lazy stereotyping (yelling "Banzai" as he falls from a tree, the way he flits from Chinese to Japanese) but also Hughes contradicting his own mantra. Characters are more than their labels, except when you need to make vulgar, derogatory jokes. Dong is immediately shackled with another similar stereotype, the large, unattractive man-beast. The act is supposed to be eye-opening and subversive but only reinforces the respective stigmas. Even Hall, lowly as he is, barely gives neck- brace girl a second thought. There's something very mean-spirited about the whole thing.