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by Nomadic Chris, 13 August 2009
“I listen to kids. I respect them” – John Hughes, Film Director
Director / writer John Hughes, a name forever connected with teenage angst, dates gone awry, rights of passage, close friendships, sadly passed away recently.
For a whole generation of young adults who grew up in the eighties and nineties, this is great loss. Not only did John Hughes make entertaining films with interesting characters, he had a deep sense of empathy for teens; their everyday lives and dilemmas.
Hughes truly understood that teens globally are practically identical with the same dreams, aspirations and struggles. His characters covered the wide spectrum of school life; the jock, the nerd, the rebel, the girl next door, the rich boy, the poor boy and the beauty queen. Through great scripts all these stereotypes were fleshed out and anyone from Australia to Singapore to the UK could identify with them. Importantly, he made it ok for teens TO BE any of these characters as everyone could see a little bit of themselves in the people on screen. His most famous teen films include: (more below):
Sixteen Candles
The Breakfast Club
Pretty in Pink
Ferris Bueller's Day Off – Starring a very young Matthew Broderick
Some kind of Wonderful
Luckily, these films have stood the test of time and can be enjoyed by teens’ today. Though, how much more havoc could Ferris Bueller create if he had a mobile phone or access to the internet remains a mystery!
Another very recent loss was Malaysian director Yasmin Ahmad whose touching films reflected the heart of her beloved nation. Her hit indie film “Sepet” (please see link below to read iCUBED.us review) tackled cross cultural teen love, identity and family. In a nation sometimes divided along racial lines, she strove to make teen led films, where the characters reflected modern society. She simply wanted different races to understand each other. She achieved this; her films provoked debate and self reflection thus leaving a rich legacy in her homeland and around the world.
Often it is argued that adults don’t really understand teens due to generational gaps, well both John Hughes and Yasmin Ahmed both understood and cared for teens. The world is a poorer place with their loss. We are again reminded that life is precious and that we have to make the most of it.
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it” – Ferris Bueller
Please also read our other iCUBED.us movie blogs CLICK HERE
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