Director John Hughes (1950-2009)

Director John Hughes passes away…(Age 59)

From Reuters,

((Hughes died suddenly while taking a morning walk in New York City, according to a statement from his spokesman. ))

When I read the news at Forces of Geek, I was a little taken aback by it.

For most of the 80s, his films defined what my generation believed and felt. Hughes was good at mixing teen drama with adult themes, while throwing comedy into the mix as well. Without Hughes, there wouldn't be a Kevin Smith or a Judd Apatow.

He produced and wrote even more movies that ended up being huge hits. He was the writer behind the Home Alone series.

Side Note: Director Chris Columbus seems to be stylistically very close to Hughes films. There is this rather funny quote from Columbus from the IMDB page.

((I was up on 140th Street in Harlem, in 1992. It was 3 in the morning, and I was walking back to get a cup of coffee. These two young kids came up to me and said to me, "What movie is this?" I said, "Home Alone 2," and they said, "What do you do?" And I said, "I'm the director." They said, "Oh, you're John Hughes!"))

For a man that had a huge influence on the teenage movies, he didn’t direct that many films. Actually, he only directed eight. Hughes seemed to move away from the teen stuff and into more “Kid Friendly” stuff. And, I felt this was his weaker stuff.

Sixteen Candles: Not a huge fan of this movie at all. It does have some good moments here and there. Molly Ringwald carries the film and she is cute. But, it certainly isn’t his strongest film.

The Breakfast Club: I love this movie. Breakfast Club clearly defined the various groups that teenagers were forced into during their time in high school. These groups (clicks) made us who we are today. Hughes takes the material extremely serious and humorous at the same time. I can still relate to this movie. Great stuff.

Weird Science: Yeah, I have to admit that I like this movie. It isn’t the best script, but I could see myself and a few friends trying to create a chick.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off : This is Hughes' best work period. I can actually remember the day I first saw this movie. My mother rented it on VHS and I popped it in on a Saturday and watched it twice in a roll. I thought the character of Ferris Bueller was the coolest person ever created. Ferris was so cool that he knew he was in the movie and talked to camera. I love this movie. (I had a huge crush on Mia Sara !)

Planes, Trains & Automobiles: Classic comedy… In many ways, Tommy Boy and Black Sheep are a call back to Planes, Trains and Automobiles. This movie is more of a comedy than his other ones, and it is in my top favorite comedies list.

She's Having a Baby: I don’t really have much to say about this movie. Kevin Bacon is in it. Oh, Wil Wheaton is in it for a minute wearing his Star Trek Uniform.

Uncle Buck: I like this movie, but it hasn’t aged that well.

Curly Sue: I hate this movie. Not exactly the best way to end his directing career.

Remember this scene from Planes, Trains and Automobiles? One of my favorite scenes from the movie.

I still laugh at this scene.

John Hughes, you will be missed.

Ferris: "Let me get this straight; You want me to star in a remake to Godzilla? Does that really sound like a bright idea? You're paying me what? Okay, I'm in."