Last night I watched "The Breakfast Club" with Claire Danes, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, Anthony Michael Hall, and Emilio Estevez. I have seen the movie before. Once, all the way through, and other times, I walked through the room while my kids were watching it. I must have been in a thoughtful mood because the pathos of the situation hit me hard. All of a sudden, I was back in school, facing all of those classmates with their very different personalities. Just like the students in detention, I felt the vulnerabilities that we all have, hiding deep in our psyches. I remembered the times when I felt humiliated for various things...not having expensive clothes, not having a winning personality, being a bookworm, being tongue-tied around boys that I liked...and I was suddenly that girl again. All of the old feelings came flooding back and I was sucked into the movie like I was part of it.
I knew all of the characters intimately. Every class has them. I thought of the people in my own class who were the people on the screen. The boy whose own homelife was so destructive that he had to bully others to make himself feel good. The nerdy kid who couldn't handle criticism or not being the best academically. The affluent girl who seemed to have everything but the love of her parents. The athlete who had to be the sports king to please his parents. The weird girl who hid behind her outrageous outfits and hair so her personality quirks didn't show. If I had to pick one of the personalities in the film, I was the nerdy kid. Being smart was an anchor around my neck. I wanted to be smart but I also wanted to be accepted for being that way. Most high school kids did not understand that.
So, I felt all of the emotions portrayed in the film. And what a film...just as important today as when it arrived in the '80's.
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