Weird Science (1985)
Weird Science (1985)
Coming off huge commercial hits such as Sixteen Candles and his most popular work, The Breakfast Club, John Hughes returns with his second film of 1985; Weird Science. His new movie turned out to be a solid hit, especially with the teenage audience group. Written in two days, Hughes created another movie about dweeby students trying to find their way in high school. Unfortunately, I felt this is Hughes’s weakest film. He uses more special effects than his previous films and I felt his work on the film’s characters could have been more fleshed out. As I said, the teenage people will adore the film. The adults may find it a little pandering and annoying. That said, the film turned out to be a cult classic. It is not the Hughes movie I would recommend, but there is still some fun to be had mainly thanks to Kelly LeBrock’s magnetic performance.
This film is the combination of your basic teen film formula and Frankenstein. “It’s Alive!” is one of the most recognized movie quotes of all time. That is initiated here when the two teens used their knowledge to create the woman of their dreams. It was an interesting formula combination, and Hughes did his very best to allow the story to flow. Sadly, some sequences are rushed, and others are juvenile. Definitely a good concept that I would love to see more exploration with in the future.
Gary Wallace (Anthony Michael Hall) and Wyatt Donnelly (Ilan Michael-Smith) are two very unpopular teenagers. They want to be accepted by their classmates but fail miserably. Using their smarts and technology, they decide to create the woman of their dreams-much in the way Frankenstein’s monster was born. It worked! They have created the woman of their dreams, Lisa (Kelly LeBrock). That said, Lisa is more than these two kids can handle. Their goal is to become more confident, but Lisa and her supernatural ways are going to give these kids some interesting encounters.
John Hughes and Anthony Michael Hall must have really gotten along because they are 3 for 3 in working together up to this point. In Sixteen Candles, he was “the geek.” In The Breakfast Club, he was “the brainiac.” Here, he portrays a nerd. It really is fun to see Hall use these roles to develop as an actor. That said, Kelly LeBrock and her wildly sexy English accent steals the show. She was the one character that was truly developed. She just could have been a “no-brains” playmate, but instead she sees right through the boys as she toughens them up. Also, if you mess with her, you might be turned into a hideous slug. Another standout is Bill Paxton. His best performances may have been under James Cameron’s wings, but John Hughes made him a hit with the public as Wyatt’s elder brother, Chet. He is probably the most evil big brother in any film that was ever made. He tortured his poor Wyatt often, but Lisa may prove very useful on that front. Also, if you want to see an early Robert Downey Jr performance, here you go!
Weird Science is a movie that is…well…weird. Hughes took advantage of making his film very, very weird, which of course pleased all teenagers known to exist. Hughes added more special effects to his budget. Perhaps he should stick with character-driven projects. That slug, though. The music is merely fine, just more typical 80’s music. The story itself is cool, although it’s a little immature at times. At least here, Hughes embraced it and combined it with his growing-of-age story tendencies. This is one of his lesser known films, but it has gained a cult following in recent years. I had fun from time to time. Thank you, Kelly LeBrock!
My Grade: B-
Coming off huge commercial hits such as Sixteen Candles and his most popular work, The Breakfast Club, John Hughes returns with his second film of 1985; Weird Science. His new movie turned out to be a solid hit, especially with the teenage audience group. Written in two days, Hughes created another movie about dweeby students trying to find their way in high school. Unfortunately, I felt this is Hughes’s weakest film. He uses more special effects than his previous films and I felt his work on the film’s characters could have been more fleshed out. As I said, the teenage people will adore the film. The adults may find it a little pandering and annoying. That said, the film turned out to be a cult classic. It is not the Hughes movie I would recommend, but there is still some fun to be had mainly thanks to Kelly LeBrock’s magnetic performance.
This film is the combination of your basic teen film formula and Frankenstein. “It’s Alive!” is one of the most recognized movie quotes of all time. That is initiated here when the two teens used their knowledge to create the woman of their dreams. It was an interesting formula combination, and Hughes did his very best to allow the story to flow. Sadly, some sequences are rushed, and others are juvenile. Definitely a good concept that I would love to see more exploration with in the future.
Gary Wallace (Anthony Michael Hall) and Wyatt Donnelly (Ilan Michael-Smith) are two very unpopular teenagers. They want to be accepted by their classmates but fail miserably. Using their smarts and technology, they decide to create the woman of their dreams-much in the way Frankenstein’s monster was born. It worked! They have created the woman of their dreams, Lisa (Kelly LeBrock). That said, Lisa is more than these two kids can handle. Their goal is to become more confident, but Lisa and her supernatural ways are going to give these kids some interesting encounters.
John Hughes and Anthony Michael Hall must have really gotten along because they are 3 for 3 in working together up to this point. In Sixteen Candles, he was “the geek.” In The Breakfast Club, he was “the brainiac.” Here, he portrays a nerd. It really is fun to see Hall use these roles to develop as an actor. That said, Kelly LeBrock and her wildly sexy English accent steals the show. She was the one character that was truly developed. She just could have been a “no-brains” playmate, but instead she sees right through the boys as she toughens them up. Also, if you mess with her, you might be turned into a hideous slug. Another standout is Bill Paxton. His best performances may have been under James Cameron’s wings, but John Hughes made him a hit with the public as Wyatt’s elder brother, Chet. He is probably the most evil big brother in any film that was ever made. He tortured his poor Wyatt often, but Lisa may prove very useful on that front. Also, if you want to see an early Robert Downey Jr performance, here you go!
Weird Science is a movie that is…well…weird. Hughes took advantage of making his film very, very weird, which of course pleased all teenagers known to exist. Hughes added more special effects to his budget. Perhaps he should stick with character-driven projects. That slug, though. The music is merely fine, just more typical 80’s music. The story itself is cool, although it’s a little immature at times. At least here, Hughes embraced it and combined it with his growing-of-age story tendencies. This is one of his lesser known films, but it has gained a cult following in recent years. I had fun from time to time. Thank you, Kelly LeBrock!
My Grade: B-
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