Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Title - Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Author/Director - John Hughes
Release Date - June 11, 1986

Plot - What more can be said about Ferris Bueller?  "Bueller... Bueller... Bueller...," Ben Stein's famous teacher famously queries as he begins his history class.  Ferris Bueller has decided to take a day off of school.  He is a high school senior waiting for the last year of high school to finally pass by.  But he does not want to let it pass him by without fully being able to take advantage of it.  His best friend Cameron wants to hide under his sheets, letting it go by as quickly as possible, trying to hide from the craziness of high school life.  His girlfriend Sloane is nervous about what the rest of her life has in store. 

But Ferris wants to seize the day.  And seize it he does.  He convinces Cameron to take his dads incredible car.  He gets his girlfriend out of school by pretending to be her father, and he goes out on an incredible trip downtown, even ending up as the lead of a big float in a parade, all while convincing his parents that he is seriously ill, evading the prying eyes of his sister, and ditching his principle who wants to get him into serious trouble.  What more trouble can any teenager get into in one day?  Through it all Ferris convinces all around him to relax, and enjoy every moment of life, because if you don't, it will surely pass you by.

Critical Review - Coming out in 1986 in the middle of the Cold War and changing situations throughout the world, John Hughes has developed a little gem.  The character he has created for Matthew Broderick creates the perfect story around him.  But the message to live life to its fullest is a lesson that resonates throughout the ages.  Whether it be from the 18th century poets imploring their lovers to take advantage of the time given to them. or Robin Williams in Dead Poet Society encouraging his students to seize the day, the notion to take advantage of the time given is timeless.  Bueller perfectly encapsulates this message to those around him.  You cannot get caught up in everything that is going on around you or you are going to miss the opportunities and life that is given to you.  While maybe one shouldn't ditch school, lie to their parents and school administrators, and sneak into restaurants pretending to be someone you are not, Hughes connects to his high school audience in this way that may others do not.  This age is testing its boundaries more than any other.  Through his day off, Bueller tests the limits of his intelligence and the boundaries of his world.  And all the while he makes sure not to let his life passing him by without being able to truly live it.

Reader's Annotation - Driving hot cars, dating the hottest girl in school, going to high class restaurants, and being the lead float in a parade leading everyone to dance wildly across the street: what more could any high school boy want?

About the Author-  John Hughes grew up in Grosse Point Michigan, mostly quite and introspective as many of the people around him were women and older people.  Through this he developed his imagination and his ability to be creative.  When he got to high school he finally started his life having some sort of a direction.  It is these days in high school that he would be able to draw from when doing many of the high school comedies that he would become associated with.

Hughes got his big film break when he wrote the screenplay for National Lampoons Vacation, written to reflect his own experiences on family vacations.  In 1984, he would get his directorial opportunity to do something and he developed 16 Candles, wildly praised reflecting the teen spirit of the age as opposed to many of the comedies being released at the time.  He would go on to direct many efforts reflecting teens and their struggles with such classics as Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, and Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Genre- Movies, Comedy

Curriculum Ties - Literature as film - How does Hughes translate the teenage plight to find their identity.

Booktalking Ideas - N/A

Reading Level/Interest Age - Grade 9+

Challenge Issues - It encourages disrespectful and negative images of authority figures.

Overcoming - Discuss classic literature that questions authority and whether or not questioning authority is a good thing.

Why Included - This was certainly one of my favorite teen comedies from my day as I was just about to start high school the following year.  This comedy seems to resonate then as much as it does today.

Sorry For Partyin'

Title - Sorry For Partyin'
Author - Bowling for Soup
Release Date- July 28, 2009

Plot -The content of this CD is essentially an ode to the Crazy antics of Bowling for Soup.  A Band that has been around since 1994, they hit is big in 2005 with the release of their single 1985, an ode to previous music and hard partying ways that they seem to have missed.  They have continued this crazy chaos in their Album Sorry for Partyin'.  What this album does excellently is represent their desire to be a group who does not wish to take anything in life too seriously. 

It begins with an ode to Dance Music (to which they primarily hate).  They tease in the lyrics that they are writing this song because they need the money for things their families want.  It's second song, and first single on the album is called No Hablo Ingles, a reference to an inability to speak the English language.  The song really is an ode to not taking responsibility for anything, to which the refrain No Hablo Ingles aids them in this ability.  While primarily about the desire to live a life free of encumbrances, they seem to recognize that they are tied to a community of people they love, nevertheless.  Songs such as BFF, Me With No You, and I Just Wanna Be Loved refer to a need to be loved and connected either romantically or to friends that they have.  But don't take them too seriously, as I Hate L.A. is an ode to disliking the L.A. scene despite having Jimmy Kimmel and In and Out Burgers.

Critical Review-  Bowling for Soup, while coming out of the Punk music scene, with its simple chord sets and fairly repetitive music, is a refreshing breath of fresh air in the genre.  There is an air of refreshing non-seriousness about this group.  Wierd Al'Yankovic would not be able to parody this band as they are a parody in and of themselves.  They spend time taking stabs at people who write pop music because of the money, and for others who want others to do poorly at games with the song Choke.  And all the while they have the ability to develop a beautiful love ballad with Everything to Me.  I would say sit back, have fun, and enjoy the ride, because Bowling for Soup is never going to be Sorry for Partyin'

Reader's Annotation- So many different uses . . . you don't need no excuses, it's as easy as the third grade. The perfect getaway, it's all you gotta say, quatro cinco seis . . . no hablo ingles.  Never be Sorry for Partyin'.

About the Author- Jaret Reddick formed the band in 1994 with Band mates Erik Chandler, Chris Burney, and a previous drummer(now filled by Gary Wiseman since 1998).  The four decided that they wanted to create a different form of music that was happy.  They saw all of the message bands out there who were frequently wanted to decry their problems with life and relationships.  Bowling for Soup wanted to do something entirely different.  They wanted to make music that people would go to see and leave with a smile on your face.

While not afraid of being crass, they decided to create music that would not be so message heavy.  Hits such as I'm Gay are reflective of the desire to be happy, taking the original meaning of the term gay.  Even in Sorry for Partyin' they have never been afraid of innuendo as a means of humor.  In their song My Wena the joke is whether Reddick is singing about his dog, or a piece of his male anatomy.

Genre- Music, Punk

Curriculum Ties - Literature - Poetry

Music - Punk

Booktalking Ideas - N/A

Reading Level/Interest Age - Grade 10+

Challenge Issues - Crass Language and some questionable content in the Music

Overcoming Challenge - Compare it to modern music of the era and how it is relatively innocent in terms of its lyrics.  Discuss the use of double entendre and the ability to discuss methods and forms of humor.

Why Included - This has been one of my favorite Bands since the release of their single 1985; and this is one of my favorite albums.  Its humor and spirit are reflective of many of the teens I run across at the library.

Clueless

Title - Clueless
Author- Jane Austen (Emma)/Amy Heckerling -Director
Publication Date : July 19, 1995

Plot - Amy Heckerling's 1995 adaptation of Jane Austen's Book Emma tells the story of Cher(Alicia Silverstone), a High School student in Beverly Hills who decides to take a social interest in a girl, Tai(Brittany Murphy), who would not normally be considered in her Social Circle.  Through her machinations she ends up convincing the girl that she is really interested in Elton( Jeremy Sisto). This does not work itself out as she eventually finds that Elton's interests are more in Cher herself.  All of which brings us back to the person of Cher, who comes to realize that sometimes the life that you should be most involved with is your own, as when you step away from getting involves in the lives of others, things do tend to work themselves out, for them, and for yourself.

Critical Review - Amy Heckerling does a creditable job of adapting the work of Emma to the big screen and giving it a teenage sensibility.  Although maybe Heckerling did not have to stretch that far to confer upon high school students that kind of Characters that Austen had envisioned with Emma.  You have the social outcasts, as well as the people misconstruing intentions, and gossip abounding in a small little community.  This would seem to fit perfectly into the high school atmosphere.  The pace is light hearted and fun.. and Cher finds her own Mr. Knightly in the end, or as Cher would put it, her own Baldwin.

Reader's (Watcher's) Annotation - Sometimes the life that you try to save, will ultimately be your own.  Cher, in attempting to fix everyone else' life finds that her own is in a fix, and she just might lose the person she loves, to the person she tried to help.  Can she fix things in time?

Information about the Author - Jane Austen lived the vast majority of her life on the fringes of the English gentry, giving her the perfect place with which both to view and critique the manners and mannerisms of the English social set.  These societies seemed to have their own set of rules that they thought were OK to follow.  What sets Austen apart is her biting social commentary and a keen understanding of human nature and the foibles that one may get into when trying to do the right thing for the wrong reasons, or vise versa.  Much of her novelizations are commentaries about class structure, and the importance of love and family.

Amy Heckerling has been a box office darling and one of the few successful female directors in the business.  Like Austen herself, she has had to face a industry dominated by men, but through her wit and charm and an understanding of human nature has been able to make herself a success in her chosen profession.  She has directed such hits as Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Look Who's Talking, and Clueless, two of which have spawned TV series as result.

Genre - Movies, Comedy

Curriculum Ties - Discuss film adaptations of English literature - Literature

Booktalking Ideas - Do a combined study of Emma for a book talk and have a showing of Clueless at the Library.  One might also do a double feature with a film adaptation of Emma to compare it to.

Interest Age - Grade 9+

Challenge Issues - None

Why Included - I suppose aside from my love of Jane Austen and including another teen movie adaptation, there might be a side of me who is subtly paying homage to some of the former teen actors who have recently passed away i.e. Brittany Murphy.