It’s hard to believe that the movie SIXTEEN CANDLES is now
36 years old. As a matter of fact most of those classic John Hughes films are
around that age now. And yet in the minds of those who first saw them on the
big screen years ago those characters, those actors, will always stay the same
age forever. Thoughts of the antics and things that happened to them will be
etched in our minds as well.
Samantha “Sam” Baker (Molly Ringwald) wakes up to a world
that has forgotten her, in particular her sweet sixteen birthday. It’s easy to
see why since her sister Ginny (Blanche Baker) is about to get married the next
day. With grandparents coming and spending the night at their house and
preparations needing to be met things are in turmoil at her house.
In addition to this problem Sam is upset that her dream
crush Jake (Michael Schoeffling) as far as she’s concerned has no idea she
exists. He’s too busy with his girlfriend and the most popular girl in school
Caroline (Haviland Morris). When Jake accidentally gets hold of a secret sex
quiz being passed around and gets Sam’s answers, he takes notice of her.
On the bus ride home Sam is approached by geeky freshman Ted
(Anthony Michael Hall). She pushes him away but he doesn’t give up. When she
gets home she finds more disappointment waiting as she finds her grandparents
have adopted an exchange student named Long Duck Dong (Gedde Watanabe). Not
only that, they insist she take him along with her to the school dance she’s
going to that night.
Sam and Jake’s paths never seem to cross but the same can’t
be said of her and Ted. Eventually the two of them have a heart to heart talk
and Ted lets her know that Jake is interested in her. He asks her one small
favor in return for helping her meet Jake: let him borrow her panties. Why? To
prove to his friends the two of them were together. From the dance everyone
heads to a party at Jakes house Caroline has invited them to.
The party turns into a wild affair with kids tearing up the
home of Jake’s parents. It turns out Caroline invited more people than he
expected. Disgusted with her, even more so since she spends the party drunk,
Jake attempts to reach out to Sam not realizing she’s there at the party. Will
the pair finally meet up? Or will Sam and Jake both be left disappointed?
The movie works on numerous levels. We have the story of a
sister feeling forgotten in her older sibling’s wake. Unappreciated for who and
what she is. At least she feels that way from her point of view. We have the
pining for someone who has no idea that we exist. But here again it’s her
perspective of that rather than reality. And we have the teen comedy filled
with semi-naughty jokes and beer guzzling antics aplenty. All of these are
brought together in a mix that Hughes was always able to handle well.
None of this would work without a group of actors able to
handle the task ahead of them. Ringwald was born to play these parts, the
disillusioned young girl who felt she wasn’t recognized or attractive enough
for anyone but who was more than she realized. Hall is at his geeky best here,
playing the part full on and over the top, just what it requires. Face it,
these two are the center pieces of the film and the supporting casts around
them only helps to bring off the whole.
Hughes had a knack for understanding the minds and behaviors
of teens in his films. At least the teens of those times. He captured their
youthful enthusiasms, their angst, their desires, their beliefs and their
goofiness. He did so with a lovingness that never made them look stupid or
gross but human. That is an achievement that few directors have been able to do
over the years. To do so in more than on movie is remarkable.
While the movie has been out on disc before, it is now
getting the Arrow Video treatment. That means it looks sharper and cleaner than
ever before and includes plenty of extras. To being with this is a 4K scan of
the original negative, meaning the best image possible. And extras? Hang on to
your hat. They include an alternate “home video” soundtrack prepared for the
VHS and laserdisc releases, the option to watch additional scenes from the
extended version separately, “Casting Sixteen Candles” an audio interview with
casting director Jackie Burch, “When Gedde Met Deborah” a newly filmed
conversation between actors Gedde Watanabe and Deborah Pollack, “Rudy the
Bohunk” a new interview with John Kapelos, “The In-Between” a new interview
with camera operator Gary Kibbe, “The New Wave Nerd” a new interview with
filmmaker Adam Rifkin who shadowed Hughes while working as an extra on the set,
“A Very Eighties Fairytale” a new video essay written and narrated by writer
Soraya Roberts looking at the film from a contemporary feminist perspective,
“Celebrating Sixteen Candles” an archive documentary with interviews from the
cast and crew, theatrical trailers, TV spots and radio spots, an image gallery,
a pdf of the original shooting script, a reversible sleeve with original and
newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck and for the first pressing only an
illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Nikki
Baughan and Bryan Reesman.
My guess is most fans will already own a copy of this film.
It doesn’t matter. This one is the one to have in your collection, looking
better than ever and loaded with more items to watch than ever. As is always
the case, Arrow Video has outdone themselves here.
Click here to order.
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