Mean-spirited
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suzy8track — 14 years ago(December 01, 2011 01:27 PM)
@rdpepper: You said it perfectly! I don't recall any rape in this movie at all! Ted was trying to take Carolyn home, but she was too drunk to tell him where she lived so they ended up sleeping in the car, but it was apparent that NOTHING happened! I love this movie because at the time I was that age and could totally relate to these characters. It was one of the first times where I watched a movie about high school kids where the actors are actually of high school agenot in their 20s!
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meLazlo1953 — 11 years ago(August 22, 2014 06:09 AM)
Not so sure nothing happened - Ted says "did we ?" and Carolyn answers "yeah, I'm pretty sure". Hard to believe Ted would forget his first, but we aren't sure how much if anything he's had to drink - just kind of suggestive
It's all in the reflexes!
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minhal92 — 13 years ago(April 07, 2012 08:55 AM)
Obviously you didn't get the humor in this movie. I thought the Chinese guy was pretty funny, you gotta take the movie in a light way cause its fairly obvious they're making jokes!
And I agree, it was better than the cra* that hollywood is spitting out nowadays. -
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CCRider01 — 10 years ago(May 03, 2015 12:54 AM)
Now, the material is dated in terms of its social responsibilities
Social responsibilities? Who the heck wants to see social responsibilities in a damn comedy film, especially teen comedy? Not me. I will take "rude, funny, and lacking social graces" for $100 Alex. -
The-Last-Prydonian — 9 years ago(May 13, 2016 05:03 PM)
Social responsibilities? Who the heck wants to see social responsibilities in a damn comedy film, especially teen comedy? Not me. I will take "rude, funny, and lacking social graces" for $100 Alex.
I agree, in terms of the Chinese stereotype, it's not as if anyone else from any other nationality hasn't been been on the receiving end of comedic stereotyping. Hell, the Americans have themselves and speaking as a Scot I've laughed at over the top comic representations of my people. Perfect examples being Grounds keeper Willy in
The Simpsons
and Fat Bastard in the Austin Powers movie's. And Gedde Watanabe was simply hilarious in his role as Long Duk Dong. This was a comedy hence it wasn't meant to be taken too seriously. I think most sensible people can see beyond the obvious caricature which was there for comedy value. Saying it's dated in terms of it's social responsibilities I think is very condescending as I think it implies that most people aren't intelligent enough to see what is an obvious stereotype. That ironically to me is more offensive. -
three-amigos — 13 years ago(June 18, 2012 12:46 PM)
I grew up with the "edited for television" version of this film, and recently saw the original on DVD for the first time. In the extra interviews on the disc, the "politically inncorrect" humor of the era is addressed and it is openly recognized that it would be hard to get a Hollywood studio to make this film today with the script as it was made in the early 1980s. The actor who played the Chinese boy seemed to be ok with it in the interviews, he seems quite content that he created a memnorable, funny character who pretty much stole every scene he was in. He wasn't playing a stereotype, just a young teen from another country, limited English and unleashed into a playground of American teens. There was concern in the interviews of how close the film skirted the "date rape" issue. In the end, Jake stated in the film that he could have taken advantage of the passed out girl, but he did not actually do it. And AMH as the geek did spend the night with her in the car. It is never shown that he actually took advantage of the situation. For him, it was enough that she thinks something probably happened between them and she was ok with it. I have always concluded that nothing actually happened between them, and the geek was just happy to finally be socially accepted by someone like her. I know this film was rated PG before PG13 existed, and since I have memories of multible viewings of the edited for tv version, I was surprised by the close up body shots in the shower scene and the 2 F words. For me the shower scene really wasn't necesary for the film to work, and even Hughes chose to cut out simularly scripted scenes in the Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueleer's Day Off. In the disc interviews, the general opinion was that the John Hughes trilogy 16C/TBC/PIP was written the way teens of the era really talked, it wasn't trying to be politically correct or to dumb down the kids. There is a realism in the way the kids talked, the way it was filmed on location in the suburbs using mostly real teenagers, not just in a LA studio with already popular actors or young looking adults playing teen roles. I can see why some people looking through the politically correct lenses of today might take issue with this film. But as a teen who grew up in the eighties, I can honestly say that I went to school with people who could have easily been the characters in the Breakfast Club. John Hughes did capture that era with a realism that is sadly lacking from most fims made about teens that have been made since.
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laeyisoracle — 13 years ago(September 20, 2012 09:37 PM)
LOL, the fact people still think he was a Chinese exchange student is racist in itself. He was a KOREAN exchange student. So, all Asians are Chinese?! THAT is racist!!!
J/K, but it does give something to think about(most people I've ran into, especially on this board, still think Long Duck Dong is Chinese). Saying a Korean is Chinese is like saying a Cuban is Mexican or saying an Irish is German. Ironic thing, that's actually what was more common back then(everybody referring to all different Asian nationalities as being "Chinese". It really hasn't change that much, has it(again, J/K, LOL).