I Can See Your Beauty: The Breakfast Club (1985)

Romantic Moment #1

The Breakfast Club (1985)

So one of my all time favorite movies is The Breakfast Club. I just love the story of how you have all these different people crossing social circles and befriending each other. It is something that could not be done today.

***Spoiler Alert***

So the movie begins one Saturday morning:

It turns out that five very different students have been sentenced with detention. We have Allison Reynolds (Ally Sheedy), “the basket case” who just came for fun; Andrew Clark (Emilio Estevez), “the athlete”, who recieved detention for bullying a kid; John Bender (Judd Nelson), “the criminal”, sent there because of his acting up;  Claire Standish (Molly Ringwald), “the princess”, caught skipping school to go shopping; and Brian Johnson (Anthony Michael Hall), “the brain”, who brought a flare gun to school. 

In the beginning everyone abides by their cliques, Claire and Andrew sit together as they are on the highest level of the totem pole, while the rest sit amongst themselves. At first they keep their distance and Bender riles everyone, but through the course of the day they all bond together sharing their most personal secrets and working out their dysfunctions.

Allison feels ignored and therefore is a compulsive liar and a klepto, seeking out attention. Andrew hates his overbearing father who is always pressuring him. That is one of the reasons why he was bullying another kid, his father said he wasn’t being manly enough. Bender is abused by his father and ignored the rest of the time. Claire feels confined by the role she is in, as everyone sees her a certain way when in reality she has hardly ever dated and is a virgin. Brian feels so pressured by his family to be perfect and get into a good college, that he contemplated suicide over getting a bad grade in woodshop. Through these discussions, everyone feels much better and is much happier. But at the same time they feel sad and scared that once they are back in school Monday they will no longer be friends and things will continue as they have before.

Before the day ends, they hook up the sound system and have a big dance. Claire and Bender hook up and so do Allison and Andrew. Poor Brian gets stuck writing their detention assignment.

In the end Claire gives Bender one of her diamond earrings so they’ll never forget that moment. Allison steals Andrew’s Captain letter and the two kiss, while Brian gets nothing (poor nerdy guy). And the film ends with Bender’s triumphant arm thrust and Simple Mind’s Don’t You Forget About Me playing in the background.

Most Romantic Moment

Now what I consider  the most romantic moment happens at the end. Emilio Estevez, and let’s face it, if you know me at all you knew that the scene was going to include something about him. I mean look at this gorgeous man!

So at the end of the film, after their crazy dance party (of which I love watching Emilio dance); Claire notices that Andrew has been looking at Allison and she is feeling kinda bored and decides to give Allison a makeover.

Claire pushes Allison’s hair back and does her makeup, but nothing too showy, mostly natural and she comes out. When she goes over to Andrew he is shocked at what he sees and says one of the most romantic things ever.

Andrew: [after Claire has given Allison a makeover] What happened to you?

Allison Reynolds: Why? Claire did it… What’s wrong?

Andrew: Nothing’s wrong… it’s just so different, you know? I can see your face.

Allison Reynolds: Is that good or bad?

Andrew: It’s good.

So romantic!

I mean I just absolutely love how he says “I can see your face.” He doesn’t say that that “you look hot” or “you look so much better than before”. What he says is that “I can see you even clearer than before.” And it’s not like this some new-flung thing. He was interested in her when they went to get the sodas, trying to get to know her better.  Later when she is sharing things about herself, he pays deep attention and defends her when the other people call her bizarre.

But the best thing of all is just the fact that when he tells her that she is beautiful, he’s not saying she is beautiful because she changed herself, but that she was always beautiful and know he can see it even better than before.

For more on The Breakfast Club, go to Heaven on Earth

For more on Judd Nelson, go to When Everything is Going Your Way

For more on the ’80s, go to In Love With the ’80s (Pink Tux to the Prom)

For more on Audrey Hepburn, go to O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree