Sixteen Candles (1984)

Director: John Hughes
Stars: Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Justin Henry
Runtime: 93 minutes

Performances: 6/10
Screenplay: 5/10
Special Effects: N.A.
Costumes/Makeup: 8/10
Editing: 5/10
Cinematography: 5/10
Score/Soundtrack: 4/10

Verdict: As suggested by its title, “Sixteen Candles” takes place on the sixteenth birthday of Samantha, which to her dismay is forgotten by her entire family. Add to that a couple of problems encountered at her high school, and what should’ve been a day of celebration and happiness turns into one of the worst days of her teenage years.

The only reason I watched that movie is the fact that it was directed by John Hughes and starred Molly Ringwald, a combination that proved to be effective in one of my favorite coming of age movies ever made: “The Breakfast Club”. And while “Sixteen Candles” doesn’t hold up as much as its follow up, I still had a lot of fun watching it. Yes, almost everything in it, ranging from the acting to the soundtrack, is over the top and cheesy, but part of me feels that the movie would not have worked otherwise. However, what made the film enjoyable to me was the very realistic way Hughes captured high school life during the 1980s, transforming the picture into sort of a time machine for the audience. Now no 1980s flick is complete without a bit of controversy, and for “Sixteen Candles” it came in the form of Long Duk Dong (played by Gedde Watanabe), a Chinese exchange student that checks all the boxes of an Asian stereotypical character, and that would have been slammed had the movie come out today. His presence annoyed me not only for the reasons I just mentioned, but also because his character was clearly written for comic relief and is given way too much screenplay without ever contributing to the story.

“Sixteen Candles” may not be on the same level of “The Breakfast Club”, but is still a fun watch and will more than satisfy fans of the genre.

Final Grade: 6/10