The Breakfast Club
Written , produced , and directed by John Hughes , The Breakfast Clubis a 1985 motion picture that stars five members of the 1980s iconic Brat Pack : Judd Nelson as John Bender , Molly Ringwald as Claire Standish , Emilio Estevez as Andrew Clark , Anthony Michael Hall as Brian Johnson , and Ally Sheedy as Allison Reynolds . These five scholar , who make up the five original – the malefactor , the princess , the jock , the mastermind , and the basket subject – are forced to spend a Saturday in custody under the strict supervision of Principal Vernon .
This quintessential 80s movie defined generation of stripling and still stands asone of the most influential coming - of - eld films ever made . It ’s a timeless classic that keeps popping up in pop culture , as many other motion-picture show and television shows often reference it . Plus , many of us extension it regularly in our everyday lives . Today , we list the ten best pop culture character reference created byThe Breakfast Club .
“EAT MY SHORTS.”
The Breakfast Clubis an insanely repeatable movie . We could spend the whole twenty-four hours quoting the most memorable line , re - enacting parts of the film , and discussing the best zingers . One of Bender ’s many screaming and creative retort , “ run through my shorts , ” is certainly one of the picture show ’s most memorable one - lining .
This euphemism for “ exhaust my s**t ” is also famous for being Bart Simpson ’s catchphrase onThe Simpsons , but Bender really used it first . In theFuturamaepisode “ A self-aggrandising Piece of Garbage , ” the robot Bender ( who was named after John Bender ) finds a Bart Simpson dame that say “ feed my shorts ” and Bender obliges .
“NEO-MAXI-ZOOM-DWEEBIE”
It is a well - have intercourse fact that a lot of the talks fromThe Breakfast Clubwas advertizing - libbed . Judd Nelson , who portray Bender , advertising - libbed the now - infamous insult “ neo - maxi - rapid growth - dweebie ” . In the scene where the radical begin pose to know each other by talking about their parents , Bender calls Brian “ a parent ’s wet pipe dream , ” adding : " Face it , you ’re a neo - maxi - soar - dweebie . What would you be doing if you were n’t out making yourself a better citizen ? "
To this solar day , we have no approximation where the “ soar ” came from , but this insult , coined by Nelson , is often used to distinguish the ultimate dweeb .
“YOU KNOW WHAT I GOT FOR CHRISTMAS?”
During the group therapy scene , as it ’s become known , Bender has yet another one of his fierce outburst and takes it out on Claire . Frustrated with Claire for exclaim , even though , from his head of view , she has everything and he has nothing , Bender give us an insight into his life sentence , namely his human relationship with his father : " You know what I bewilder for Christmas this class ? It was a banner f****n ' class at the old Bender family ! I get a cartonful of cigarettes . The honest-to-god man grabbed me and state ‘ Hey ! Smoke up Johnny ! ’ "
In the first installment ofCommunity , which is an court toThe Breakfast Cluband dedicate to John Hughes , Abed Nadir basically re - enacted Bender ’s oral communication to interrupt an controversy that had violate out between members of the survey radical . The line was also enunciate inFamily Guyby Tony the Tiger .
“DON’T MESS WITH THE BULL, YOUNG MAN. YOU’LL GET THE HORNS.”
" Mess with the bull , get the horns . " You have credibly heard this one before , whether it ’s from someone in your sprightliness or from a fictitious fiber . And whileThe Breakfast Clubdid not coin this phrase , it is a wide recognized fact that it popularized it . The line of reasoning is say by Principal Vernon to Bender as a response to another memorable cable : “ Does Barry Manilow cognize that you raid his wardrobe ? ”
The phrase has since been cite by motion-picture show likeEasy A , The Pacifier , andVeronica Mars , as well as TV show up likeSuits , NCIS , andEverybody hump Raymond .
A BRAIN. AN ATHLETE. A BASKET CASE. A PRINCESS. A CRIMINAL.
WhileThe Breakfast Clubcertainly did n’t invent these five stereotypes unremarkably found in high school day , and , by extension , fictional story set in high schools , it did popularise these full term . The movie takes a bass diving into these five archetype and deconstruct them in parliamentary procedure to search beyond the superficial , which is why it ’s had such an impact on movie theater , tonic civilisation , and its consultation . In his essay , Brian drop a line : " You see us as you want to see us — in the simplest term , in the most convenient definitions . But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain … and an jock … and a hoop case … a princess … and a malefactor . "
While time sure enough have transfer sinceThe Breakfast Clubcame out , these five archetypes – whatever we decided to call them – come out to be timeless . television shows likeCougar Town , One Tree Hill , andDeadly Class , just to name a few , have all made references to these type .
THE DANCE
One of the most iconic scenes fromThe Breakfast Clubis the dance montage coiffure to Karla DeVito ’s " We Are Not Alone . " After smoking some Cannabis sativa and hold a core - to - heart , the kidskin commence running rampant around the library and perform various terpsichore motion . The part when they take spell dance on the rail is often used in other medium to cite this John Hughes classic , as see inCommunity , The Goldbergs , Cougar Town , andThe Simpsons .
Interestingly enough , this iconic conniption could have been entirely different . Namely , in the original script , only Claire was suppose to trip the light fantastic toe . However , when Molly Ringwald approached Hughes about her insecurity as a dancer , he changed the hand .
THE FIST IN THE AIR
The final stab of a film can determine how your hearing leaves the theater . Hopeful ? Sobbing ? Overjoyed ? But crafting a memorable ending , a last shot that will be talked about for decades , is challenge . The Breakfast Clubhas one of the most memorable final shots in movie history . As Simple Mind ’s “ Do n’t You ( Forget About Me ) ” play in the background signal , Bender triumphantly thrusts his clenched fist into the air , glad that he finally connect with someone .
This unforgettable moment has been reference by legion movies and telecasting shows . InEasy A , a movie that is chock - full of references to 80s movie , Emma Stone ’s theatrical role , Olive , says this : “ I want Judd Nelson thrust his clenched fist into the melodic line because he bed he got me . ” In the end , Todd ( Penn Badgley ) does indeed thrust his clenched fist into the air when she agrees to go out with him . The fist in the line is also referenced inPitch Perfect , Psych , andUnbreakable Kimmy Schmidt .
DON’T YOU (FORGET ABOUT ME)
" Do n’t You ( Forget About Me ) " is pretty much a teenage hymn . The iconic birdcall has been sport in multitudinous movies and video prove over the year , usually as a way of paying homage to John Hughes ' classic teenager movie . Here are just a few examples you could jibe out : community of interests , One Tree Hill , Pitch Perfect , andEasy A.
THE POSTER
The bill sticker forThe Breakfast Clubis one of the most memorable movie posters of all clip . The poster boast the primary characters huddle together and cite the five “ type ” described in the picture , using slightly different terms . It was photographed by the famous prize - gain ground portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz , and it impacted the means teen films were market from then on .
Over the tenner , various other movies , TV show , comic books , and even gum anime have devote court toThe Breakfast Clubby vivify the iconic bill . The reference - overdosedReady Player Onedid it , the cast ofSpider - Man : Homecoming(a moving-picture show powerfully influenced by John Hughes films ) did it , the cast ofWonder Woman 1984did it , comics likeBuffy the Vampire SlayerandPower Rangersdid it , andAttack on Titandid it .
THE CONCEPT
The Breakfast Clubis essentially a bottle moving picture . The storey take on place in Shermer High School , for the most part in the school subroutine library . The library is where the most important parts of the story happen . Those let in the group therapy scene , the dance montage , and the luncheon aspect , among many others .
This concept of a group of teenagers , or sometimes grown - up people , being limit in a place like a library , a classroom , a study room , or whatever , forced to interact and connect , is often used in other culture medium to referenceThe Breakfast Club . We ’ve see this done inSpider - Man : Homecoming , Deadly Class , Riverdale , One Tree Hill , Blindspot , Dawson ’s Creek , The Vampire Diaries , Avatar : The Last Airbender , and so on . It ’s an instantly recognizable visual clue .
NEXT : Mean Girls : 10 Pop Culture References That Are Still Around Today
