John Hughes: A Career Study

Hughes became a cult filmmaker and icon of the 1980s by realistically capturing the tumultuous time of adolescence in a series of original, "fun" and relatable movies

John Hughes (CREDIT: Los Angeles Times)

by Jack Linsdell

John Hughes is a cultural phenomenon of the 1980s. Full stop. Forget being one of the defining filmmakers of the decade, or being responsible for creating a whole new genre of movies. No, Hughes has become something of a cinematic legend, a brand unto himself, someone whose films have transcended cultural and generational boundaries, to have an impact on the whole word, not just Hollywood. And, years after his death (in 2003), Hughes is still one of the most talked and blogged about filmmakers around, whose movies (some of which recently appeared on Netflix), are still being consumed by yet another new generation. That's quite a career, and quite an impact for a very humble, quiet genius. 

On February 18th 1950, Hughes was born into a substantial family unit - aside from his parents, he was surrounded by three sisters. He describes himself as "kind of quiet" as a kid, constantly being moved from city to city with his family, having very little stability, and very few friends. In fact, Hughes recounted how in most places he lived during childhood, there were often very few boys his age, meaning if he made friends they were always girls or older people. That meant that he spent a lot of time by himself, imagining things, surrounding himself with musical influences like the Beatles (who he adored), Bob Dylan and artists like Picasso. Interestingly, the aforementioned three artists were inspirational figures to Hughes because they "each moved their particular medium forward, and when they got to the point they were comfortable, moved on". Indeed, Hughes' childhood is a fantastic indicator to why he made the cult-classic movies we all love to this day. 

Many describe Hughes as a writer for both men and women. And, being surrounded by three sisters, and having very few (if any) friends that were boys, it's no surprise that most of his movies centred around female protagonists, especially young girls. Yet, this also explains how he was able to capture the female experience of the world so well as a man, which is why he's often described as a pioneer, someone who really understood his female audience and what they go through in life, despite belonging to the opposite sex. Continuing on, his lack of social interaction and time spent creating new worlds inside his head, explains so vividly how he managed to craft such immersive and imaginative movies. He was a creative, and like most of us, used his isolated childhood existence as a minefield for stories, characters and wacky set pieces. Hughes' career perhaps demonstrates most of all the extent that a creatives' early life can affect the type of work they do as an adult. 

Having always loved movies, and used the cinema as a place to escape the harsh realties of being a child in the '60s, Hughes could never imagine he'd actually be joining the Hollywood system within a few years. In fact, after selling his jokes (he was naturally very funny) to a string of successful comedians like Joan Rivers, he secured jobs in advertising, before eventually securing a visit of the National Lampoon Magazine one day in the early 1970s. This is where it all started for Hughes. He become an editor for the publication for many years, known for his high turn over rate, and immensely funny material. His articles named "My Penis" and "My Vagina" as part of April Fools Day, signified his ear for the rhythm of teenage language, as well as for the various indignities of teenage life in general which become hallmarks of his movies. His first script for the magazine, National Lampoon's Class Reunion was far from a success. Yet, on a second try in 1983, he wrote the infamous classic National Lampoon's Vacation, which along with his other script Mr Mom that year, secured him a three movie deal with Universal Pictures and highlighted him as one of the most interesting new writers in Hollywood at that time. That movie, despite launching Hughes' film career, also introduced him to long-time collaborator in actor John Candy who would go on to star in many of his films. 

In 1984, Hughes wrote the screenplay for his directorial debut Sixteen Candles, which would go on to earn so much praise for it's honest examinations of adolescence and high school dynamics that it formed a whole new movie genre. The coming-of-age teen comedy is solely born from John Hughes, specifically (I'd argue) Sixteen Candles. Regular readers know that although this is a particular favourite genre of mine, I've also talked at length about how it's one of the most successful ones around because it appeals to both young and older demographics (because everyone's been a teenager once). That's mostly because it brings audiences honest, emotional presentations of teenagers (and their families), but in a fun, original and often hilarious format. And, the genre couldn't be stronger today, with Hughes' work either inspiring TV shows (Netflix's Sex Education and Stranger Things) and forming the careers of Chloe Grace Moretz, Hailee Steinfeld and Emma Stone amongst others who have created their own modern classics of the genre like Blockers (which feels very much like Ferris Bueller's Day Off in it's highly entertaining format), The Edge of Seventeen, Easy A and Booksmart. Oh, and, Sixteen Candles is my favourite John Hughes movie, not just because of it's impact, but because it's a damn good movie too. 

The following year, brought the world perhaps Hughes' most known and loved movie, The Breakfast Club. This a movie that commonly ranks as his best, as well as being listed as one of the most defining movies in all of cinema's history - it was added to the National Film Registry in the US being labelled a culturally significant film. I like it a lot, although I wouldn't call it one of my favourites of his. Following teenagers from different high school cliques who end up in Saturday morning detention together, The Breakfast Club has a certain style and relatability to it that makes it a very cool and pioneering movie to watch. It's a little bit like Grease, and in fact, both movies had similar cultural impacts on teenagers at the time of their releases. It's a good watch, but you already knew that anyway. 

John Hughes' fast work rate (as noted by his bosses when he worked at National Lampoon) is clearly evident in the early part of his career, writing (and often directing) many films which were released with the same year, and most of which became cultural classics. It's quite an achievement and another severely overlooked skill that Hughes had. After 1985's Weird Science and 1986's Pretty in Pink, we get to Ferris Bueller's Day Off. This is one of Hughes' most "fun" movies, where although there's the usual emotional subtext and teenage relatability here, it's less of a dramatic movie than the likes of Sixteen Candles or Uncle Buck, and therefore holds a place as a lighter watch if you don't want to concentrate too hard. Anyway, following Ferris Bueller, a popular high school slacker who skips school for the day with his girlfriend and best friend for Chicago, but is chased down by their school dean. It's an hilarious movie with many brilliantly sketched, and designed gag-based sequences, and it's fourth-wall breaking (and end credits cookie) is clearly partly responsible for the success of Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool many years later. 

Skipping forward further now and we arrive in 1989 with another of my favourite Hughes movies, Uncle Buck. This movie (despite having it's usual entertainment value with some hilarious and memorable lines) is a very underated classic if you ask me. Sure, it's always on TV, but I don't think it ever gets the recognition it deserves. It's a heart-warming parable about family, class and parenting, and how we right a lot of people off due to their appearances and/or personal circumstances. Starring John Candy as the titular character, who comes over to supervise the teenager children of his middle-class suburban brother, the characterisation, performances and charm of Uncle Buck are some of the best in any movie you'll find. It feels like after several years of making films and perfecting his teen movie formula, Hughes really hits gold here. It's really worth a watch if you haven't seen it folks. 

Lastly, we end in the 1990s. There have been many defining Christmas movies like Elf over the years, which have cemented themselves as festive classics that are watched every year and therefore passed on to yet another generation. Hughes has two of them. First came Home Alone in 1990, which is really a John Hughes film (from it's absurdist humour, to family conflict) through and through, although he only wrote and produced it, allowing director Chris Columbus to make his name (and go on to big things like Harry Potter there after). And, it (like most children probabally) was my first introduction to Hughes before I know who the man was. And, in fact, when you watch and discover the other movies in his career, you recognise traits (like the family argument in the very first scene which starts many of his movies) and stars (Macaulay Calkin and John Candy) that reoccur throughout his entire filmography. Anyway, Hughes would go on to write and produced a very successful and funny sequel (1992's Home Alone 2: Lost in New York) and a soft reboot (Home Alone 3), establishing a cult series of movies. And, the second festive classic is Miracle on 34th Street. That 1994 Richard Attenborough-led fantasy flick was an adaption of the 1942 classic of the same name by Hughes, and like Home Alone, benefits from great airtime around the world every Christmas on TV. It's one thing to become a cult filmmaker and form a whole new movie genre, but it's another thing to be the creator/writer behind two of the most well-known and loved festive classic ever made. 

So, if there's one thing John Hughes' incredibly successful and prolific career demonstrates, it's that being the quiet, lonely child who is forced to live inside his imagination is not always a curse. In fact, it will actually make you a more relatable, popular and long-standing filmmaker, whose work will be continually remembered and loved for years to come because you dared to be original, authentic and very much who you are. That's what touches an audience. And, that's exactly what John Hughes did, and what he's still doing from his grave today.