12 Times A Director Went On An INSANE Streak Of Great Movies
8. John Hughes: Five Films From 1984-1987
The Streak: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Planes, Trains, And Automobiles
Many people will argue that the 1970s was the greatest decade in cinema, with the age of New Hollywood bringing groundbreaking techniques and fresh voices who'd change the course of cinema completely. But, while perhaps not having the same importance of the 70s, the 80s is when filmmakers remembered that going to the cinema is about fun and entertainment, and few embraced that like John Hughes.
If we were focusing on his writing too, rather than just directing, then this list would be even more impressive, but as it is there are still some of the very best comedies that the decade - and indeed cinema as a whole - has to offer.
What's so clear throughout most of these movies is the authenticity on display. Hughes had a gift for understanding and portraying teenagers in a way few could match, whether it's dealing with losing your virginity and first loves, feeling like an outsider, or worried about what will come after the glory days of high school. The films aren't just hilarious - and feature some great feats of directing as well as writing: the dance in The Breakfast Club; the parade in Ferris Bueller, to give but two examples - but feel real and relatable in a way that's all-too-rare.
Even when moving on to more adult comedy in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Hughes' comic voice doesn't lose anything. It's a different kind of movie, but an example of his gift for taking well-worn genres and making them come alive with a new take, fresh script, and stellar chemistry between its performers. He didn't direct a film after 1991's Carly Sue, and died far-too-young at 59, but he's left behind a run of films that every new generation can look to and find themselves in.
[JH]