Comments on: John Hughes’ Script ‘Grisbys Go Broke’ Is A Hot Property https://staging2.theplaylist.net/john-hughes-script-grisbys-go-broke-is-20100308/ Thu, 12 Nov 2020 01:00:41 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1 By: Anonymous https://staging2.theplaylist.net/john-hughes-script-grisbys-go-broke-is-20100308/#comment-17227 Tue, 09 Mar 2010 03:11:40 +0000 http://theplaylist.wpengine.com/?p=4323#comment-17227 Interesting point hetyd4580 – I too noticed the pliability of these actors' ages and their Brat Pack roles. As a damaged but not-to-be-fucked-with teen in the 80's, John Hughes movies were to this author trumped up junk, emo-before-emo, high gloss, specifically American entertainment weaponry. Only 16 Candles seemed fresh, with its heroine bluntly saying 'fuck'. The Hughes characters were carved as role models, yet as heavily costumed and coded as The Archies.
That some of these characters/actors shapeshifted into the even shittier St Elmo's Fire, a serious piece of movie crap and even an insulting portrayal of young careerhood to me, a thirteen year old who hadn't even rented his first apartment.
Not my generation.
It is a mistake to recall these Hughes movies on a 'Harold and Maude', 'East of Eden', even 'My Bodyguard' level, because they didn't even get close.

]]> By: hetyd4580 https://staging2.theplaylist.net/john-hughes-script-grisbys-go-broke-is-20100308/#comment-17204 Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:11:35 +0000 http://theplaylist.wpengine.com/?p=4323#comment-17204 Interesing blog. A key to understanding Hughes’ work is knowing the distinction between Generation X and Generation Jones (between the Boomers and Xers). Many of his films were about GenJones characters, and many in the Brat Pack were GenJonesers. This was sometimes confusing, since the same actors sometimes played GenXers (Breakfast Club) and sometimes GenJonesers (St. Elmos’s Fire) within the same year.

Google Generation Jones, and you’ll see it’s gotten lots of media attention, and many top commentators from many top publications and networks (Washington Post, Time magazine, NBC, Newsweek, ABC, etc.) now specifically use this term. In fact, the Associated Press' annual Trend Report chose the Rise of Generation Jones as the #1 trend of 2009. I found this page helpful because it gives a pretty good overview of recent media interest in GenJones: http://generationjones.com/2009latest.html

It is important to distinguish between the post-WWII demographic boom in births vs. the cultural generations born during that era. Generations are a function of the common formative experiences of its members, not the fertility rates of its parents. And most analysts now see generations as getting shorter (usually 10-15 years now), partly because of the acceleration of culture. Many experts now believe it breaks down more or less this way:

DEMOGRAPHIC boom in babies: 1946-1964
Baby Boom GENERATION: 1942-1953
Generation Jones: 1954-1965
Generation X: 1966-1978

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