"Ferris Bueller's Day Off" portrays an attitude most adults, and therefore, most filmmakers ignore - the way the world is seen through the eyes of teenagers. This movie captures that essence all the while being a mainstream comedy and a hysterical one at that.
We meet Ferris Bueller (Broderick), and right from the get-go it's obvious (but not to his parents) he is faking an illness so he can stay home from school. This is the basic symbolism of which the entire movie relies upon, where all the adults seem out of touch. The fact the parents aren't smart enough to realize he's faking shows how clever kids can be. We also meet Ferris's jealous sister Jeanie (Grey), who has a bad case of sibling rivalry. This element drives a lot of the action and is a plotline not often found in most movies involving teens.
Ferris proceeds to narrate the film in a classy, funny way. He doesn't know much about math and science, but he does know a lot about life, people, and having fun. What he wants to do is take a day off and show his best friend how to have some fun. That friend is the depressed hypochondriac Cameron Frye, portrayed quite well by Alan Ruck. Ferris has a kind of psychological control over Cameron and when he tells him to pick him up Cameron refuses, but then guilt trips himself into going along with Ferris.
We also meet Ed Rooney (Jones), the Dean of Students who is obsessed with catching Ferris to show the example he sets is "a first class ticket to nowhere." Rooney is somewhat of the cliche anal-retentive administrator, but the atmosphere of the film is so zany and satirical even the typical elements seem fresh.
So Ferris, his girlfriend Sloane (Sara), and Cameron take on the city of Chicago. They take Cameron's father's Ferrari essentially to add to the risk. We also watch Rooney as he tries to catch Ferris and we really hope that he doesn't.
Unlike most comedies, the protagonists in this story aren't trying to overcome a conflict, they are just being themselves and doing and saying funny things. They do get into a few situations that could blow their cover, but their teenage wit and fast thinking save them every time.
Meanwhile, Jeanie and Rooney are so obsessed with catching Ferris their paths eventually cross and the result is a strange, but funny turn of events.
"Ferris Bueller's Day Off" is a genius comedy. It's very funny, original, well written, and well acted. It's not preachy in terms of symbolism, but its style is so brilliant it's in a class all its own.
By : Chad Polenz
Source: rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
Rating: 0
Writer-director John Hughes was about the best thing to happen to teenage audiences in the 80s. His smart, focused characters were a far remove from the jocks, bimbos, and nerds that usually dominated teen-oriented fare. I'm not as taken with FERRIS BUELLER as its legions of fans, but I can see why it's so popular. Its simple wish-fulfilment storyline is appealing not only to the high school seniors it targets but just about anyone who looks back on their graduating years with fondness.
Basically, Chicago high schooler Ferris (Matthew Broderick) decides to skip an exam and takes his two best friends Cameron (Alan Ruck) and Sloane (Mia Sara, who has nothing to do in her role) along for the ride. Film is set in the same limited timeframe of several other Hughes pictures and stays frothy and upbeat for most of the way until his trademark teen angst infiltrates - via Cameron, the proverbial skeleton at this feast - and brings the story back down to earth. I think this is one of the bad calls of the film, mainly because we've seen it in most other Hughes productions of the period - this time I would have liked to see Hughes follow his main character's advice and take the day off himself.
My major reservation, however, is that there seems to be no reason why we should accept Ferris as the big wheel on campus that he is made out to be, especially when we only ever see him in the company of two of his friends. Other than to infuriate his sister (Jennifer Grey) there is no real purpose for this hero-worship that I can find. Clearly, we are meant to accept Ferris on face value, which is why he addresses us, the audience, throughout the movie. He is part philosopher, part guru, part Renaissance Man (how many teenagers know all the words to 'Danke Schoen', for example?) who can appreciate everything from ball games and Ferraris to art exhibitions and the Beatles. Matthew Broderick makes Ferris an engaging character - as written, he would be difficult to play without being smug or coy - and gets us on his side. But hes just too infallible. Ferris is so assured and thorough that we never fear he is in any danger of being caught by truant-hating principal Jeffrey Jones. Furthermore, he avoids all confrontation by 'remote control', i.e. the meticulous preparation of tape recordings, phone calls, answering machines, prop dummies, intercoms, computers, and keyboard samplers. Without these conflicts there is no tension - I realize that this is the point of course, and that Bueller's 'day off' also includes not having to deal with authority figures, but there should have been more moments like the finale (when he has to think fast and act on his feet) that might have given us the chance to appreciate his quick-wittedness first-hand.
Broderick is at his funniest when playing the part of the loving son to his parents, but the comic highlights come mainly from his nemesis Jeffrey Jones: he and Hughes have wonderful timing together. I also love the way Hughes incorporates diegetic musical cues (upon the mention of a character's name, upon the closeup of a face) to often hilarious effect. Overall, film has a relaxed, kick-back-your-heels feeling to it: it's like driving along the road listening to one of your favorite songs on the radio. Hughes eventually weaned himself off directing and turned to writing-producing instead. A short-lived TV series FERRIS BUELLER followed four years later - I'm one of the few who liked it better than the movie.
