Ferris Beuller's Day Off

Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) is a high school senior who is adored by "sportoes, motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, wasteoids, dweebies and dickheads, they all love him- they think he's a righteous dude." He decides to skip school, and convinces his best friend, Cameron, to help him and with Ferris' girlfriend Sloane they head off to Chicago for a day of fun. To make their way into the city, they borrow Cameron's father's one love, a 1961 Ferrari. Unfortunately, they have a problem with the car and this threatens to expose them all.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off has been one of my favorite movies for quite some time now, but I never picked up on the fact that it actually has a suicide prevention theme in its contents. My Media Studies 20 teacher pointed it out to me (I guess teachers actually do pick up on useful information) and after thinking about it I realized he is most definitely right. After discovering this, I think that Ferris took the day off not for personal benefit but to help his friend Cameron gain some measure of self worth. Cameron is very uptight and is over controlled by his parents and Ferris wants to show Cameron that the world is passing by him and he needs to wake up and embrace it. In a way it might be a bad message for teenagers because it probably is not the best idea to disobey your parents, skip school, and ruin your dad's Ferrari. But I think it does teach teenagers that it is important to live life to the fullest and have fun in your youth. As Ferris would say, "life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once and awhile, you could miss it."

This classic movie was written and directed by John Hughes who was also responsible for such films as The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles. Hughes died in early August of 2009 from a heart attack at the age of 59. His memory will certainly live on through the array of high school based films he has created throughout his prosperous career. Hughes was no an athlete but he was a big fan of the Detroit Red Wings and Gordie Howe. Later, Hughes paid tribute to Howe in Ferris Bueller's Day Off when Cameron wore a Howe jersey though out the film. I thought that was awesome seeing as I am from Saskatchewan and I also like Howe!

The casting for this movie was done perfectly- I couldn't imagine any other actors doing a better job! Mathew Broderick played the role of Bueller perfectly by having a lot of charisma and spunk- he just makes you want Ferris Bueller to be your best friend, or in my case boyfriend. The actors who played Cameron, Sloan and Principal Rooney also did an excellent job but my favorite actor throughout the movie was Grace (the Secretary) played by Edie McClurg. She is just so funny and every secretary should model their life after her! I've included a film clip with my favorite quote from the entire movie said while Grace and Mr. Rooney discussed Ferris.

If you haven't seen this movie, go out and buy it. Watch it until you can quote the entire movie, then come find me and we can be friends.