"They all adore him. They think he's a righteous dude."

Last night we happened to catch Ferris Bueller's Day Off on cable right as it was beginning, and that movie continues to amaze me -- it holds up really well, even though the older you are, the more you realize certain plot holes are ridiculous. Watching it, we were simultaneously admiring things they get away with that would never work now, things that are still hilarious, and things that should've struck us as crazy the first time around and totally didn't.

One of those things? How Matthew Broderick downright minces through most of that movie. In particular, the scene at the fancy restaurant when he delivers a monologue in the powder room, he practically sashays. I'm not saying this means anything about him, or at all; just that when I first saw this film, like most kids I'm sure, I LOOOOVED him and thought he was just the ultimate dreamboat boyfriend, the coolest guy imaginable. Oh, I crushed hard on Ferris. And now he comes off kind of like a fey princess. So... you know, it's just an issue of seeing it through a more jaded, older lens.

But there's a million other random things that leap out at you. I love that they got inside Chicago's art museum and used all those shots of iconic paintings, which would probably be so impossible today. The parade scene must've been a crazy undertaking, because that is a LOT of people in downtown Chicago, and they clearly didn't use a soundstage, which I really adore. Also, if Mr. Rooney could call Ferris's mom at work to tell her that he'd been sick nine times, and he tried calling the Peterson house because he was suspicious that something was rotten in the state of Bueller, why didn't he call Sloane Peterson's father at work to double-check that he'd actually been speaking to him earlier? When did Sloane stop to re-record her answering-machine message? If the Ferrari is Cameron's dad's prized possession, why was the special garage unlocked and why were the keys sitting in the ignition? Why does Ferris flip out at Cameron for telling Rooney to be with Sloane when they pick her up, then tongue-kiss her in front of Rooney while pretending to be her father? Why would the cops arrest Jeannie for making a phony phone call, bring in her mother because they don't believe her story about an intruder, and then tell Mrs. Bueller that Jeannie has clearly had a pretty good scare? And what happened when the REAL Abe Froman showed up for his noon lunch reservation and showed photo ID proving his identity? Did Abe just conveniently decide not to go through with his lunch date? WHAT? WHAT OF THE SAUSAGE KING?

I mean, they're silly things that you totally let go because the entire film is a fantasy anyway, and they don't diminish my love of the movie, but you know how it is -- I saw that film when I was too young to understand half the jokes (I think I was... ten, maybe?) but somehow that made it even awesomer for me because I felt so mature, and it imprinted on me as the Best Movie Ever. And it's always weird to step away from those movies you loved as a kid and then come back and be like, "Okay, still hilarious, but I never noticed THAT before."

My favorite discovery is that there is a rather large typo in the music credits, where they refer to the iconic song they use when the two parking attendants hijack the Ferrari as the "Stars Wars Theme Song."

I'm dreading the day somebody decides it's time to do a proper remake of this film. If it were today, they'd probably give it to Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens, and, like, Jack Black would play Mr. Rooney and Rachel Dratch would be cast as in the Edie McClurg role, and a Jonas Brother would get to be Charlie Sheen, all drugged out at the police station and macking on Jeannie -- who, of course, would be Miley Cyrus. And then I would pass out and never wake up again.

Comments

[JennyM]

SHHHHH! Don't even think such a thing, lest it come to pass!

[Her Ladyship]

I was at a BBQ a little while back and got overwhelmed by the heat, so I went inside the host's house to cool off for a bit. "Ferris Bueller" was on TV and I sat down to watch it, grateful to have something to do while my body temperature dropped. As I did, a bunch of kids at the BBQ kept drifting in and out and to a tee, every single one of them exclaimed upon seeing it, "Ferris Bueller!!!!" So despite the world going to hell in a hand basket, at least the next generation knows and loves Ferris. Things can't be that bad....

BTW: I first saw "Ferris Bueller" in a double-feature with "Pretty in Pink" for $2. BEST. DOUBLE FEATURE. EVER.

[High School Seussical]

I always assumed that Ferris and the gang looked at the reservation book and picked a name that hadn't showed up yet. That Abe Froman had a noon lunch appointment, and it was already 12:15 or so and they knew he was not going to make it anyway.

They did have a Ferris Buehler TV show with Charlie Schlatter as Ferris and Jen Aniston pre-nose job as his sister. Ami Dolenz played Sloan. So they've already kinda remade it once.

[Kel Varnsen]

The thing that I was always amazed by was how many thing they managed to pack into one day. I mean that started their adventure in the city well after school had started, they went to a baseball game, lunch, an art museum, the Sears tower, participated in a parade, had Cameron freak out and destroyed the car. And by the end of the movie Rooney is still able to get on the school bus. So they did all that stuff (including driving too and from the city) in like 7-8 hours?

[French Laundry at Home]

Every time I watch that movie I find myself saying "nine times" in the Edie McClurg voice at every opportunity for the next few weeks. It's not annoying AT ALL.

[Rach]

Nine times...
Great, now that's stuck in my head.

[eric]

You caught all the same things I caught after seeing it with a few more years under my belt. Still my favorite movie. Too much creativity packed into one day. Even if it's not always logical, gotta love the fantasy. I've spent a good chuck of my teenage and college years attempting to replicate it in my own way. Made for some of the best experiences of my life.

Next step for you (if you haven't already): watch the DVD with John Hughes commentary. It's a geeky thing to do, but don't be ashamed. It's Ferris!

"A person should not believe in an 'ism.' He should believe in himself."

[eric]

You caught all the same things I caught after seeing it with a few more years under my belt. Still my favorite movie. Too much creativity packed into one day. Even if it's not always logical, gotta love the fantasy. I've spent a good chuck of my teenage and college years attempting to replicate it in my own way. Made for some of the best experiences of my life.

Next step for you (if you haven't already): watch the DVD with John Hughes commentary. It's a geeky thing to do, but don't be ashamed. It's Ferris!

"A person should not believe in an 'ism.' He should believe in himself."

[eric]

You caught all the same things I caught after seeing it with a few more years under my belt. Still my favorite movie. Too much creativity packed into one day. Even if it's not always logical, gotta love the fantasy. I've spent a good chuck of my teenage and college years attempting to replicate it in my own way. Made for some of the best experiences of my life.

Next step for you (if you haven't already): watch the DVD with John Hughes commentary. It's a geeky thing to do, but don't be ashamed. It's Ferris!

"A person should not believe in an 'ism.' He should believe in himself."

[eric]

You caught all the same things I caught after seeing it with a few more years under my belt. Still my favorite movie. Too much creativity packed into one day. Even if it's not always logical, gotta love the fantasy. I've spent a good chuck of my teenage and college years attempting to replicate it in my own way. Made for some of the best experiences of my life.

Next step for you (if you haven't already): watch the DVD with John Hughes commentary. It's a geeky thing to do, but don't be ashamed. It's Ferris!

"A person should not believe in an 'ism.' He should believe in himself."