John Hughes R.I.P. (1950-2009)

A day after I posted about his essential DVD commentary only available on the 1999 DVD edition of his comedy classic FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF, I was extremely saddened to hear that director/writer/producer John Hughes had died. As a teenager in the ’80s, Hughes’ films meant a lot to me – I even skipped school to see FERRIS BUELLER on opening day – obviously you can see how fitting that is. Hughes left behind a series of films that still resonate – from the National Lampoon VACATION movies to the Molly Ringwald trilogy (SIXTEEN CANDLES, THE BREAKFAST CLUB, and PRETTY IN PINK), to the attempt to grow up and make adult films (SHE’S HAVING A BABY, PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES). His last few films may have been toddler fodder (HOME ALONE, CURLY SUE) but his lasting influence on today’s film makers like Kevin Smith and Judd Apatow can not be easily dismissed.

Again, I implore you – seek out his wonderful commentary on FERRIS BUELLER. It as fitting tribute to the man as I can think of right now. Maybe, this will force them to re-establish it on future editions and re-issue the Blu ray which was just released without it. If you’re not familiar with the work of John Hughes – I’d suggest any of the titles listed above (well all of those before HOME ALONE anyway).

So, as Ferris Bueller said: “Life moves pretty fast, if you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” Thank you so much, Mr. Hughes for helping me to stop and look around – without you I think there would’ve been a lot of stuffed I missed.

More later…