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1985 was a milestone for filmmaker John Hughes, but not always for the reasons most people remember. While The Breakfast Club pleased tortured souls with its portrayal of teenage alienation, Hughes also devised a science fiction comedy that was a good fit for those looking for entertaining excellence. Weird Science, released just months after his detention hall classic, is a brilliant piece of filmmaking that has lived in the shadow of its more critically acclaimed sibling ever since. The industry’s focus on The Breakfast Club as a serious artistic statement meant that Weird Science was often dismissed as a frivolous diversion. But it’s a much more fun and rip-roaring watch if deep teenage angst isn’t quite your thing.
Two Very Different Projects by the Director
Kelly LeBrock and Ilan Mitchell-Smith in Weird Science
Universal Pictures
Hughes’ mind was divided between the two projects during the creative period. While crafting the Gen X dialogue-driven narrative of The Breakfast Club, he was developing the outrageous spectacle of Weird Science. Both films were even set in the same fictional location — Shermer High School, but that’s where the similarities end: one film trapped five students in a school library for philosophical discussions, and the other unleashed chaos through a supernatural wish. For Women First stated that Hughes wasn’t best pleased with the filming schedule of Weird Science, because it interfered with his work on The Breakfast Club, which he was way more passionate about: “After Universal Pictures told Hughes that he could finish work on The Breakfast Club after filming for Weird Science was completed, the director’s view mellowed.”
A Teenage Fantasy Brought to Life
Anthony Michael Hall and Ilan Mitchell-Smith in Weird Science
Universal Pictures
Weird Science is a wild ride, following Gary Wallace (Anthony Michael Hall) and Wyatt Donnelly (Ilan Mitchell-Smith): two social outcasts who decide to create the perfect woman using their home computer. After a lightning strike brings their digital creation to life, they find themselves face-to-face in one of the most famous entrance scenes with Lisa (Kelly LeBrock), a powerful force who possesses both supernatural abilities and an agenda to mold the boys into confident men. Escalating into a messy adventure, the film includes house parties that spiral out of control, encounters with treacherous bikers, and confrontations with Wyatt’s older brother Chet (Bill Paxton).
Adding to the disorder is Robert Downey Jr. as Ian, the arrogant, popular kid who represents everything the protagonists aspire to become. Dealing with a reality turned upside down, Lisa’s interventions force the boys to confront their insecurities. Some say the movie is Hughes’ weakest work, but Flickering Myth quite rightly loved it: “Weird Science is pretty much as perfect a 1980s teen comedy as has ever existed.” The film also coined the memorable theme song: “Weird Science” by Oingo Boingo, written by Danny Elfman after Hughes called asking for a song. Reaching No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100, it became the band’s most successful single and captured the film’s manic energy.
Technology Over Real Life Drama
Lisa Apple in Weird Science
Universal Pictures
Choosing “Lisa” as the name for the boys’ creation had meaning – Hughes deliberately named the character after Apple Computer’s first GUI computer, the Apple Lisa. This technological reference supports the film’s theme of creation through computing, also linking a new age with traditional stories of creating life. Released in 1983, the Apple Lisa represented cutting-edge technology that most people could only dream of owning, much like the boys’ manifestation of a perfect woman remained in the realm of fantasy. This nod to contemporary technology brought the film’s fantastic elements in line with the reality of the 1980s computer boom, which was a far cry from the teenage drama of The Breakfast Club.
‘Weird Science’ Is of Its Era and By No Means a Lesser Hughes Film
The cast of The Breakfast Club.
Universal Pictures
The Breakfast Club explored the psychology of young life through realistic drama, and Weird Science portrayed similar insights through imagination. As Roger Ebert put it, “Weird Science combines two great traditions in popular entertainment: Inflamed male teenage fantasies and Frankenstein’s monster.” Despite earning $39 million against The Breakfast Club‘s $51 million, Weird Science proved equally influential on later teen comedies. Its supernatural elements and coming-of-age themes paved the way for films like Big, 13 Going on 30, and other high-concept comedies that used fantasy to uncover teenage insecurities. The film’s humor helped establish the template for the modern teen comedy, where outrageous situations mask deeper feelings underneath.
Viewers adore The Breakfast Club for its honest portrayal of school life and its beloved soundtrack, featuring Simple Minds’ anthemic “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” Karla DeVito’s “We Are Not Alone,” and Wang Chung’s “Fire in the Twilight,” bottling 1980s youth culture. However, some find its earnest view of high school cliques overly sentimental. Weird Science, by contrast, displays Hughes’ understanding that it’s possible to paint real human feelings through unreal circumstances. Entertaining without needing emotional investment, Weird Science is an easy watch and a great ’80s romp.
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