Ferris
Bueller’s Day Off, "Bueller, Bueller Edition" on
DVD
Writer/director John Hughes spent much of the 1980's making a
variety of teen flicks, from "The Breakfast Club" to "Sixteen
Candles."
"Ferris Bueller's Day Off" is kind of a departure, in
that rather than featuring an ensemble cast telling a variety of
stories, it follows the fortunes of Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick),
a popular kid who decides that life's too short to spend a particularly
beautiful Spring day slaving over the books at school.
So he decides to cut class, with an involved and well-planned "sickness"
alibi. Ferris is quite bright and very inventive, and uses all the
tools at hand to make his story work.
He drags his girlfriend (Mia Sara) and best friend (Alan Ruck)
along with him, brazenly springing his love right out of the classroom,
and the trio head for adventure in the heart of Chicago snuggled
into Ruck's Dad's classic 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California, one of
the most beautiful sports cars ever built. These cars are extremely
rare and valuable, so we can only assume the one they used in this
movie - considering what happens to it - was a ringer.
We certainly hope so!
Suffice it to say they have a wonderful time on their day off....
continued...
...continued
" Ferris" features the unique touch of having Broderick
spend a good part of the film talking to the audience, and the tactic
works for the most part. The casting is inspired; Broderick plays
the role of the likable Ferris with just the right twinkle in his
eye, Ruck is appropriately put upon but loyal, and Sara is warm
and pretty. Jeffrey Jones plays the "villain," Ferris'
school principal who knows a rat when he smells one and spends most
of the movie's 102 minutes trying to trap it.
Naturally, he's no match for Ferris, and his misadventures foreshadow
those of the bad guys in Hughes' later "Home Alone" movies.
" Ferris Bueller's Day Off" is a likable movie, lighthearted
and free spirited, and has some good laughs and funny situations.
It'll never go down in Hollywood's history as a true classic, but
it's an enjoyable bit of fluff nonetheless.
The new “Bueller…Bueller” Edition features a
new 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and the same Dolby Digital
5.1 track. The new transfer features good color and detail, but
it’s pretty much indistinguishable from the original. The
audio track is fairly front-heavy, but understandably so.
In terms of extras, the Bueller…Bueller edition sports some
brand new documentaries and featurettes, but the John Hughes audio
commentary from the initial release is surprisingly absent. Nevertheless…
“Getting the Class Together” is a typical cast retrospective
featurette with interviews from most of the main players (there
are no new Mia Sara or John Hughes interviews) spliced together
with behind-the-scenes footage. There are plenty of amusing anecdotes
here, and at less than half an hour the piece doesn’t go on
too long. “The Making of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”
is a shorter piece that doesn’t focus so exclusively on the
actors, but is otherwise essentially the same thing as the first
featurette.
“Who is Ferris Bueller” takes ten minutes to examine
the title character and Matthew Broderick’s portrayal of him.
“The World According to Ben Stein” is another ten-minute
piece that allows Mr. Stein to talk about the film and his accomplishments.
It may not be the most entertaining piece out there, but we have
a lot of respect for Ben Stein, so it’s okay.
Finally, “The Lost Tapes” is a collection of old interviews
and whatever-else, brought together in a pretty entertaining montage.
There are clips aplenty of the cast goofing around, and Broderick
and Ruck talking about their friendship on and off screen. Pretty
fun.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, from Paramount Home Entertainment
102 minutes, anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) 16x9 enhanced, Dolby
Digital 5.1
Starring Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, Alan Ruck
Produced by John Hughes and Tom Jacobson
Written and directed by John Hughes
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