I’m offering up this Goals Gone Wild Classic as a John Hughes tribute, may he R.I.P. Originally published Sept 28, 2007.
The morning radio show my wife and I listen to has a movie quote contest each day. Last week the quote was,
“-Ism’s in my opinion are not good.”
Not a lot to go on, but to a couple weaned on teen flicks of the 80’s it was enough. We both dove for our cell phones. Thumbs flew and buttons were mashed. Numerous busy signals later we surrendered the contest, but shared a lot of laughs over an all-time, feel good favorite of a movie, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (FBDO).
FBDO stars Matthew Broderick as the kind of slick, smart-ass kid I wanted to be. He was popular, knew how to play all the angles and always managed to dodge trouble. A teflon teen, if you will. The film follows Ferris’ attempt to skip school one too many times (“nine times”). He ropes his hangdog best friend Cameron into joining him (“He’ll keep calling”) and together they bust Sloan, Ferris’ pert and perky girlfriend, out of school for a day on the town. Hot on his heels is the school principal, Ed Rooney. And, as they say, comedy ensues. (For a much better plot synopsis see the links below. Better yet, see the movie.)
I went online and looked up more quotes from the movie. To my surprise I discovered something I’d missed through the dozens of viewings. Ferris, and the other characters, actually share some valuable life lessons, especially when you pull them out of context (as I’m about to).
Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?
Ferris dreams big and enjoys life. He has goals and priorities but also understands the need for perspective. In this scene our heroic trio are atop the Sear Tower in Chicago looking down at the world;
Sloane: The city looks so peaceful from up here.
Ferris: Anything is peaceful from one thousand, three hundred and fifty-three feet.
Cameron: I think I see my dad.
Each character reacts to the view in their own way. Sloane starts to catch on to being in the moment, Ferris shares his own understanding about point-of-view and Cameron sees only punishment coming, even in a moment of complete freedom.
A comic theme throughout the day are the close calls between Ferris. his pals and Ferris’ Dad. They nearly bump into him over and over, as in this scene at a posh restaurant:
Ferris: Four thousand restaurants in the downtown area, I pick the one my father goes to.
Cameron: We’re pinched, for sure.
Ferris: Only the meek get pinched. The bold survive.
Again we see how the reactions differ. Cameron, ever pessimistic, is ready to surrender. Ferris knows that the only sure way to get “pinched” is to quit. He knows that sticking to the plan and following through when it’s tough is likely to ensure success.
The trio really play well of each other. Ferris is the dynamic leader who really “gets it”. Sloan is happy to be along for the ride as she emerges as a “happy seeker”. Clearly she sees the spark in Ferris and is looking for a way to get it her herself.
Sloane: What are we going to do?
Ferris: The question isn’t “what are we going to do,” the question is “what aren’t we going to do?”
Ah, potential. Ferris sees the whole world open before him, a menu with choices aplenty. That much opportunity can be daunting, and like Sloane we can freeze up in the face of success. Ferris knows that by seizing the day, the hour, and the moment you can wring joy and victory out of every breath.
With Cameron, Ferris faces a much tougher nut to crack. He’s a broken man, beaten down by life. Cameron is a hypochondriac that lives in fear of the outcome. Ferris makes it his mission to bring him around.
Ferris: Cameron, what have you seen today?
Cameron: Nothing good.
Ferris: Nothing – wha – what do you mean nothing good? We’ve seen everything good. We’ve seen the whole city! We went to a museum, we saw priceless works of art! We ate pancreas!
Granted, Pancreas may not be your cup of tea, but Ferris makes an excellent point. How many of us get caught up like Cameron? We spend our days going through the motions, assured of a bleak outcome. Even though some pretty great things are happening around us, we keep our eyes down afraid to enjoy our own lives.
Fortunately for Cam, when plot circumstances have piled on and you think he just might shatter he finds the strength to face it all.
Cameron: I am not going to sit on my ass as the events that affect me unfold to determine the course of my life. I’m going to take a stand. I’m going to defend it. Right or wrong, I’m going to defend it.
Never Had One Lesson!
I’ve barely scratched the surface of the hidden wisdom in this movie. Principal Rooney spends the movie doggedly determined to bring Ferris in to face authority. I think we can sum him up with his nugget of pain:
Ed Rooney: Between grief and nothing… I’ll take grief.
Poor guy. If he’d just had a friend like Ferris maybe he’d realize that
Ferris: Life goes by pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.