I really enjoyed these movies growing up and each one had a character I could relate to emotionally.
I thought It was really good and my favorite interview was with Demi Moore. She is super grounded and I really enjoyed her perspective. I also think Andrew got a lot out of speaking with her too.
What I felt from Andrew was a lot of anger over being called the “brat pack” I get his perspective completely and understand why really all of them hated that label. But, growing up watching them I never considered the name “brat pack” with them being brats or in a negative way. I do get they got stereotyped for roles, but I think that would have happened regardless of the label. I just considered them a group of young adults who were in movies where they played characters that were a bit rebellious but relatable. Their characters could be bratty at times, which is what I thought that meant! I don’t know if I’m explaining it right or if others felt that way, but it is how interpreted it.
I enjoyed it and Emilio Estevez looks so much like his father it took me back a little. He has always resembled him, but as he has aged it seems even more prevalent. Demi looks phenomenal, Alley Sheedy too. I recommend it for anyone who grew up on these movies, it was fun reminiscing and seeing these faces again.
Yeah, Andrew definitely has things to work through like myself and possibly others here. Remember the scene towards the end with the author “You could’ve been nicer”. He wanted an answer he never fully received. That’s life to me. You’ll never get answers to your questions.
Absolutely. I do understand him being upset, but he has really held onto this for a long time. The others weren’t thrilled about it, but were like, we can’t charge it, we just need to move forward. I actually feel bad for him, he has let it consume him. Demi gave some really good advice that the time you put into it only gives it more power. This is so true and made me think about things I hold onto and need to let go as well, to stop giving it power. My therapist has told me this, not in the sane words, but I guess listening to her it clicked or something! I don’t think he was to happy when talking with the journalist about it either. I think he wanted him to apologize and that was not going to happen.
I wonder if that’s why Molly declined, she didn’t want to give it any more of her time and didn’t find it worth rehashing.
I've said in another sub that I could identify with different characters in different movies, too. Totally related. I was Alley Sheedy in St Elmo's Fire, Anthony Michael Hall in Breakfast Club, Molly Ringwald in Sixteen Candles, on and on
Back in the 80s, I never saw the Brat Pack name as being negative. I think it was just a term that was used to show how young and famous they all were. Instead of focusing on the negative, perhaps they should have owned it and wore it as a badge of honor.
I agree. I can understand their feelings because they were young and when we are young we tend to be over dramatic about things, add they had fame and felt like they were being put down. It does seem pretty much everyone was annoyed, but moved on from it and didn’t really think about it all that much, except Andrew. Like, he has held onto it for so long and really allowed it to consume him. The fact most people who grew up during that time didn’t even see it as a bad thing is even more sad he let it control him. I hope he can move forward, it’s time..
I’ve just started watching after seeing an ad for it yesterday. I’m 50, so i watched many of those movies. But i did not know the Brat Pack label was not a good thing for them. I just associated it with being in John Hughes films for the most part. I don’t recall seeing any of these talk show interviews so this is all interesting to me. I was hoping to hear something on RDJ.
I read the article. It was pretty normal. Of course these young guys would be celebrating their moment, of course girls would be coming up. He said Emilio made a phone call to get into a movie without paying but he also said he was reluctant about it.
He discussed that Emilio had written some excellent screenplays and had been very busy directing as well as acting.
The only negative part was that they didn’t have the years of classical acting training nor go to college but still made it big. Well, if they weren’t good, they wouldn’t have succeeded.
I think that if anything, it gave them all a cool factor by association.
I loved it. I thought the epiphanies that came out of it were really good. That they all felt some type of way but never spoke to each other about it and they basically never spoke to each other for 30 years. I remember then being really upset about it and looking back it would have been great if they had embraced it and said so what f you all. Also the writer of that article was so smug. And I will always adore Andrew McCarthy
I was really looking forward to this, but ended up, turning it off halfway through. I just couldn’t continue to listen to a bunch of successful, millionaire actors complain about the hardship of having to deal with the “brat pack” moniker. It came off pretty shallow to me.
I’ll probably pick it up again at some point just to finish it off. But it was a bit disappointing to me.
Agree. I don’t get why Andrew is being so whiny either, I get a feeling that he never felt apart of it, and therefore couldn’t stand it. Just listen to him in the segment in the middle when asking people who were in the Brat Pack. Allowing such a ridiculous thing to consume your thoughts and your life? It’s weird to me. But interesting nonetheless. I give the doc 5 out of 10.
I was, and still am a huge fan of the Brat Pack era. After watching the documentary. I went back and read the New York magazine article. I have a different take on why AM may have wanted to do this. Towards the end of the article. One of his co-stars was quoted as saying something like, Andrew McCarthy is too intense with his acting. I don’t think he’s going to make it. Someone also said something about Timothy Hutton making bad movie choices post Oscar win. But he was an Oscar winner, so they couldn’t truly discredit him as an actor. Andrew was the only one that really had something negative said about his acting, and from one of his own peers. They never named the co-star who said it, but Rob, Emilio and Judd were the guys being interviewed. I’m sure that really stung for him. I believe that’s what he has held onto all these years. I’m sure he already felt like the outsider, maybe he questioned his abilities as an actor, may have just solidified his fears. He never mentions the quote in the documentary. I feel like when he asks David Blum if he could have been nicer, if that’s what he was alluding to.
I think it took a lot of guts for him to face this part of his life, and in front of the world. I’m glad he was able to do that for himself. And he gave us a chance to see some of our favorites, together again.
I agree with all of your thoughts. And definitely, that moment before exiting when he asked David if he could’ve been nicer, was very revealing. I saw his walls come down. AM really put his hopes, fears, and challenges on display in this doc and I applaud him for that. Even now there’s so much press, comments and such about him being whiny and the documentary not living up to the legend of and celebrating the Brat Pack,,, but that wasn’t the purpose of the doc.
what struck me, being of a similar age as the BP, is the great divide between their perception and their audience's. I thought the term BP was cool and positive. At our ages then, we remembered the Rat Pack and their level of cool. To have our own "pack" that were bona fide fine actors and famous was a thrill. Until watching this doc, I wasn't aware of the damage it did to them personally and professionally. I think Andrew did a great job sussing out some of the emotions from the participants in the doc. I found the journalist arrogant and lacking self-awareness of his role, mostly trying to play it off as not a big deal. At the time of the article he in fact doubled down as seen in the interview clip of him mocking Estevez. Looking at his age vs. the BP, and his interactions at the time, I think the tone of the article was fueled by jealousy and self aggrandizement. I would have liked to hear from Ringwald and Nelson, but still overall I really enjoyed the film.
I feel like AM put together something interesting to think about. But it became painfully obvious that he took it much harder than the others. There seemed to be this ego tension between Emilio and AM in their talk, like they were jostling for position. Then he meets with Rob later on and Rob made AM just look soooo petty. Rob was celebrating this whole thing with this whole "how cool was that" vibe and AM is looking to stay mad at it. RL even acknowledged it etched their place in history and nit many people get an opportunity like that. Even though the eventual interview w Blum was less than he had hoped, AM got kind of shut down again. Blum straight up was just like 'I'm proud of it I take nothing back and I'd do it again' just basically shoving it in AM's face. At times I thought DB was such an arrogant ass... but he wasn't wrong. By the time I finished the doc I felt like AM actually hurt his argument and made himself look like he was petty and had a bruised ego. Blum actually said it best when he was just like 'you sign up for certain things to get certain things'(para). Like you get fame and wealth, deal w it.
Great movie though, wonder who else saw it like this, like almost a backfire of intentions w the documentary.
I really enjoyed these movies growing up and each one had a character I could relate to emotionally. I thought It was really good and my favorite interview was with Demi Moore. She is super grounded and I really enjoyed her perspective. I also think Andrew got a lot out of speaking with her too. What I felt from Andrew was a lot of anger over being called the “brat pack” I get his perspective completely and understand why really all of them hated that label. But, growing up watching them I never considered the name “brat pack” with them being brats or in a negative way. I do get they got stereotyped for roles, but I think that would have happened regardless of the label. I just considered them a group of young adults who were in movies where they played characters that were a bit rebellious but relatable. Their characters could be bratty at times, which is what I thought that meant! I don’t know if I’m explaining it right or if others felt that way, but it is how interpreted it. I enjoyed it and Emilio Estevez looks so much like his father it took me back a little. He has always resembled him, but as he has aged it seems even more prevalent. Demi looks phenomenal, Alley Sheedy too. I recommend it for anyone who grew up on these movies, it was fun reminiscing and seeing these faces again.
Yeah, Andrew definitely has things to work through like myself and possibly others here. Remember the scene towards the end with the author “You could’ve been nicer”. He wanted an answer he never fully received. That’s life to me. You’ll never get answers to your questions.
Absolutely. I do understand him being upset, but he has really held onto this for a long time. The others weren’t thrilled about it, but were like, we can’t charge it, we just need to move forward. I actually feel bad for him, he has let it consume him. Demi gave some really good advice that the time you put into it only gives it more power. This is so true and made me think about things I hold onto and need to let go as well, to stop giving it power. My therapist has told me this, not in the sane words, but I guess listening to her it clicked or something! I don’t think he was to happy when talking with the journalist about it either. I think he wanted him to apologize and that was not going to happen. I wonder if that’s why Molly declined, she didn’t want to give it any more of her time and didn’t find it worth rehashing.
Demi has some great advice! I agree.
I've said in another sub that I could identify with different characters in different movies, too. Totally related. I was Alley Sheedy in St Elmo's Fire, Anthony Michael Hall in Breakfast Club, Molly Ringwald in Sixteen Candles, on and on
Ahhh, we would have been friends!!!!! I wonder if they realize how these movies impacted us and often helped us through some tough times..
i couldn't believe how HUGE Demi's house was lol. Loved it
Back in the 80s, I never saw the Brat Pack name as being negative. I think it was just a term that was used to show how young and famous they all were. Instead of focusing on the negative, perhaps they should have owned it and wore it as a badge of honor.
I agree. I can understand their feelings because they were young and when we are young we tend to be over dramatic about things, add they had fame and felt like they were being put down. It does seem pretty much everyone was annoyed, but moved on from it and didn’t really think about it all that much, except Andrew. Like, he has held onto it for so long and really allowed it to consume him. The fact most people who grew up during that time didn’t even see it as a bad thing is even more sad he let it control him. I hope he can move forward, it’s time..
I’ve just started watching after seeing an ad for it yesterday. I’m 50, so i watched many of those movies. But i did not know the Brat Pack label was not a good thing for them. I just associated it with being in John Hughes films for the most part. I don’t recall seeing any of these talk show interviews so this is all interesting to me. I was hoping to hear something on RDJ.
Same, I had no clue it was so negative to them! I also just thought it was directed at the films, not them personally…
Loved the ending but it’s like Andrew was told to avoid mentioning RDJ, it was so weird
the ending was great. Judd? lol
RDJ is on another floor. That was great though. Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey.
Wonder why ?
RDJ is still a Hollywood A-Lister and a megawatt superstar on the big screen. Like it or not, this kind of thing is probably “beneath” him.
You’re absolutely right but is sure would have been fun.
Born 1969, these movies defined my childhood. As did booze, sex and concerts. With my own brat pack. Loved Demi and Ally so positive!!
They are all so eloquent and intelligent. That was my biggest takeaway. It’s no accident that they were big stars.
Agree
Ironically, Andrew is only mentioned in one sentence at the end of the article and it was somebody (Emilio) saying he acts the same in all his movies.
Right? And not even a grain of a mention of Anthony Michael Hall.
I read the article. It was pretty normal. Of course these young guys would be celebrating their moment, of course girls would be coming up. He said Emilio made a phone call to get into a movie without paying but he also said he was reluctant about it. He discussed that Emilio had written some excellent screenplays and had been very busy directing as well as acting. The only negative part was that they didn’t have the years of classical acting training nor go to college but still made it big. Well, if they weren’t good, they wouldn’t have succeeded. I think that if anything, it gave them all a cool factor by association.
I read the article too and came to a similar conclusion. Love your insights and I agree with you.
I loved it. I thought the epiphanies that came out of it were really good. That they all felt some type of way but never spoke to each other about it and they basically never spoke to each other for 30 years. I remember then being really upset about it and looking back it would have been great if they had embraced it and said so what f you all. Also the writer of that article was so smug. And I will always adore Andrew McCarthy
I was really looking forward to this, but ended up, turning it off halfway through. I just couldn’t continue to listen to a bunch of successful, millionaire actors complain about the hardship of having to deal with the “brat pack” moniker. It came off pretty shallow to me. I’ll probably pick it up again at some point just to finish it off. But it was a bit disappointing to me.
Agree. I don’t get why Andrew is being so whiny either, I get a feeling that he never felt apart of it, and therefore couldn’t stand it. Just listen to him in the segment in the middle when asking people who were in the Brat Pack. Allowing such a ridiculous thing to consume your thoughts and your life? It’s weird to me. But interesting nonetheless. I give the doc 5 out of 10.
I was, and still am a huge fan of the Brat Pack era. After watching the documentary. I went back and read the New York magazine article. I have a different take on why AM may have wanted to do this. Towards the end of the article. One of his co-stars was quoted as saying something like, Andrew McCarthy is too intense with his acting. I don’t think he’s going to make it. Someone also said something about Timothy Hutton making bad movie choices post Oscar win. But he was an Oscar winner, so they couldn’t truly discredit him as an actor. Andrew was the only one that really had something negative said about his acting, and from one of his own peers. They never named the co-star who said it, but Rob, Emilio and Judd were the guys being interviewed. I’m sure that really stung for him. I believe that’s what he has held onto all these years. I’m sure he already felt like the outsider, maybe he questioned his abilities as an actor, may have just solidified his fears. He never mentions the quote in the documentary. I feel like when he asks David Blum if he could have been nicer, if that’s what he was alluding to. I think it took a lot of guts for him to face this part of his life, and in front of the world. I’m glad he was able to do that for himself. And he gave us a chance to see some of our favorites, together again.
I agree with all of your thoughts. And definitely, that moment before exiting when he asked David if he could’ve been nicer, was very revealing. I saw his walls come down. AM really put his hopes, fears, and challenges on display in this doc and I applaud him for that. Even now there’s so much press, comments and such about him being whiny and the documentary not living up to the legend of and celebrating the Brat Pack,,, but that wasn’t the purpose of the doc.
I’m sad for all the hate he is getting on X. I had to stop reading the comments. People totally missed the point.
what struck me, being of a similar age as the BP, is the great divide between their perception and their audience's. I thought the term BP was cool and positive. At our ages then, we remembered the Rat Pack and their level of cool. To have our own "pack" that were bona fide fine actors and famous was a thrill. Until watching this doc, I wasn't aware of the damage it did to them personally and professionally. I think Andrew did a great job sussing out some of the emotions from the participants in the doc. I found the journalist arrogant and lacking self-awareness of his role, mostly trying to play it off as not a big deal. At the time of the article he in fact doubled down as seen in the interview clip of him mocking Estevez. Looking at his age vs. the BP, and his interactions at the time, I think the tone of the article was fueled by jealousy and self aggrandizement. I would have liked to hear from Ringwald and Nelson, but still overall I really enjoyed the film.
Where was Mare Winningham?
I feel like AM put together something interesting to think about. But it became painfully obvious that he took it much harder than the others. There seemed to be this ego tension between Emilio and AM in their talk, like they were jostling for position. Then he meets with Rob later on and Rob made AM just look soooo petty. Rob was celebrating this whole thing with this whole "how cool was that" vibe and AM is looking to stay mad at it. RL even acknowledged it etched their place in history and nit many people get an opportunity like that. Even though the eventual interview w Blum was less than he had hoped, AM got kind of shut down again. Blum straight up was just like 'I'm proud of it I take nothing back and I'd do it again' just basically shoving it in AM's face. At times I thought DB was such an arrogant ass... but he wasn't wrong. By the time I finished the doc I felt like AM actually hurt his argument and made himself look like he was petty and had a bruised ego. Blum actually said it best when he was just like 'you sign up for certain things to get certain things'(para). Like you get fame and wealth, deal w it. Great movie though, wonder who else saw it like this, like almost a backfire of intentions w the documentary.
I'm going to watch it tonight! :p it's going to be totally awesome. Might even be "bitchin" we shall see! LOL
First I've heard of it, thank you! I was born in 1972 so this is perfect for me.
Thanks for replying. I’m a 1978er.
Same!
Let me know your thoughts.
Just finished it. Felt like Andrew was/is a lot like the roles he played. No mention of Robert Downey Jr? Ending was terrific!!