St Elmo's Fire [VHS]

Rented this because I hadn't seen. Happy I never saw this when it was released, displeased at having ever seen it at all.St. Elmo's Fire is all about a group of recent college graduates who begin drifting apart as real life approaches. One can argue there's a perceptive buried somewhere in the plot on the dangers of misguided drama trying to write a profound revelations about living. However, it’s better defined as a sloppy soap opera and a messy microcosm of what that generations fashions.One to leave on the shelf unless you want a novel kick of some actors looking young and playing stupid.

I'm a fan of 1980s "coming-of-age" movies. For the music, the fashion, the "cheese factor." Yet despite an all-star "Brat Pack" cast and featuring a #1 hit single by popular 80s rocker John Parr, St. Elmo's Fire falls flat.Everything about the movie is bad, from the acting, to directing, to set design, to the flow of the scenes making any type of logical sense. And not in a "so-bad-it's-good" sense, but in a boring, cringe-worthy, "just bad" sense.If you want to watch a good 80s teen/"Brat Pack" movie, try The Breakfast Club, or basically any other movie. This one is hard to sit through, unless you just want to be able to say you have seen it.

Seven friends, fresh out of college, three women and four men, all still unable to tear themselves away from St Elmo's Bar where they used to hang out during their undergrad days. Soon, the reality of adult life - work, love, family - drops on all of them. For young people in those circumstance, it is like going through a second puberty. It is a dreamy, ghostly period of one's life between a carefree, riotous past and a tense, uncertain future. But then, it may probably be the most memorable, and nostalgic time of one's life.The characters were played to perfection, and everyone will have his or her own favourite character. Mine was Wendy, and Leslie, played by Mare Winningham and Ally Sheedy respectively. In the last scene when Billy the Bad Boy leaves on a bus to find serious work as a musician, the rest heads to St Elmo's, and realised that they had outgrown that bar.

This was considered smart viewing. It was coming of age, it was up against 'Porky's' and "Revenge of the Nerds" so this was thought of as contemplative and romantic, and informative.It's a big big bite of 'white people's problems' that's for sure. It really only dealt with the emotional immaturity of 20-somethings entering the real world.Break it down along any number of lines, but these are all considered first rate actors today. They're people who had their own personal tragedies that paralleled the movie and the 80's era.Haven't seen Jud in a decade, or Mare for that matter. Rob Lowe's been out there and yet Andrew and Andie and Demi and Emilio all had careers we thought would never end or even lose their shine.I kid you not, these people and this movie was a template for what it was supposed to be like, and it was in many ways.Real life always does get in the way.

Growing up as a teen in the 80’s this movie always appealed to my wild party, swap boyfriends, smoke ALL the cigarettes, swap more boyfriends, yell out random mantras, swap a few more boyfriends and then realizing I was growing up and needed to go to classier bars and find better friends kind of life!I couldn’t wait to share it with my teenage daughter!Parent of the year award!It’s still a freakin great movie though.

I didn't watch this film in the eighties, when it would have made sense. Instead, I cued it up this evening with reservations but a willingness to see how it would strike me now, a Gen Xer with a couple of decades on the characters.I loved it. Loved the setting, the camaraderie. Emilio was pretty cringe-inducing as the creeper but I enjoyed watching the story bounce around between the other characters. Demi was a tragic, spectral beauty. Mare truly came of age. I've never drooled over Rob like other girls from my generation--hell, even my daughter's generation--but he was pretty damn gorgeous in this. Judd was Bender in a preppy suit. Ally and Andrew did some serious frolicking (over a coffin, no less). What else can you ask of a random Tuesday night in arguably the most bizarre year most of us have ever lived through? Not much more, I think. Glad I saved this one until now.

My young adult children have been on an 80's movies kick. We've been watching some really good movies. This is not one of them. I remembered that is was bad and I told them but they wanted to watch it anyway. I sat with them. It was even worse than I remembered! Not a likable character among them! My kids agreed--it was bad. The theme song is really good though.

Classic 80's movies...when I'd moved past John Hughes pictures of high school, St Elmo's fire gave me a glimpse to the future. And while my personal Brat Pack didn't have Alex, Wendy, and Jules we were certainly close and could easily identify. While the film is dated in classic 80's clothing and excess from Jules' Pink apartment to Wendy's big collars, the movie doesn't fail to to deliver in the classic theme of moving from student to adult and all the change in finding out who you might want to be

St. Elmo's Fire is a 1985 coming-of-age film and centres on a clique of recent graduates and their adjustment to life after university and the responsibilities of adulthood. The film opens at the local hospital following an unseen crash involving some of their friends, the group then head to their local bar –St Elmo’s.The single disc opens to a main menu offering languages [English, French, German, Italian, Spanish], subtitles [10 including Arabic], scene selections, extras [trailer, commentary, profiles, subtitles for extra features] and play.Rated 15 in most countries, the film is most notable for its theme music and the fact that so many of the ‘80s Brat Pack star in it. It has not dated particularly well [lose a *] but remains a good visual on the Hollywood ‘take’ on the 80s Yuppie scene[regain a *]. It was hated by the critics but was a moderate financial success. The real problem is that none of the characters are likeable [lose a *]; as the head of [one] major studio called its seven-members "the most loathsome humans he had ever read on the page." Features lots of smoking [including drugs –Moore had just come out of rehab], drinking, swearing [including F word] and a few low key sexual scenes and many sexual references but other than a dodgy script and hit and miss acting, there’ not much more to offend in this glimpse of the past.

A film which very much reflects its era.........which in these current difficult days seems so long ago.

I missed this first time around. It takes you right back to the day. This is a good old fashioned 80s film most enjoyable and nostalgic.

Great coming of age 80’s romp

Good for money good service