Sixteen Candles (1984)

A girl's "sweet" sixteenth birthday becomes anything but special as she suffers from every embarrassment possible.

Director:

John Hughes

Writer:

John Hughes

Stars:

Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Justin Henry

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Molly Ringwald	...	Samantha
Justin Henry	...	Mike Baker
Michael Schoeffling	...	Jake
Haviland Morris	...	Caroline
Gedde Watanabe	...	Long Duk Dong
Anthony Michael Hall	...	Geek
Paul Dooley	...	Jim Baker
Carlin Glynn	...	Brenda Baker
Blanche Baker	...	Ginny
Edward Andrews	...	Howard
Billie Bird	...	Dorothy
Carole Cook	...	Helen
Max Showalter	...	Fred
Liane Curtis	...	Randy
John Cusack	...	Bryce

Storyline

Samantha's life is going downhill fast. The sixteen-year-old has a crush on the most popular boy in school, and the geekiest boy in school has a crush on her. Her sister's getting married, and with all the excitement the rest of her family forgets her birthday! Add all this to a pair of horrendously embarrassing grandparents, a foreign exchange student named Long Duk Dong, and we have the makings of a hilarious journey into young womanhood.

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Plot Keywords:

crush | birthday | exchange student | looking at the camera | dental braces | 

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Taglines:

It's the time of your life that may last a lifetime.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 May 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Das darf man nur als Erwachsener

Filming Locations:

1423 Sycamore Lane, Northbrook, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,500,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$20,500,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Channel Productions, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Bakers six-bedroom brick house in northwest Evanston was sold for $1.25 million in 2006.

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Goofs

When Samantha is in independent study, the questionnaire that she is filling out says "CONFIDENTAIL" on the top.

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Quotes

Jake: You better not be dickin' me around. It'd be a major downer to try and get together with this girl and find out that she really does think I'm a slime.
The Geek: Jake, would I dick you? Let me put it to you this way, what happens to me if I dick you?
Jake: I'll kick your ass.
The Geek: Right! So why would I lie? But I feel compelled to mention to you, Jake, I mean, if all you want of the girl is a piece of ass, I mean, I'll either do it myself, or get someone bigger than me, to kick your ass. I mean, not many girls in ...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Blackcatloner: Movie Madness (2016)

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Soundtracks

The Twilight Zone
(uncredited)
Written by Marius Constant

User Reviews

30 years ago...

I am shocked to realise this hilarious film is now 30 years old! Films from 1964 seen in 1988 looked a zillion years apart.....how can a 1980s film like this one still be so new and play so fresh in 2014? ...Apart from it being funnier and truly inspired I really now appreciate more the legacy of John Hughes in his series of films that were released in that 5 year span 1984-89. Anthony Michael Hall is rightly celebrated and gorgeous Molly Ringwald deserves her fame in the teen hall of Stardom. Whatever happened to Michael Schoeffling (Jake)....anyone know? It seems incongruous that so many future stars got their start in this film yet he seemed to go nowhere. I am also very surprised it got a PG rating.......given the swearing and the nudity..but I guess in the spirit of it all it was a perfect pic for anyone 12 - 112. Very clever and very funny.