Sixteen Candles review

Sixteen Candles review

Sixteen Candles is an American movie released in the year 1984. Samantha, one of the main characters in the film, is having her birthday. However, her birthday is forgotten as her family is busty planning her sister’s wedding, which is bound to happen the following day. Her frustration is furthered by the fact that she has a crush on Jake, a popular bot in school. But, Jake has a girlfriend and does not even know that she exists. She only catches his attention as she keeps staring at him through the independent class. But when Jake asks Rock, his best friend, about her, he dismissed Samantha as an immature kid.

On the other hand, there is a geeky kid, Ted, who wants to get together with Samantha. He tries flirting with her on that day but she dismisses him. Samantha’s day gets even worse as she is forced to take the sofa as her grandparents sleep on the sofa. Also, she is forced to go to the school dance with Dong, the kid who came with her grandparents. But on getting to the dance, Dong spots Marlene and quickly ditches Samantha. Ted joins her on the dance floor after betting with his friends to get a few floppy discs if he gets physical with her (Hughes, 1984). While at the auto shop, Samantha pours her heart out to Ted about the forgotten birthday. Ted also tells her about his bet, but tells her that Jakes asked about her. At the same time, Jake breaks it off with his girlfriend Caroline following the drama she caused at the party.

The following morning things start to get better. Samantha’s mum apologizes for forgetting her birthday. Jake also goes to the wedding to find her and tell her that he broke up with Caroline. He gives her a birthday cake with sixteen candles on it after which they kiss bringing the movie to an end.

Biological Development

Biological development in adolescents is usually dramatic and interwoven with other aspects of maturity. It is usually characterized by the rapid somatic, physiological and hormonal changes that are associated with puberty.

One of the major biological changes seen in Samantha is the growth of her breasts. This is evidenced where her grandparents, who had not seen her for some time exclaim about the growth of her breasts.

Psychological Development

Stress is not uncommon in the development of adolescents. Stress in the 16 Candles film arises where Samantha’s family forget about her birthday making her feel like they do not care about her. Samantha feels angry at her parents when they fail to remember her birthday. She feels that they love her sister more than her because they are preoccupied with her wedding which was to happen the following day. She is angry that no one cares about her. However, she manages to effectively control her emotions. She does not act out just because everybody forgot her birthday. Eventually, she finds a way to release the stress. This happens as she tells Ted what had been going on.

Samantha is also seen to have psychologically developed where she reasons to give Ted her panties. Ted had been empathetic of her story about her family failing to remember her birthday. As a token of appreciation for his empathy and the fact that he told her that Jake likes her, she gives him her panties. Ted had been asked by his peers to prove that he had gotten physical with Samantha by bringing proof in the form of Samantha’s panties (Hughes, 1984). Samantha, not wanting Ted to be teased by his peers for not meeting his end of the deal, gives Ted her panties. This shows her increased logical reasoning.

In addition, Samantha seems to have psychologically developed as she refuses Ted’s advances. Ted is a geek who is keen on pleasing everyone. Therefore, he tries his luck with Samantha but she only judges him as sex-mad. In this way, she proves that she has developed to a point where she logically reasons and is able to identify genuine interest.

Social Development

One of the key developments in adolescent is the renegotiation of the relationships that they have with their parents. At this stage, adolescents are trying to be more independent. Also, their interrelationships with their peers increase. It is at this point that parental monitoring also becomes crucial. Samantha seems to be undergoing normal social development in her adolescence. In her teenage, she feels that she is ready to be in an intimate relationship. She is particularly interest in Jake, who is considered to be the most handsome boy in her class. She has also developed an attitude towards relationships with geeks. Although she feels that she is ready to be in a relationship, she is quite choosy. She knows that she does not want to be involved with a geek.

In addition, Samantha’s independence is seen where she is allowed to attend a school dance. At this stage, her parents understand her need to make independent choices. Therefore, they allow her to attend the dance. However, her grandparents still insist on monitoring her. Therefore, they demand that she goes to the dance with Dong. Dong is supposed to keep the boys away from Samantha. However, on the day of the wedding, her parents end up allowing her to spend time with Jake, the boy she likes.

Social development in the adolescent Samantha is also seen where she is seen spending most of her time with her peers rather than her parents. The film depicts her spending most of her time with her schoolmates, particularly Randi. Throughout the film, most of her time is spent with her peers rather than her parents.