R.I.P. John Hughes

Found out a few hours ago that director John Hughes passed away at age 59. News reports say that he suffered a heart attack during a walk in Manhattan. Hughes left behind a body of work that was one of the most iconic and influential of '80s American cinema. If you grew up in the '80s, Hughes' films served as a kind of guiding beacon throughout your years in school; they spoke to teenagers like very few films did at the time. The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Weird Science, Ferris Bueller's Day Off - they're all perennial teen favourites. Planes, Trains and Automobiles - which interestingly enough we've named one of our subgenres after - is probably still one of the funniest comedies of the '80s. Hughes' biggest hit would be Home Alone, which he wrote and produced. I always thought he directed Some Kind of Wonderful, and I think most people think he did Pretty in Pink, but these common misconceptions just show how much of his distinctive voice came through even on the scripts he only penned and didn't direct. Click here to rent some of this films, and here for Variety's obituary.