# What movie has changed the most as you've aged and why? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 22, 2019, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891 "2019-04-22T14:38:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/21 "2019-04-22T17:39:09Z")
**The Breakfast Club** obviously affects me differently than it did when I first saw it as a teenager. I don’t see how it couldn’t. The teacher, while not exactly a good guy, does appear more sympathetic in context to me now as an adult. Comedies like **Animal House** and **Blazing Saddles** however, are just as funny to me now. I find it easy to suspend judgement based on today’s criteria of what is offensive. Not that Blazing Saddles is offensive at all - at least to me as a white person. It’s clearly lampooning the racists and portraying them as the fools they were and are. The fact that it uses the n-word iis not bothersome to me, as it would be in other contexts. However, the right people to be the true arbiters of that would be African-Americans. I agree that **Ferris Bueller** comes off as much more of an asshole now. **Double Indemnity** is one of my favorites, and I think it suffers not a bit from being made 75 years ago. There are scenes where the characters use old recording devices, which I somehow don’t find distracting in the way I do in movies where I see old computers. Not sure if that’s because I am familiar with tech of that vintage, or because DI is such a great movie that one doesn’t care. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/22 "2019-04-22T17:46:37Z")
**_Up In Smoke_.** At 12 years old and being the second R-rated movie I’d ever seen (at the house of a friend who had that new-fangled cable hooked up to the family TV), it was hilarious. Watching the 40th anniversary edition last year, not so much. For me, drug humor in general hasn’t aged well, going from cool and edgy and rebellious to point-and-laugh-at-the-dumbass-burnout. It was immediately apparent why Cheech had the more successful solo career, as he was by far the better actor of the two. Chong’s range wasn’t much beyond saying “Oh wow man” and falling over a lot - really, 3 extended pratfall sequences in one movie was 2 too many. Plus the INS gags were a little uncomfortable in this age. (Cheech’s family calls la migre on themselves so they can be deported in order to get a free bus ride to a cousin’s wedding in Tijuana - although the sight gag of agents rounding up people in suits carrying presents was still amusing) ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/23 "2019-04-22T18:16:42Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Star Wars. What? Literally, this is the answer. It’s not even possible to purchase the original versions of the original trilogy, and whenever original film reels surface, Lucasfilm purportedly shows up like the Men in Black and confiscates them. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/24 "2019-04-22T18:39:46Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > When I first saw it, I thought Woody Allen’s _What’s up, Tiger Lily?_ was incredibly funny. But the years haven’t been kind to it. I still think there’s a lot that’s hilarious in it, but an awful lot falls flat… I had exactly the same reaction. I saw it in high school and practically fell off my chair laughing; I saw it again a few months ago and didn’t find it nearly as funny (although it had its moments). > [@StGermain](#): > > I remember an interview with Spielberg, maybe on the 30th anniversary of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, saying now that he was a father, he can’t imagine sending dad Richard Dreyfuss off with the aliens and leaving his children. > > StG From much the same impulse, he edited _E.T_. for re-release by replacing the government agents’ guns with walkie-talkies. ---
**Author:** ![amaguri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@amaguri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amaguri)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/25 "2019-04-22T19:12:19Z")
re: American Beauty > [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > As far as i can tell history was very quickly unkind. It went from ‘this is kinda deep’ to ‘this is incredibly pretentious’ very quickly. But I will always defend the score. Thomas Newman is my favorite working composer (I still like that movie fwiw) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/26 "2019-04-22T19:16:44Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Ferris Bueller. I loved it when it was new, but now I go back and forth in my head whether Ferris is a hero or an asshole. I remember reading that Matthew Broderick refused to do a sequel because he recognized that the character was unlikeable. And other John Hughes films don’t age well. Sixteen Candles, for instance, with the racist portrayal of Long Duk Dong, and that Jake let Farmer Ted take Jake’s very drunk girlfriend home, and it’s implied, take advantage of her. (Plus Jake’s parents’ house is absolutely trashed, with what looks like thousands in damage.) ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/27 "2019-04-22T19:19:28Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I remember reading that Matthew Broderick refused to do a sequel because he recognized that the character was unlikeable. > > And other John Hughes films don’t age well. Sixteen Candles, for instance, with the racist portrayal of Long Duk Dong, and that Jake let Farmer Ted take Jake’s very drunk girlfriend home, and it’s implied, take advantage of her. (Plus Jake’s parents’ house is absolutely trashed, with what looks like thousands in damage.) Reminder that he’s drunk and underage. She’s in big trouble too. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/28 "2019-04-22T19:23:13Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I remember reading that Matthew Broderick refused to do a sequel because he recognized that the character was unlikeable. He did, though. It was called _Election_. At least, that’s how I interpret that movie. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/29 "2019-04-22T19:28:29Z")
> [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > I remember reading that Matthew Broderick refused to do a sequel because he recognized that the character was unlikeable. > > > > And other John Hughes films don’t age well. Sixteen Candles, for instance, with the racist portrayal of Long Duk Dong, and that Jake let Farmer Ted take Jake’s very drunk girlfriend home, and it’s implied, take advantage of her. (Plus Jake’s parents’ house is absolutely trashed, with what looks like thousands in damage.) > > Reminder that he’s drunk and underage. She’s in big trouble too. Wait, who is drunk and underage? Farmer Ted? Jake? Because I thought Farmer Ted was sober, which is why he was given the car to drive her home. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/30 "2019-04-22T19:39:25Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > Specially teen comedies if you grew up in the 80s. Revenge of the Nerds? haha, holy shit no. I tried watching _Porky’s_ again and all I wanted to do is punch the “teenagers” in the face. I say “teenagers” because it’s obvious in hindsight that most of the actors are much older than their teens. The movie has not aged well, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/31 "2019-04-22T20:02:46Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Both _Caddyshack_ and _Animal House_ don’t seem that funny to me anymore. Agreed, and I’ll add **The Blues Brothers.** I thought these movies were hysterical when I was a kid. When I watched them again as an adult, I found myself scratching my head trying to figure out why I’d thought they were so funny. Another movie I loved when I was a kid, and watched over and over, was **Weird Science**. I have _not_ watched it as an adult, and I don’t intend to. Because I’m sure I’ll find it dull and offensive, and I’d rather not ruin the memory. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/32 "2019-04-22T20:12:50Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > I tried watching _Porky’s_ again and all I wanted to do is punch the “teenagers” in the face. I say “teenagers” because it’s obvious in hindsight that most of the actors are much older than their teens. The movie has not aged well, IMHO. While I realize it’s a really strange contest, **Revenge of the Nerds** was a far better film than **Porky’s**. Neither has aged especially well, though Nerds had its funny moments, while I think Porky’s was merely juvenile / raunchy without being very funny at all. The Ogre character still makes me laugh, and John Goodman was amusing in one of his earliest roles (“S@\*t, we forgot to practice…”). The Nerds’ sexual behavior is indefensible, yet they were not entirely unsympathetic characters. But I agree with wanting to punch the people in Porky’s. ---
**Author:** ![Dante](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dante/32/9673_2.png) [@Dante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dante)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/33 "2019-04-22T20:17:07Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Wait, who is drunk and underage? Farmer Ted? Jake? Because I thought Farmer Ted was sober, which is why he was given the car to drive her home. I thought so too, but in the morning he’s just as fuzzy as she is. Headgear notwithstanding. However, the implication when Jake & Ted are discussing taking her home is that, since she’s completely wasted, shenanigans may occur in Ted’s favor. Hilarious in 1984, but now it’s … icky. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/34 "2019-04-22T20:30:06Z")
How about Woody Allen’s **Manhattan**? Gorgeously shot in black and white, exceptional score. For fans at the time it was peak Woody Allen. For me as a college-aged viewer when it came out, the older man/teen girl relationship didn’t stick out so much because I had known a few girls in high school in similar relationships. But viewed today? Now that I am well into adulthood? Even setting aside the allegations against Woody - hoo boy. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/35 "2019-04-22T20:32:04Z")
I was so all about **The Crow** when it came out. I saw the movie a couple times in the theater, and played the soundtrack every day for a long time. When I went to Seattle many years later, I went and found Brandon Lee’s grave. I bought the BD version a few years ago when it came out. Holy cow, what a bad movie. I thought it would at least evoke the same feelings it did 20 years ago. Nope. It’s very over-done and silly. I still like all the other movies I liked as a kid. I guess The Crow just needed me to be a certain age in a certain place. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/36 "2019-04-22T20:50:15Z")
I recently rewatched _The Thing From Another World_ (1951), which was one of my favorite scary sci-fi movies when I was a kid. Now that the fact that they burn up the alien ship because they are in too much of a hurry to wait for others to get there, and then not only kill the alien but burn up the body and all traces of it just makes me wince at the loss of knowledge. The scientist who protests against all this is portrayed as being naive rather than being right. (Of course, the premise of the _Alien_ franchise is that some critters are too dangerous to live, but tissues from The Thing could have just been kept on ice.) ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/37 "2019-04-22T21:11:39Z")
The “dead n\*\*\*er storage” scene from **Pulp Fiction** is unwatchable now. I remember thinking it was kinda odd back then, as it didn’t really add anything, (not like it was period appropriate for the character), but now? Yikes. Plus, I feel like Sam Jackson’s character would’ve at best called him out immediately upon hearing it, regardless of the nature of their relationship. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/38 "2019-04-22T21:12:27Z")
> [@Dante](#): > > I thought so too, but in the morning he’s just as fuzzy as she is. Headgear notwithstanding. Yeah, I had always assumed that Ted was drunk, too (if not as blackout-drunk as Caroline had been). In the morning-after scene, he doesn’t seem to remember where he is, or what he’d done with her. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/39 "2019-04-22T21:17:06Z")
In a college film class I first saw _The 400 Blows_. I was all about sympathy for the kid, he had it rough! Years later, I had a teenager who was taking French, and I thought he might like this movie, so we rented it. Ah, suddenly I saw the kid for the brat he was, a complete troublemaker\* who got off way easier than he might have. His poor parents! ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2019, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891/40 "2019-04-22T21:21:54Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > The “dead n\*\*\*er storage” scene from **Pulp Fiction** is unwatchable now. I remember thinking it was kinda odd back then, as it didn’t really add anything, (not like it was period appropriate for the character), but now? Yikes. Plus, I feel like Sam Jackson’s character would’ve at best called him out immediately upon hearing it, regardless of the nature of their relationship. As a person of much higher than average melanin, I must say that this scene was funny 15 years ago and is still funny now. Please note that I cannot account for the subsequent White Man’s Burden Complex or Very Black’s Super Hypersensitivity Mode. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movie-has-changed-the-most-as-youve-aged-and-why/832891.md?page=3)