Without their soundtracks,
John Hughes' classic 1980s movies would be very, very different films. In a way that set the tone for an entire generation of youth culture, the song selections for his movies reflected the emotional travails of his characters while they added depth and detail to every triumph and struggle.
Life Moves Pretty Fast aims to capture the very specific mood delivered by
Hughes' soundtracks by collecting songs used in his iconic '80s run in one place. Across four discs and 74 tracks,
Life Moves Pretty Fast includes music from more than ten films
Hughes either wrote or directed. Though this includes selections from movies like Uncle Buck and The Great Outdoors, the most recognizable entries come from
Hughes' coming-of-age and teen comedy-drama masterpieces like Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and others. Songs like
Simple Minds' "Don't You (Forget About Me),"
Yello's "Oh Yeah,"
the Psychedelic Furs' "Pretty in Pink," and
Oingo Boingo's "Weird Science" are all but inextricable from their respective films (with the latter two even sharing titles with the movies they were theme songs for), but digging a little deeper into the compilation reveals some hidden gems.
Kristy MacColl's cover of
the Smiths' brutally pessimistic "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby" (featured in
Hughes' 1988 film She's Having a Baby) sounds almost cheery compared to the original, and the goofy synth pop of
Silicon Teens' "Red River Rock" is a perfect counterpart to the slapstick misadventures portrayed in Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Listening straight through will expose overlooked moments and remind one of such all-but-forgotten tunes as
General Public's lilting "Tenderness" and
Flesh for Lulu's "I Go Crazy." Experienced one song at a time,
Life Moves Pretty Fast is sweet and nostalgic. Listeners who immerse themselves in the box set will get happily lost in the promise, possibility, and youthful excitement of the music, and realize just how essential the soundtracks were to establishing those feelings in
Hughes' films. ~ Fred Thomas