Here's the truth: The Breakfast Club is a cultural landmark that genuinely tries to say something meaningful about teenage identity and social cruelty. The conversations about parental pressure, suicide ideation, and the pain of social hierarchies are still relevant.
But it's also a 40-year-old movie that moves at a glacial pace by modern standards, is filled with dated references, and—most importantly—has a romantic subplot that teaches exactly the wrong lesson. John Bender spends the entire film harassing Claire, and she rewards him with a kiss and a makeover montage. It's the 'bad boy who won't take no for an answer' trope that we're actively trying to unlearn.
If you're going to watch this with your teen, make it a deliberate choice with commentary, not a casual Friday night pick. Use it as a teaching moment about how media from different eras reflects different values, and have real conversations about consent and what healthy relationships actually look like. Otherwise, there are better coming-of-age films that deliver similar emotional depth without the problematic baggage (see: The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Lady Bird, Eighth Grade).
The WISE score reflects both the film's genuine emotional intelligence AND the significant issues with harassment-as-romance, plus the reality that most modern teens will tap out after 20 minutes of 1980s detention room dialogue.






