Review: Weird Science

Directed by: John Hughes

Written by: John Hughes

Starring: Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, Kelly LeBrock, Bill Paxton, Robert Downey Jr.

Rating: [3.5/5]

Fantasies come as a natural part of living as we can dream about things we cannot achieve. These fantasies can certainly range in their attainability and the one displayed in Weird Science should not come with ease but with the power of science and teenage horniness, we get taken on this ridiculous ride. Incredibly immature for the most part and certainly dated, this film still manages to provide some fun humor. 

Unpopular nerds Gary (Anthony Michael Hall) and Wyatt (Ilan Mitchell-Smith) face bullying from seniors and have no luck with the ladies. At a point of desperation, they have decided they will construct their perfect woman. After some experimentation, they create Lisa (Kelly LeBrock), who comes with magical powers. Created as a plaything for these teenagers, Lisa decides to use her powers to help these boys grow up a bit. 

The target audience of Weird Science is pretty clear in its desire to appeal to teenagers, particularly boys where it plays into this idea of creating a woman that meets all of their needs instead of speaking to one. They would go through these massive lengths and they end up getting more than they bargained for. In creating Lisa they indulge in everything that would make for the perfect woman in their eyes and in his moment their immaturity appears at its most glaring. The moment where they try to decide on her breast size really says it all ultimately and things only get stranger. This version of Frankenstein comes with much more knowledge than typically gets depicted especially when she uses these magical powers to begin conjuring things for their benefit. Lisa becomes this tool to help them learn rather than some sex object they can use simply for their pleasure. 

Watching this film for the first time now will lead some to be concerned with some of the content the film has to offer. It certainly has this massive 80s appeal to it as well as the notion of many of John Hughes’s films that still carry plenty of entertainment value while having elements that would make some cringe at moments. This particular immaturity can certainly put off anyone who did not watch this by a certain age, especially where women essentially get used as vessels for helping these teenagers  One simply just has to get on its wavelength but I certainly could not blame anyone for not finding certain aspects of it particularly charming. 

With all of the strangeness that comes with this film, as referenced in the title, this film still carries plenty of fun moments we would expect from a coming-of-age movie. They have plenty to learn not just about their own teenage immaturity but what it means to organically make friends. Lisa’s presence in their lives forces them out of their comfort zone on many instances, especially those of her making, and in those moments of growth this movie certainly has some sweetness to it. 

Everything that works about Weird Science begins and ends with Kelly LeBrock. Saddled with a character who could have been disastrous, she makes it all work with quite the unique presentation of a Frankenstein monster. She obviously has the looks of what these teenage boys would fantasize about in the ideal woman but Lisa navigates and wraps everyone around her finger. One could easily see this presentation of Lisa being a complete disaster but with LeBrock it all works for the better and allows the qualms many could have with this film to dissipate ever so slightly. 

Very much an 80s raunchy comedy for all of the good and bad it represents, Weird Science displays to what extent the power of teenage horniness can accomplish. They can even master the power to create their ideal woman from a plastic doll and some dodgy scientific methods. Not everything about this film ultimately holds up as one could imagine but the elements that work have this timeless quality that make it quite timeless in a sense. Teenage boys will certainly rejoice with the fun it presents but it still manages to have plenty for everyone to take away from it as one could imagine from a John Hughes film centered on the teenage experience.