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SummaryThe film that defined the "Brat Pack". A group of recent Georgetown grads in the Washington DC area struggles to get on with their lives and with each other.

St. Elmo's Fire

Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
35
User score
Generally Favorable
6.7
My Score
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Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
35
20% Positive
3 Reviews
33% Mixed
5 Reviews
47% Negative
7 Reviews
  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
80
IGN
Well written, well made, well acted, St. Elmo's Fire is a quintessential film about the strange middleground between youth and adulthood.
70
The Hollywood Reporter
Despite the often skewed story, performances under Joel Schumacher's intelligent direction are spirited and on-the-mark, most notably that of Lowe as the caddish pretty boy and Moore as the frazzled coker. The other leads: Estevez, McCarthy, Sheedy, Winningham and Nelson all deserve plaudits for their credible contributions.
User score
Generally Favorable
6.7
63% Positive
12 Ratings
26% Mixed
5 Ratings
11% Negative
2 Ratings
  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
Apr 24, 2019
8
timone
St. Elmo's Fire is what other people think of when they thought of 80's films such as The Breakfast Club and About Last Night which does have the same cast in between. It had a fantastic soundtrack and it is great. The song that I love from it is "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)" by John Parr and the theme from David Foster who also composed the music for the film. I listened to many of his stuff cause I'm a huge fan of his music, they're so beautiful. The story, how can I explain? It's honestly weird to describe because the story of the main characters, they all have their passion that burns deep into the hole. Here's what I mean: A group of recent Georgetown graduates in the Washington DC area struggles to get on with their lives and with each other. The Brat Pack actors, Emilio Estevez as Kirby Keager who is a law student and waiter at St. Elmo's Bar and he has an obsession with a medical student named Dale played by Andie MacDowell. Rob Lowe as Billy Hicks who is a saxophonist as in "frat boy" and reluctant husband and father. Andrew McCarthy as Kevin Dolenz who is a writer for The Washington Post with a sullen streak, and Kirby's roommate. Demi Moore as Jules who is an international banker and the "party girl" of the group. Her character is high and is addicted to coke. Demi also worked with Rob Lowe in the 80's teen comedy drama, About Last Night. Judd Nelson as Alec who is a yuppie pursuing his career in politics and he is in love with Leslie Hunter. Judd had previously played a cocky arse****, Bender in The Breakfast Club and everybody loved him. Speaking of that, Ally Sheedy as Leslie Hunter who is a budding architect who is reluctant to marry Alec. Ally had also previously worked with Emilio Estevez and Judd Nelson. And then we have Mare Winningham as Wendy who is a clerk from a wealthy family and devoted to helping others. When I heard of St. Elmo's Fire, I was looking at the rating at Rotten Tomatoes and it had a bad rating to mixed by critics so I figured I don't think I'm in for it. But thinking about it, I was like "Okay, that might be worth a look to watch." Because I'm a huge fan of 80's songs and films. Now that I've watched it, I said "And that's St. Elmo's Fire." and honestly, I don't think it deserved the hate that it gets. There's definitely more going for this like the soundtrack by David Foster is wonderful and the film itself is something that I can watch again. However, what keeps it away from being a definitive coming-of-age film is that the story is forgettable where the audience including myself don't know what was going on and can't even get it in your head all the way through and characters that, well, you're kinda grown into them, aren't as well structured as some of the Brat Pack's best but even if people love the film or hate it, they'll make up their minds. Don't get me wrong though, St. Elmo's Fire is still a really good that's worth watching. It's just not as good as the films that came out before and after. But like I said, it had an amazing soundtrack that I will enjoy listening to forever. It's a film that will keep everyone interested as always even if they are a fan of Joel Schumacher and it is worth adding to the DVD collection.
Sep 28, 2020
5
Austy_
It’s the lack of plot and awful characters for me. For the first ten minutes I was really excited but everyone digressed and turned into complete **** No one had redeeming qualities or arcs to redeem themselves. It starts fun, turns bad quick and doesn’t get better. It left me feeling weird and empty when it was over. I had a good time laughing at how ridiculous some scenarios were, but didn’t get much else out of it.
40
TV Guide Magazine
Cowriter and director Joel Schumacher keeps things moving, skipping adroitly from one narrative thread to another. Well he should, since it's unlikely any of the subplots could have stood on their own, and very few penetrate deeper into the human condition than the average magazine advertisement.
40
The New York Times
St. Elmo's Fire is most appealing when it simply gives the actors a chance to flirt with the camera, and with one another. When it attempts to take seriously the problems of characters who are spoiled, affluent and unbearably smug, it becomes considerably less attractive.
30
Variety
Beyond occasional mutterings of words like ‘love’ and ‘beer,’ there’s never any explanation in the dialog that would hint at motivation.
25
Miami Herald
The most remarkable failure of the film is that the principals don't seem even to like each other very much, despite their habit of facing the future arm in arm. There's a lot of cute flesh up on the screen, signifying nothing. [28 June 1985, p.D1]
20
Time Out
Estevez and Nelson are as unappealing here as in The Breakfast Club, though in fairness they're hampered by a script that seems to despise its characters. So, by the end, will you.
See All 15 Critic Reviews
Jun 23, 2024
3
Joshuaworld77
2024 and I finally took the time to watch this film.…very boring, unforgettable characters. A meandering story that tries to play on the adulting trope, but misses the mark.
See All 19 User Reviews
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  • Columbia Pictures
  • Delphi IV Productions
Jun 28, 1985
1 h 50 m
R
The passion burns deep.
Razzie Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Grammy Awards
• 1 Nomination
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