Plot
A Group of friends, just out of college, struggle with adulthood. Their main problem is that they're all self-centered and obnoxious.
Release Year: 1985
Rating: 6.0/10 (15,106 voted)
Director:
Joel Schumacher
Stars: Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy
Storyline Seven friends - Alec, Billy, Jules, Kevin, Kirby, Leslie and Wendy - are trying to navigate through life and their friendships following college graduation. Alec, who aspires to political life, has just shown his true colors by changing his allegiance from Democrat to Republican, which freaks out girlfriend Leslie, who he wants to marry. Budding architect Leslie, on the other hand, has an independent streak. She believes she has to make a name for herself to find out who she is before she can truly commit to another person in marriage. But Leslie and Alec have decided to live together. Because Leslie refuses to marry Alec, he believes that justifies certain behavior. Kirby, who wants to become a lawyer and who pays for his schooling by working as a waiter at their local hangout called St. Elmo's Bar, and struggling writer Kevin are currently roommates. They are on opposite extremes of the romance spectrum...
Writers: Joel Schumacher, Carl Kurlander
Cast: Emilio Estevez
-
Kirby Keger
Rob Lowe
-
Billy Hicks
Andrew McCarthy
-
Kevin Dolenz
Demi Moore
-
Jules
Judd Nelson
-
Alec Newbary
Ally Sheedy
-
Leslie Hunter
Mare Winningham
-
Wendy Beamish
Martin Balsam
-
Mr. Beamish
Andie MacDowell
-
Dale Biberman
Joyce Van Patten
-
Mrs. Beamish
Jenny Wright
-
Felicia
Blake Clark
-
Wally
Jon Cutler
-
Howie Krantz
Matthew Laurance
-
Ron Dellasandro
Gina Hecht
-
Judith
Taglines:
You can always count on your friends. Don't ever let the fire go out.
Release Date: 28 June 1985
Filming Locations: Adams-Morgan, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
Opening Weekend: $6,128,157
(USA)
(30 June 1985)
Gross: $37,803,872
(USA)
Technical Specs
Runtime:|
Canada:
(Ontario)
Did You Know?
Trivia: Andrew McCarthy's character has several witty lines that are lifted directly from Ian Shoales, a fictional pop-culture critic created by Merle Kessler of the Duck's Breath Mystery Theater. Ian Shoales appeared on NPR's "All Things Considered," as well as MTV's
The Cutting Edge Happy Hour. The "St. Elmo's Fire" credits give "special thanks" the Duck's Breath Mystery Theater.
Goofs:
Factual errors:
The film takes place at and around Georgetown University. However, various characters in the film are seen wearing red/white varsity letter jackets, the colors of the University of Maryland, where the campus scenes were filmed. Georgetown's colors are Blue, Gray, and White.
Quotes: Jules:
You break my heart. Then again, you break everyone's heart.
User Review
Self-absorbed?
Rating:
St. Elmo's fire has been on constant play on HBO lately. I turned it on the
other night and watched the whole thing. Yeah, it was a nostalgia trip (I
remember watching it a few times on cable ten years ago) but it also has
some decent scenes and it really captures a "moment," both for recent
college grads and for those of us who were enchanted by the brat pack in the
80s.
I've been reading other people's reviews; several of them whine about how
"self-absorbed" these characters are.
Well...um... duh. Yeah. Most movies are about self-absorbed people.
Self-absorbed people are more interesting, because they don't care what
other people think: self absorbed people feel deeply, they make huge
mistakes, and they're generally fun to watch. Some of the greatest movies
of all time are about self-absorbed people: Annie Hall (Alvy Singer),
Amadeus (Mozart), Leaving Las Vegas (Nic Cage), Goodfellas (Every single
mobster in the movie). Mother Theresa was completely giving, completely
SELFLESS, and yet I haven't seen a great movie about her. That's not the
point.
I'm not saying St. Elmo's Fire is a classic. I'm just saying, calm down
people. Take the movie for what it is, a stylized look into one moment in
life, and don't be so preachy about what kinds of characters are
"appropriate" to focus on.
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