I guess times have changed.
Every time I hear the younger generation bash this film, I can only guess why.
Times have changed. I grew up in the 1980s and high school at the time seemed a lot more oppressive, especially if you came from a strict, middle class background where grades and being the model student meant everything. Cutting class, failing grades, etc., was an even greater deal back then than it is now. The way teachers and parents acted, it was as if your entire future was at stake if you even made one mistake and that you were one step away from becoming a juvie and robbing your first liquor store or winding up flipping burgers for the rest of your life. Because of all that, as a kid you tried to follow the rules as much as possible.
Ferris Bueller allowed millions of middle class kids to experience acting out (cutting class, putting one over on teachers) without actually going through with it and dealing with the fallout in real life. So it was a wish fulfillment fantasy for kids who were too scared to buck the system.
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IMDB, flagging ppl for bull💩 since 1995.