RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Found a Bug? Squash It! Report Bugs Here
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
80 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:46

Fresh:37

Rotten:9

Average Rating:7.4/10

Consensus: Matthew Broderick charms in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, a light and irrepressibly fun movie about being young and having fun.

Runtime: 1 hr 43 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) is a tricky but harmless fast-talker. But he knows how to have fun, which is exactly what he sets out to do when he feigns illness and talks his parents into... Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) is a tricky but harmless fast-talker. But he knows how to have fun, which is exactly what he sets out to do when he feigns illness and talks his parents into letting him stay home from school. The perpetually lucky Ferris enlists his hypochondriac best friend, Cameron Frye (Alan Ruck), into springing his girlfriend, Sloane Peterson (Mia Sara), from class, and the three embark on a raucous downtown Chicago adventure. From Wrigley Field to the Art Institute of Chicago to a Polish pride parade, Ferris and his friends make the most of their day off. But Ferris, Sloane, and Cameron might not get away with playing hooky. Ferris's sister, Jeanie (Jennifer Grey), is determined to prove that Ferris is faking sick and make him pay for it, and the bumbling school dean, Ed Rooney (Jeffrey Jones), is sure that Ferris is pulling a fast one. Another classic from writer-director John Hughes (SIXTEEN CANDLES, THE BREAKFAST CLUB), this film features a star turn from Broderick as the charismatic Ferris. Watch for Charlie Sheen as the juvenile delinquent in the police station and comedian Louie Anderson in a brief appearance as a flower deliveryman. [More]

Starring: Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, Alan Ruck, Jeffrey Jones

Starring: Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, Alan Ruck, Jeffrey Jones, Edie McClurg, Jennifer Grey, Cindy Pickett, Lyman Ward, Charlie Sheen, Ben Stein, Del Close, Virginia Capers, Richard Edson, Larry "Flash" Jenkins, Louie Anderson, Kristy Swanson, Max Perlich, Polly Noonan

Director: John Hughes

Director: John Hughes
Producer: John Hughes, Tom Jacobson
Screenwriter: John Hughes
Composer: Ira Newborn, John Robie, Arthur Baker

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
1 - 3 of 3

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Reviews for Ferris Bueller's Day Off

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

There are some great comic set pieces with a seize-the-day vibe for teens. Broderick is amiably charismatic and high school dean Jones almost matches him in comic skill.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
05/05/08
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Sporadically hilarious, with roots that run far deeper than expected.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
05/05/08
Adam Smith
Adam Smith
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Too much fun.

comment Comment
06/12/04
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Ferris is an admittedly entertaining, at times delightful fellow. How unfortunate that no one got to wring the little bastard's neck.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment 7 Comments
02/11/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
12/18/02
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

The quintessential teen comedy, this is a movie that could and should serve as a model for movies of this sort in the future.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
05/07/09
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

...removed from the moment, the high capitalism of the mid-1980s, the movie seems mild and pleasantly whimsical.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
01/24/06
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Drenched in Eighties-style teen spirit.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
03/10/03
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

No review available.

comment Comment
07/15/03
Josh Gilchrist
Josh Gilchrist
Billings Outpost (Montana)

No review available.

comment Comment
09/03/04
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

The overriding impression is one of utter nihilism, of a world divided into bored, crassly materialistic teenagers and doltish, unfeeling adults.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment 6 Comments
07/18/07
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader

The film's heart is in the right place, and Ferris Bueller is slight, whimsical and sweet.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment 1 Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Not only captures what being a teenager and a high schooler felt like, but also embodies what life ought to be like.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
02/16/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

...funny, satiric, bright, and inventive, sagging around the two-thirds mark but coming through with an exhilarating finish.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
07/24/08
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

No review available.

comment Comment
05/28/04
Michelle Alexandria
Michelle Alexandria
Eclipse Magazine

The single finest movie of the 80's.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Oz
Oz
eFilmCritic.com

Eminently quotable and very, very fun.

comment Comment
04/17/05
Scott Weinberg
Scott Weinberg
eFilmCritic.com

No review available.

comment Comment
06/16/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
08/08/02
Bill Chambers
Bill Chambers
Film Freak Central

This is John Hughes' best teen film, and it's a call to arms to everyone in the world who doesn't want to follow society's lame-ass rules at the expense of living a cool life.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Brad Laidman
Brad Laidman
Film Threat
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
all

Latest News for Ferris Bueller's Day Off

July 09, 2009: Alan Ruck: From Ferris' Best Friend to Cool Dad Opens in new window
More than 20 years after his "Ferris Bueller" character lashed out at his father, actor Alan Ruck has graduated into playing dad roles of his own. More...

November 24, 2005: A Day to Give Thanks (for Good Thanksgiving Movies!)
The Newsday column gets to take a few days off during the big holidays, but I couldn't let today go by without offering our friends a handful of Turkey-day treats. If you're... More...

July 12, 2005: Paramount is Sending Us Back to "Summer School"
Screenwriters Kyle Pennekamp & Scott Turpel have been enlisted by Paramount to pen a remake of the 1987 comedy "Summer School," says Variety. More...

See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
25% 25% Four Christmases
68% 68% Funny People
95% 95% Star Trek
14% 14% The Ugly Truth

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
32% 32% Terminator Salvation
44% 44% Night at the Museum: B…
86% 86% A Christmas Tale
60% 60% Paper Heart

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 facts straight from the cast.

Disney Animation

Disney Animation

We chart the studio's classics.

Avatar

Avatar

An exclusive look at the human hardware.

Eric Bana

Eric Bana

The Star Trek star talks cars with RT.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Spielberg Hops Away from Harvey Source: Variety
20
  • Tarantino Could Have Directed Green Lantern Source: MTV
24
  • Will Duvall be Gilliam's Don Quixote? Source: Collider.com
26
  • No Hobbit Until 2012? Source: The Wrap
22
  • Don't Hold Your Breath for Hancock 2 Source: HitFix
42
  • Peter Berg Talks Battleship Source: CHUD
2
  • Summit Ponders Twilight Finale Source: Variety
159
  • First Look at Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Source: USA Today
56
  • Jeremy Renner Talks Hawkeye Possibilities Source: Superhero Hype
14
  • Todd Phillips Talks The Hangover 2 Source: Entertainment Weekly
18
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Total Recall: Natalie Portman's Best Movies
69
  • Five Favorite Films with Jason Reitman
47
  • Critics Consensus: Everybody's Fine Is Just OK
46
  • 10 Horrifically Profitable Films
45
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: Vampires and Football Break Thanksgiving Records
42
  • Five Favorite Films with Jesse Ventura
39
  • Sundance 2010: RT's 10 Most Anticipated Movies
31
  • Awards Tour: National Board of Review Winners List!
25
  • Weekly Ketchup: Tron Team to Remake The Black Hole
25
  • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Terminator Salvation and a Smithsonian Battle
22
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
2
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
12
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
22
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
22
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
28
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Ferris Bueller's Day Off at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Ferris Bueller's Day Off at IGN

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.