Historians analyze 'Ferris Bueller' flick

By Jonah Unger
Staff Writer

Historians at the Movies viewed “Ferris Bueller's Day Off,” its final film of the semester, on Tuesday, April 23.

Historians at the Movies is a monthly film discussion group. History Professor Wade Merrill and Corrections Professor Tami McDiarmid host a WebEx meeting for students and faculty to watch a movie, then discuss the historical significance of that movie. 

“Ferris Bueller” was released in the summer of 1986. According to Merrill, the movie could be made today and still do pretty well.

“This is actually probably one of the oldest movies we have watched this year,” Merrill said. “This movie is pretty timeless.”

Prior to the movie viewing, Merrill gave a brief introduction to the movie and why they chose it to be the last film of 2022-23. 

“How do you wrap up a year … well we decided that you do it by skipping class in high school. That’s where we're at today,” Merrill said. “We do it (Historians at the Movies) at least partly because movies shape a lot of people’s ideas about the past.” 

After watching the film, everyone in the chat discussed the movie, including the acting, the stereotypes and even the crimes committed in the film. Merrill then gave his final remarks. 

“The meaning of life is complicated when you get to that senior high school or college,” Merrill said. “Things are changing and the meaning of life gets more complicated for people as time goes on.”

Historians at the Movies will start back up in fall of 2023.