Sixteen Candles Theme of Family

We've heard hundreds of times that you can choose your friends, but you can't choose your family. Your family, however, can choose to wish you happy birthday. After all, your mom and dad of all people should know exactly when you were born. They were there.

Sam's family is pretty dysfunctional. Although we never see them on a normal day, so we're not quite sure how they act when they're not planning a wedding and forgetting their own daughter's birthday. Something tells us Dad is always caring, Mom is always a little scatterbrained, Mike is always bratty, Ginny is always a little snotty, and the other one…is…well, we're surprised they remember she exists at all.

Questions about Family

  1. Does Sam fit in with her family? Do you think she likes them on a normal day?
  2. How do you think the Baker family acts when they don't have a wedding to plan?
  3. Will the Bakers and the Riesczecks get along after the wedding?
  4. Do the Bakers remind you of your own family?

Chew on This

Take a peek at these thesis statements. Agree or disagree?

Sam's family's pretty dysfunctional, but the easy way she forgives them at the end shows us that they care about each other, even if they sometimes have trouble showing it.

Family's a common theme in John Hughes films. The Baker family scrambling for the wedding resembles the McCallister family scrambling to get ready for vacation in Home Alone.