In the 1980s there were “independent” rising stars like Tom Cruise, but their strength is measured precisely by exclusion. Tom was never part of what everyone in Generation X knew as the “Brat Pack”, the group of brats, who defined the young actors who starred in the factory of comedies, dramas, and romances that marked Hollywood in that decade. Most of the leaders of that group are ostracized today, but for example, Robert Downey Jr. flirted his way into it. But all of this that I try to summarize will be the focus of the documentary Brats, directed by one of the group’s members, actor Andrew Macarthy.

The film’s premiere – in the United States – was on May 13th, but there is still no estimate of when it will arrive on StarPlus, the official communication is that the release is scheduled for Disney+ in selected territories this summer, after the world premiere at the 2024 Tribeca Festival. In the documentary, McCarthy, now 61 years old, travels across the United States to reunite with some of his former colleagues, including the most famous at the time: Rob Lowe and Demi Moore.

Understanding what the ‘brat pack’ was would be something like waiting a year for three to four films starring Jenniffer Lawrence, Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling, and Bradley Cooper, with few variations on the themes and some new faces in the cast, but, somehow way, keeping at least two of the group in production. Unimaginable, right? Reality for over 40 years.

The group emerged ‘naturally’, when studios took advantage of their youth and on-screen chemistry to include them in as many films as possible. The actors immediately hated the label, which sounded critical and endearing at the same time. It made a certain amount of sense, but in fact, it turned out to be a curse. When they got older, being part of the Brat Pack ended up having a negative impact and only Demi Moore managed to get out of it when she was the highest paid star in Hollywood, only to be remembered today as the muse of a group that is now elderly. Hard!

With Brats, Andrew analyzes the iconic films of the 1980s that shaped a generation, now classics such as the most symbolic of the Brat Pack: Saint Elmo’s Fire, The Breakfast Club, About Last Night, and Pretty in Pink. To do this, he talks to his affections and dislikes, studying the narrative that gained momentum at the time. He talks to Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Ally Sheedy, Emilio Estevez, Jon Cryer, Lea Thompson, and Timothy Hutton, many of whom Andrew hasn’t seen in over 30 years.

One of the most interesting conversations is with writer David Blum, who coined the term Brat Pack in a cover story for New York Magazine in 1985. The origins were in the Rat Pack, which was a band of friends led in the 1950s by Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Junior (just imagine that the recent edition of the group is in the entire Ocean’s Eleven franchise, with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon).

The trip – literally – updates us on how these stars are today, brings perspective to the importance they had in pop culture and the history of Hollywood. As the actor, director, and writer said, Brats “was that rare opportunity to delve back into the frozen past and bring it to the surface in the living present.”

Obviously, I’m dying to see it! It’s always good to know more about Hollywood!

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