Life Moves Pretty Fast By Hadley Freeman

4/5 Inconceivable!* This book is amazing, and if you’re anything like me; You will love pretty much love every single eighties film, because they are just so irrefutably amazeballs.

In life moves pretty fast, Freeman sets the tone early. With a title partially taken from 80’s teen classic Ferris Bueller and a cover that resembles an old school video cassette, it is evident that she is taking this more seriously than Inigo Montoya’s plot for revenge.

If there is one thing I can and will praise Freeman for, it’s her use of quotations. Throughout the chapters she slyly drizzles in quotes that further reflect the nostalgic feel of the book but also cleverly manipulates the reader into watching said quotated film all over again, which I love because any excuse to watch my loves Andrew McCarthy and Bill Murray are definitely worthwhile.

What’s amazing is that Freeman does more than just write about her love for the brat pack and Ghostbusters (a film she out-rightly declared as the “greatest ever made”) . She expresses an actual understanding of the topics addressed in some of these films, such as, the portrayal of social attitudes towards abortion and sex in Dirty Dancing.

So if films were this good in the eighties, what changed? Surely they should have  just improved as the decades passed, right? I guess you could blame it on the Rich A holes that know nothing about authentic film making.  There was a time when film making was just solely owned by the studios and writers had a lot more say, as well as freedom; However, studios are now owned by international conglomerates who care more about profit than they do pleasing us folk that just want to see things go back to the way they once were.

Freeman, a journalist who spent her adolescence in the big apple shares her thoughts with a hint of immaturity that suggests she is also writing out of frustration due to the escapism the films gave her growing up.

If there is one thing I can relate to Freeman on and would happily interview her just to spend hours talking about is The Princess Bride. The Princess Bride is one of the greatest films from the eighties, probably even one of the greatest ever made. It is definitely one of my favorites, hence the quote *Inconceivable* right at the start. If you haven’t seen it, please find time to do so… Then find even more time to go and purchase this book just so you can read the beautiful chapter dedicated to The Princess Bride, as well as top quotes from the film at the back.

I feel like I could rave about this book all day, mainly because it has slowly become my bible. I read it often… maybe a lot!! I know its a book dedicated to eighties movies, which might make you slightly apprehensive because maybe you’re not a fan (If that’s the case, please don’t tell me cos I might cry) but I promise you Freeman’s sarcastic tone and direct approach will make you one. I rate this book 4/5 only because it did not go into depth on St Elmo’s Fire, however Hadley even regrets this and has promised a dedicated chapter in the follow up book. YAYYY