I was in 6th grade when Class was released-the movie poster was ingrained in my mind as puberty hit, but I never watched the movie until last year. While I wouldn't put it among my favorites of the genre (perhaps because I watched it well after its release date and my teenage/college years), it was remarkable for its casting. It was Lowe's second feature film (following The Outsiders, same year) and not only was it the first credited role for McCarthy, but also Virginia Madsen and Casey Siemaszko, John Cusack's first credited feature film and Alan Ruck's second credited role (Bad Boys, the Sean Penn version, also in 1983). If you hop over to IMDB and check out the casting directors, there are a couple of heavyweights who brought the actors on board, but surprisingly no connection with John Hughes, given his placing of Cusack, McCarthy, and Ruck in some of his most memorable films. I like the idea of Hughes sitting in the movie theatre and pinpointing which teenage actors he wanted to feature in his upcoming films.
