Why Uncle Buck is the Ultimate Family Drama Comedy by John Hughes
- Jasmin Rowcliffe
- Apr 23
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 29
Family drama was an enormous theme in this film. Due to the mothers’ father having a heart attack, the mother and father must find someone to watch their children while they go visit him. The mother and father struggle finding someone to watch their children and contact their last resort, Uncle Buck. Now, Uncle Buck must try to hold together the children while managing his relationship with his girlfriend. However, his niece continues to disobey the rules and ruins his relationship due to her selfish wants. One example of this is the scene where the children meet Buck. Miles and Maisy are shocked to have an uncle while Tia is annoyed that their uncle is babysitting them.
Uncle Buck is portrayed as a lazy guy who isn’t responsible, but we can see how much he cares for the children and how humoristic he is. Tia is known to be rebellious and goes out of her way to make trouble. Although, towards the end she understands family is important and makes up with her uncle and mom. Maizy and Miles are the younger siblings who cause a little trouble but mostly are there to influence the comedic aspect of the movie by portraying how silly little siblings can be. Bug is known to be a dumb teenager boy who tries to act tough and is a horrible influence on Tia.
The importance of family plays a grand role in the film. Not only does Uncle Buck learn how important family is, but Tia does as well. Uncle Buck manages to put aside his own life and needs to focus on the children even though this is a struggle for him. While doing so, Tia realizes that family is more important than being rebellious and that her family is looking out for her. Lastly, the film ended with a classic happy ending. Uncle Buck and Tia made peace with each other. In turn, Tia fixed Uncle Buck’s relationship with Chanice by confessing she set him up with Marcy. Lastly, Tia apologizes to her mother for her actions and fixes their relationship as well. In the end, Tia accepts Uncle Buck as a part of the family, and everyone is fortunate for the family.
The storytelling mainly revolves around Uncle Buck trying to be responsible with his nieces and nephew. Although, the struggle of trying to balance a good relationship with his girlfriend and the children challenges Buck to become more responsible.
The music and humor keep the audience engaged in the story. The lighting is typically bright and natural throughout the film. However, when Buck discovers Tia left the children alone, he goes to the party she thought she was attending. Consequently, he knocked down the door and the lighting were dark and serious. The lighting darkens his figure to dramatize the moment. Shortly after, he finds out Tia’s boyfriend is cheating on her and handles the issue the way he sees fit.
My favorite scene in the film was whenever the children meet uncle buck. Now, I know what you're thinking, "That can't be your favorite scene." However, it is because the comment Miles (Macaulay Culkin) makes is hilarious!
Uncle Buck is rated fifty-nine percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics believe that the movie had its ups and downs, but the comedic aspect of it is enjoyable. One critic said, “The kids are cute, and candy is game, and it's largely their personalities that allow the film to survive its series of underwhelming set-pieces” (Matt Brunson). Culturally, most of Uncle Buck's audience enjoyed the film. It left a positive outlook due to the comedic tone and importance of family while portraying how life can be. I believe this film works extremely well with audience and is underrated!
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