"Sixteen Candles" is yet another film aimed at the "flash-foot" ("Flashdance" and "Footloose") set, a movie about and for teen-agers. It's doubtful parents would want to see this movie. Heck, they have their fill of this scene at home. College kids? Young marrieds? It's not their problem.

It's a wonder teen-agers wouldn't be bored going to see so many movies about themselves. Narcissism being what it is, perhaps they love all the attention. Then again, one suspects the real market aimed for here is the pre- teen market because these type of films have the kind of plots that deal with what a particular rite of passage (turning 16, in this case) is going to be like.

Of course, we shouldn't blame teen-agers for movies like this. After all, they only go to the movies. Adults are the ones who make them. In this instance, we can thank John Hughes. We can also thank Hughes for "National Lampoon's Class Reunion," "National Lampoon's Vacation" and "Mr. Mom." Then again, maybe we shouldn't. Anyway, "Mr. Mom" was a mostly on-target comedy and "Vacation" made lots of money. "Sixteen Candles" is just insignificant enough that it may do fairly well.

Hughes is on his own this time, though. There's no Chevy Chase, as in "Vacation," nor a Michael Keaton, Terri Garr or Martin Mull, as in "Mr. Mom." Here, we have Molly Ringwald as Samantha, whose sixteenth birthday is forgotten by everyone in her family because of the excitement over the wedding plans of her older sister Ginny (Blanche Baker, Carole Baker's daughter).

"It was just like any other day," Samantha grouses. That everyone would completely forget the poor girl's birthday stretches belief. It's also stretching the credibility to not have her blurt out to one of her family, "Hey, you jerks, today's my birthday." Instead, she says to herself, "This has got to be a joke." Couldn't agree more, Sam.

Sophomore jinx aside, Samantha has a crush on a senior, Jake (Michael Schoeffling), who already has a girlfriend, Caroline (Haviland Morris). After a school dance the "few friends" Caroline invited over to her boyfriend's parents' lavish suburban Chicago home proceed to trash it. We'll spare you further boring details. Eventually, Samantha and Jake do tell each other they like each other.

Justin Henry (of "Kramer Vs. Kramer") plays Samantha's younger brother. Veteran character actor Paul Dooley plays Samantha's Dad. Anthony Michael Hall has a rather prominent role as a Geek (they used to call these guys nerds). Gedde Watanabe portrays an Oriental exchange student.

"Sixteen Candles" has the look and sound of a film in trouble. It seems Hughes started out with a modest little idea and then the idea men took over, plugging in the kind of teen slang only heard on Frank Zappa's "Valley Girls" record; inserting no fewer than 30 snippets of songs and TV themes ("Dragnet," "Peter Gunn"), and otherwise "high concepting" the movie into a meaningless muddle of gag scenes. Too bad.

In the film's favor, it presents its leading teens, Samantha and Jake, as rather well-adjusted, sensitive types. Also, Samantha's family is a rather wholesome if bewildered bunch of suburbanites. And when the film isn't trying for low comedy, it has a few memorable scenes.

Ringwald is fetching in her role, although too often she's been directed to talk to herself.

Dooley, as the father, provides a believable performance. Hall is inadequate as a nerd and when he turns directly to the camera and says, "This is getting good," the audience may interpret this as bad acting.

Henry seems to have put on an incredible amount of weight and not much height. Schoeffling is a striking screen presence but when called upon to act he does so with a capital A for anguish.

Watanabe overplays his role as the Oriental so much that it passes over the line of ethnic humor into racism.

That's not the only bad taste in evidence, however. Several times, Hughes tries for a joke at the expense of a character in a neck brace.

It's films like "Sixteen Candles" that make you glad you're not a teen- ager anymore. What's so great about teen-age angst, anyway? To the makers of "Sixteen Candles?" Grow Up.

"Sixteen Candles." . Rated . Profanity. Now playing at Lehigh Valley Mall Cinemas, The Movies at Trexlertown in the Trexler Mall, Boyd Theater in Bethlehem and Eric-6 in Easton.