I’ve given you a list of the King Of Teen Films, John Hughes, best films. So now I’m going to give you a list of the best of the rest.
The teenage years are a trying time – raging hormones, finding one’s identity, trying to fit in, parental expectations, new found independence and restrictions. This awkward transition from childhood to adulthood has been addressed by many film-makers, but it is a relatively new Hollywood subject area. Until the 1950s the word teenager didn’t even exist and teens were just mini versions of their parents. This all changed with the emergence of that dastardly rock n roll music when teen attitudes got more rebellious and skirts got shorter. Every decade since has had its share of teen movies reflecting the fantasy and reality of teen life, leaving me with a list of hundreds of films that I want to include on this list - but unfortunately I can only include ten:
10) Juno [2007]
An endearing Academy Award-winning film about teen pregnancy. It is a rare pro-life film that isn’t preachy or smarmy; instead it is vibrant with reality. It is filled with humour, love and reality and focuses on the feelings of the characters and their attempts to deal with this unexpected situation – Juno (Ellen Page) trying to live her teenage life as the ‘cautionary whale’, the father (Michael Cera) awkwardly and embarrassingly trying to show he cares, her parents trying to be supportive and compassionate but still real and snarky and the adoptive parents (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman) trying to deal with their inability to conceive, the coming of a new member of their family and growing older. It was the latest in a series of films emphasising female self-awareness and attitude modification.
9) Bring It On [2000]
They’re sexy, they’re cute, they’re popular to boot. A champion high school cheerleading squad discovers its previous captain stole all their best routines from an inner city school and must scramble together a routine to compete at this year’s championships and compete with their new rivals. Along with their new member, a gymnast with attitude, we learn that there’s more to cheerleaders than perky, bitchy, football groupies. They’re athletes don’t you know?
8) Empire Records [1995]
Not a huge success at the box office, but has since become a cult favourite. It is a stellar cast with young performances by Liv Tyler and Renée Zellweger amongst other familiar faces. Not all the characters are teenagers, but they are certainly all coping with high school issues. The A+ student taking drugs to cope with her studies and her father’s pressure, the artist who has fallen for her but doesn’t know how to tell her, the seemingly carefree girl trying to compete with her best friend’s perfect image and the abandoned, suicidal girl who shaves her hair off for attention and to feel loved. And despite all these dramatic topics, it still manages to be funny. Plus it has a great soundtrack that I regularly blast out my headphones for everyone on the tube to hear.
7) Porky’s [1982]
It is the first, and best, of what has now come to be known as gross out comedy. The toe curlingly cringey gym scene with ‘Lassie’, the ladies locker room incident with the burly female coach and the stripping down to be inspected by the prostitute provide memorable moments that resulted in the film being banned when it was first released. The dialogue of the film includes obsessions of losing their virginity, measuring their penis’s and putting the condom on before the date. It is what led to films like American Pie being made and allowed films to explore the realities of teenage sexuality. It’s off the wall manner, shocking content and locker room humour has made it the cult hit it is today.
6) Heathers [1989]
This is a morbidly funny film that examines that warm fuzzy feeling we get when we contemplate offing someone we hate. A familiar feeling to any teenager, particularly ones with a bitchy group of popular girls at school – even if those girls are your ‘friends’. It is a dark, deadly satire about Winona Ryder being accepted by a clique of three popular girls named Heather and her spectacular fall from grace as Christian Slater assists her with a killing spree. Murder and arson has never been so hilarious.
5) Clueless [1995]
This classic high school movie is loosely based on Jane Austen’s Emma as it follows Alicia Silverstone as a popular valley girl’s transition from self-centred airhead to do-gooder. It is an intimate look at the life of a self-absorbed teenager with a heart of gold as she learns that there is more to life than fashion and social status. The characters in this movie are spoilt but still lovable.
4) 10 Things I Hate About You [1999]
Another teen movie based on classic literature, this time William Shakespeare’s comedy The Taming of the Shrew. A brilliant cast full of now famous faces. The overprotective dad of two daughters tells the younger popular sister that she can’t date until the older man-hating, feminist sister (Julia Stiles) does. When the sweet new kid (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) falls for her, she convinces him to help her get a date for her sister so she can date the popular model. He then pays the brooding, outcast heartthrob (Heath Ledger) to get her to date him - a difficult task to complete - which of course he does. Who could turn down Heath after that musical number?
3) Napoleon Dynamite [2004]
This cult hipster comedy is a look at life from the perspective of a goofy, unpopular teen in Idaho. The deadpan one-liners, killer soundtrack and hilarious dance scene make this movie a classic. It has been criticized for having no real plot, but when a film is that funny it doesn’t matter what it’s about. Vote for Pedro!
2) Mean Girls [2004]
Stars a pre-gossip rag Lindsay Lohan as a teenage girl attending public school for the first time after being home schooled in Africa for most of her life. After being invited into the popular clique of mean girls, which includes Rachel McAdams and Amanda Seyfried, her new best friends convince her to join their clique and help get revenge on their leader. It revels in the sinister and archaic hierarchy of adolescent communities. This high school dramedy sets the perfect tone between satirical and sentimental, thanks to a great script by Tina Fey.
1) Grease [1978]
Probably the film I have watched the most times in my life. It deals with popularity, teen virtue, teen pregnancy, gang rivalry and education. This film has stood the test of time and continues to be a favourite amongst all ages today. After a summer romance, Sandy enrols in the same high school as Danny, but soon finds out he is a different guy than he previously portrayed. After several attempts to rekindle their romance, love eventually prevails as each alters their appearance to appeal to the other. Not a great message for teenagers, but with a classic, sing-a-long soundtrack, who cares? And it’s even better once you have worked out the correct time to turn it off before the car starts to fly.
What are your top ten?
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