Top 15 Iconic Teen Movies
Published on October 12, 2007 - 102 Comments
Coming of age films are a very popular genre, and most of us have one or two favorites that really sum up our youths. This has been a very difficult list to create and I have pored over it for hours. I have ultimately chosen films that are either greatly loved by the generation they represent, or illustrate the issues that affect their generation. If you think I have left an important film off, please mention so in the comments.
15. Fast Times at Ridgemont High 1982, Amy HeckerlingTrailer | Amazon
This film follows a group of high school students growing up in southern California, based on the real-life adventures chronicled by Cameron Crowe. Stacy Hamilton and Mark Ratner are looking for a love interest, and are helped along by their older classmates, Linda Barrett and Mike Damone, respectively. The center of the film is held by Jeff Spicoli, a perpetually stoned surfer dude who faces off with the resolute Mr. Hand, who is convinced that everyone is on dope.
14. Elephant 2003, Gus Van SantTrailer | Amazon
This controversial film deals with the issues of guns at school, following shortly on from the Columbine killings. It is probably the only film from the 21st century that depicts the issues that teens face in the here and now. Despite using virtually unknown actors, this film won awards and is perhaps one of the best from Van Sant. Beautiful cinematography makes this a film that will be remembered for a long time.
13. Dazed and Confused 1993, Richard LinklaterTrailer | Amazon
In a small Texas enclave, highlights the rites of passage on the last day of school in 1976 for the new, incoming freshmen at the hands of the class of ‘77 at Robert E. Lee High School. Freshman boys are physically punished, while the girls largely face the brunt of verbal abuse and humiliation. Two main figures emerge. Incoming freshman Mitch Kramer comes to a new realization in his role as a major target of senior hazing. And, among the seniors is Randall “Pink” Floyd, the school’s star quarterback, who moves with facile grace among groups of greasers, nerds, stoners, and athletes alike.
12. Boyz N The Hood 1991, John SingletonScene | Amazon
John Singleton’s portrayal of social problems in inner-city Los Angeles takes the form of a tale of three friends growing up together ‘in the ‘hood.’ Half-brothers Doughboy and Ricky Baker are foils for each other’s personality, presenting very different approaches to the tough lives they face. Ricky is the ‘All-American’ athlete, looking to win a football scholarship to USC and seeks salvation through sports, while ‘Dough’ succumbs to the violence, alcohol, and crime surrounding him in his environment, but maintains a strong sense of pride and code of honor.
11. To Sir with Love 1967, James ClavellScene | Amazon
To sir with love is a film that deals with the issues of racism and poverty in inner London during the 1960s. Sydney Poitier stars as the teacher, an interesting reversal of his role as a troubled teen in a similar film in 1955, Blackboard Jungle. The film’s title song “To Sir, with Love”, sung by Lulu, reached number one in the U.S. pop charts.
10. Y Tu Mamá También 2001, Alfonso CuarónTrailer | Amazon
This film chronicles the coming of age of two teenage boys who take a road trip across mexico with a woman in her late twenties. The film is set against the backdrop of the political and economic realities of present-day Mexico. The film also touches upon issues of homosexuality in its investigation of the relationship between the two main characters.
9. American Graffiti 1973, George LucasTrailer | Amazon
Features the coming of age of four teenagers on their last summer night before college. Rediscover drag racing, Insipiration Point and drive-ins all over again in this nostalgic looks at the 60’s. The incredible soundtrack brings you the most memorable rock ‘n’ roll hits of the era.
8. The Dead Poets Society 1989, Peter WeirScene | Amazon
The Dead Poets Society is set in a boys school in the late 1950s in which we see the transition from the strongly conservative views of the 50s morph into the “liberated” views of the 1960s through the influence of an English teacher played by Robin Williams. Williams comes up against difficulties from the established school system and the parents as he tries to open the minds of his pupils. This fictional movie contains many poignant moments and has become something of a classic. My favorite quote from the film: “Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, ‘Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.’ Don’t be resigned to that. Break out!”
7. The Breakfast Club 1985, John HughesScene | Amazon
It’s the weekend, and five students have weekend detention. There’s a jock, a princess, a misfit, a nerd, and a lout. Not much in common, except for having to give up their day, sit in the school library, and write an essay for the principal. Being from such widely different backgrounds and having such completely different personalities, it’s inevitable that some frictions and shenanigans develop. Especially when the principal leaves the room…
6. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off 1986, John HughesScene | Amazon
Ferris is a street-wise kid who knows all the tricks. Today he decides to take the day off school. When Ferris takes the day off, so must his best friends, Cameron and Sloane. Cameron is reluctantly persuaded to borrow his father’s Ferrari, and together they hatch a plan to get Sloane out of class. Suspicious dean of students Ed Rooney knows all about Ferris, but can never catch him. Ferris’ sister Jeanie is also frustrated that Ferris always gets away with his tricks and she doesn’t. Furthermore, Ferris is an ‘angel’ in his parents eyes. It’s Ferris’ day off, he’s out to enjoy himself, and he does!
5. Back to the Future 1985, Robert ZemeckisTrailer | Amazon
The year is 1985 and Marty McFly (Fox) is your everyday teenager, except for one problem. He is stuck in 1955. After his good friend Doc Emmett Brown (Lloyd) is gunned down, Marty ends up sending the DeLorean back twenty years into the past. Now, he must find the Doc and convince him that he is from the future, in order for the Doc to send him back to the future, but this is the least of Marty’s problem. After accidentally getting in the way of the important meeting between his future mother (Thompson) and father (Glover), Marty must get them back together before he changes time forever, and destroys his own existence.
4. Stand by Me 1986, Rob ReinerTrailer | Amazon
Stand by Me is based upon a book by Stephen King. It tells the tale of four boys who are about to embark on different paths as they head to high school. In order to see the dead body of a boy near their age, the boys go for their last summer journey together. During this time they discover things about themselves and each other that change their views on the world. This is a hauntingly beautiful film which stars River Phoenix.
3. La Haine 1995, Mathieu KassovitzScene | Amazon
Set in the slums of Paris, this film explores the lives of three friends (a black, a Jew, and an Arab) amidst racial tensions in France in the early 1990s. The title of the film means “hate” and each of the characters expresses hatred of the system in which they live. As the film progresses the characters learn from each other that life is what they make it. The film has a tragic end but, in typically French style, is full of wonderful philosophical gems.
2. Cidade de Deus 2002, Fernando MeirellesTrailer | Amazon
Brazil, 1960’s, City of God. The Tender Trio robs motels and gas trucks. Younger kids watch and learn well…too well. 1970’s: Li’l Zé has prospered very well and owns the city. He causes violence and fear as he wipes out rival gangs without mercy. His best friend Bené is the only one to keep him on the good side of sanity. Rocket has watched these two gain power for years, and he wants no part of it. Yet he keeps getting swept up in the madness. All he wants to do is take pictures. 1980’s: Things are out of control between the last two remaining gangs…will it ever end? Welcome to the City of God.
1. Rebel Without a Cause 1955, Nicholas RayTrailer | Amazon
It would be safe to say that this film was the first great iconic film of the teen genre. It was one of only three performances of James Dean and caused great scandal at the time because of the homosexual undertone that permeates the film between the characters played by Dean and Sal Mineo. I would be remiss if I were to not include this as the number one film. Dean has moved to a new town with his parents and is about to start at a new school. He befriends the unpopular Sal Mineo who idolizes him. This is a film that all film buffs must see.
Notable Omissions: If you want to see the complete list of movies that I had to pick from, you can see it here on the forums.
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1. Juggz - October 12th, 2007 at 12:50 pm
PCU!
2. DMH - October 12th, 2007 at 12:53 pm
Dead Poets Society!! Glad to see that this wonderful movie made the list!. I was truly inspired by this movie. Good choice.
D
3. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
juggz?
The source list is here: http://listverse.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=271 - excuse my handwriting
4. evan - October 12th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
PCU & Superbad!
5. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
okay - is my age showing? WTF is PCU?
6. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 1:33 pm
Ah - found it. “PCU is a 1994 comedy film. The movie follows in the footsteps of Animal House, showing college life at the fictional Port Chester University in Connecticut. ” - it only scored 5.9 on IMDB - that is nearly bad enough to rate in the bottom 250 movies of all time! Come on guys! Cut me some slack!
Just because you (obviously) went to PCU doesn’t make the film any good!
7. Kate - October 12th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
Where is Say Anything? What about Sixteen Candles and Heathers for God’s sake!
8. Liverboy - October 12th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
I would vote for Sixteen Candles. It’s a classic.
9. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
Kate: read the very last sentence of the post - look at my handwritten list. You will see both Sixteen Candles and Heathers. I have fifty years of great films to include - do you really think Heathers is better than the fifteen I listed? If so, what specifically makes it better?
10. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
Liverboy: see comment 9.
11. Ravyn - October 12th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
Jfrater: I would recomend you watch PCU. Yes it does follow Animal House a bit. Yes the information you gave is accurate. No it is not a bad movie. Yes it is an awesome movie that most people who have watched it would rate it higher than Animal House. PCU might not be one to put on the list but it would deserve and notible mention. I am not trying to be rude honestly. Just give it a veiw when you can.
As for the list… You have some real great movies on it. And I love it. Thank you.
12. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
Ravyn: okay - because you gave a nice sensible reply I will do so!
13. Juggz - October 12th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
yes, PCU is a great movie. It probably does not recieve rave reviews because a lot of the humor in it. I find it a great coming of age movie personally though.
After looking at the source list, I am REALLY suprised you didnt include Kids though.
14. Robert - October 12th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
no Sixteen Candles??? List is pointless without that gem!
15. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
Before any more comments are posted, I recommend you all read Top 10 Reasons JFrater Doesn’t Want To Write Another Film List
16. Kelsi - October 12th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Iconic? Definately. Good list. I love the Dead Poet’s Society. For some reason, I feel like I can really relate to it. I also enjoy Dazed and Confused, every time I see it. And Ferris Buler’s Day Off? Perfect for this list.
17. Diogenes - October 12th, 2007 at 4:14 pm
i thought City of God was pretty darn good. I had expectations due to all the rave reviews but when I began viewing and saw that the type of rythmic stlye wasn’t going let up , I thought “oh boy. this is too american pop in its sleakness and camera movements” but it grew on me and the length becomes epic and the story, ect.
Funny, I never thought “Y Tu Mamá También” having much to do with teens, or I should say, I never considered it a “teen movie”…and I thought the hype concerning the sexual aspects of it were overrated. Still, not a bad film though. The “road movie” aspect of it may be in teen land.. but I dont think iconic.. maybe I should see it again.
18. Diogenes - October 12th, 2007 at 4:22 pm
p.s. What is SCUM?
19. Samsung - October 12th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
OMG!!! u so totally missed american pie 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 as well as “not another teen movie” - most iconic teen movie’s ever. O.K. Just kidding. I’m a teenager and having just read why JFrater doesn’t want to write another movie list?; decided to be irritating.
p.s. Jamie is a legend, and his opinion is usually spot on. I didn’t take in much of the punctuation list so please excuse the terrible punctuation lol
20. Barb - October 12th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
OMG. Ferris and Breakfast Club really take me back to being a teenager. Haven’t watched some of these movies in years. Seems like a good thing to do this afternoon. Might have to rent out St. Elmo’s Fire as well. I love that film. And Fast Times? Sean Penn’s finest moment.
21. Yarr - October 12th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
My favorite teen movies are Hustler’s “18 & Luvin’ It!” 1-4
Veritable classics of the genre.
:-p
22. Ken J - October 12th, 2007 at 6:48 pm
A really great movie that you seem to have missed (I’m not criticizing though, just drawing attention to it) is Cooley High. I think it’s one of the best coming of age movies, certainly in my top five.
I looked at your notes and didn’t see it on there. But if you did take note of it, I apologize.
23. Sean the pyro - October 12th, 2007 at 7:03 pm
Great list, no problems with it but to add a few more choices:
PCU
American Pie
And a great movie many people have never heard of:
Eight Days a Week
Jamie, don’t let the bad ratings of PCU get you down. While it may not be a classic it is pretty damn funny.
24. Diogenes - October 12th, 2007 at 7:26 pm
to Yarr:
I think you are on to something. soft core and erotic and porn films have got to be iconic teen area, when it comes to films. My only comment is that I think it differs more because who is to say what was their defining moment. There are favorites though I am sure.
25. Diogenes - October 12th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
p.p.p.p.p.p.s———– to Ken J: When I saw ” Cooley High” I realized that there were thieves and contiuations that pulled much from this film. I agree that it is great. I want to see it again now. Boyz in da hood and many others are part of this story. Hardships and sensitivities included.
26. Nartjai - October 12th, 2007 at 7:42 pm
Holy crap you included my favorite movie of all time: City of God.
You are the best.
Thank you. That is all.
27. Ken J - October 12th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
I would put Cooley High right after American Grafitti and before Dazed and Confused in a top three. I’m really surprised it was overlooked. And I’m not a film snob (seriously).
I can only think of one reason it wasn’t included; Racism!
(I’m just kidding)
28. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 11:30 pm
Diogenes: Scum is an English film about a young boy that is sent to borstal - he eventually bashes his way to becoming top dog of the youths. It is a very violent film that was banned in the UK for a while because of its factual representative of a repressive youth justice system.
29. jfrater - October 12th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
To everyone talking about Cooley High - I have not actually seen that film - but from the way you are all going on I guess I had better! Pronto! Thanks for bringing it up, and PCU
30. Ken J - October 12th, 2007 at 11:54 pm
Yeah, see Cooley High. It’s just a really great, low key movie that is largely forgotten today. It’s very moving and so well written and acted.
It was also the inspiration for the sitcom “What’s Happening” although that show bears pretty much no resemblance to the movie.
31. ChuChu353 - October 12th, 2007 at 11:58 pm
Great list!!!!
If I were to submit one film for the list that is not named, it would be 1963’s BEACH PARTY.
For the first time, you have a film where there are teenagers with NO chaperones or adults watching them and implication that they might actually be thinking about having *gasp* SEX with each other!!!!
32. melissa - October 13th, 2007 at 7:03 am
I know this isn’t a movie, and the series Freaks and Geeks is pretty much my life from my POV. All those teen movies protrayed people who weren’t anything like who my friends or who I was. If you haven’t seen Freaks and Geeks, I recommend renting the DVDs.
33. Lasse - October 13th, 2007 at 10:12 am
Kudos for taking “La Haine” int this list. But i really think it should contain “the Basketball Diaries”
34. jfrater - October 13th, 2007 at 10:20 am
Lasse: look at my source list on the forums - basketball diaries is on it. I love that film and own it on DVD.
35. jongleur - October 13th, 2007 at 12:42 pm
Interesting that you have “Stand by me” - a great film by the way. The reason I said ‘interesting’ is that I’d venture to say that a large portion of Stephen King’s works are about teenagers. Set twenty or thirty years after their teen years maybe, but the recurring theme is one of needing that connection with their teen running mates.
With Stephen King in mind, I’d add “Carrie” to the list, because all too many of us can identify with being perceived as the outsider, and harbor those secret revenge fantasies, where we make all of those people who made us miserable pay for it.
36. jfrater - October 13th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
jongleur: Carrie was on my source list - great film.
37. inanytime - October 14th, 2007 at 8:11 am
hot bubblegum not included! - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082528/
38. Anonymous - October 14th, 2007 at 9:28 am
MEAN GIRLS
39. Eatme - October 16th, 2007 at 3:47 pm
Hello? CAN’T HARDLY WAIT
CLASSIC
40. kingsllc - October 16th, 2007 at 10:23 pm
sixteen candles is a classic. “no more yanky my wanky….the donger needs food”
41. Sean the pyro - October 18th, 2007 at 6:03 pm
lol, funiest line ever.
42. el duderino - October 28th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
Ah yes, Phoebe Cates, Moving in Stereo.
43. Fallenangel - October 30th, 2007 at 7:58 pm
I love Dead poets Society, I watch it whenever I can, but I have a flip side. SLC Punk. It totally relates to my friends and me in Cheyenne. When I was introduced to this movie, I was totally taken aback, I wanted to know ‘Why hadn’t I been aware of it sooner’
Love your lists, Thanks man!
P.S I would vote for 16 Candles too
44. Clues - November 9th, 2007 at 1:39 am
J- Love the list.
The dork in me is screaming Star Wars (Orig)
The late 70’s early 80’s would never have been the same without them.
45. jfrater - November 9th, 2007 at 1:51 am
Clues: thanks
I had a darth vader mask 
46. alisa - November 9th, 2007 at 7:23 pm
Ahh The Breakfast Club. I used to watch it alllll the time. I can’t believe “Grease” with John Travolta and Olivia Newton John wasn’t on this list!
47. Drogo - November 13th, 2007 at 2:04 am
Breaking Away (1979) might fit in the list.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078902/plotsummary
48. roscoefrye - November 15th, 2007 at 7:57 am
Revenge of The Nerds and Weird Science, hell even Real Genius.
49. Angelina - November 20th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
Hello! Dirty Dancing, anyone??? Where my girls at?
Nobody puts Baby in a corner!!! 
50. Dandelion - November 25th, 2007 at 6:02 am
Oh, thank you for putting The Dead Poets Society on the list! It’s a great movie.
51. Alexandra - December 5th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
Wow! This was really interesting to read. I haven’t seen many of them, but ‘Elephant’ looks really interesting, and I’ve always wanted to see ‘Stand by me’ and ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’.
I thought maybe Heathers would be in here, but it’s more of a black comedy than anything.
52. jfrater - December 6th, 2007 at 1:42 am
Alexandra: I definitely recommend Elephant - it is a brilliant film. And I can’t believe you haven’t seen Stand by Me yet - watch it immediately! You will love it.
53. Jenn - December 12th, 2007 at 5:52 pm
done anybody else notice the the misses on the picture for the dazed & confused movie is mila jovich
54. miss_ali1984 - December 19th, 2007 at 2:22 pm
I LOVED Dead Poets Society. That’s one of the reasons I am going to school to be a teacher. The other is, of course, Kindergarten Cop. I don’t have a tooma!
55. Stephanie - December 21st, 2007 at 10:44 pm
Love the list. Although I think Heathers should be in there. It is a black comedy, but it does deal with teenage issues.
56. Lady_Luzhin - January 24th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Holy cap, no one’s mentioned Ghost World, yet? I loved that movie…
57. Yogi Barrister - January 24th, 2008 at 11:10 am
Some great recommendations here at the end of this thread. STAND BY ME, GHOST WORLD, and HEATHERS are all cult classics. Might as well toss DONNIE DARKO, RIVER’S EDGE, and IF… into the mix.
58. satori - February 1st, 2008 at 5:42 am
American Pie would be I think…more of a recent-ish one. Also, probably one of my fav movies of all time; “Pump up the Volume”-Christian Slater-and of course I just thought of Footloose. OH GOD, an obvious one to me, Clueless.
59. swampsnake - February 1st, 2008 at 6:10 am
Cooley High was the direct inspersation for the tv show White Shadow. loved em both why back when.
60. Susana - February 29th, 2008 at 3:07 am
I watched Pretty In Pink on an ‘old movies’ channel recently,thought it was sweet.But it was even funnier seeing guys like James Spader and Jon Cryer when they were kids.I got a real laugh from Patrick Dempsey in his pre-Grey’s Anatomy days in Can’t buy me love.Oh,how I miss the 80’s!
61. Frazzzld - March 6th, 2008 at 2:16 am
Thanks for including The Breakfast Club and Ferris Buellers day off. Those are two movies that I feel should never be remade… it just wouldn’t be as good.
62. Rofloctopus - March 6th, 2008 at 6:38 am
Elephant is the worst piece of trash move I have ever seen.
Complete waste of time.
63. cristian - March 6th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
what about superbad
64. mike - March 9th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
Stand By Me wasn’t based on a book, instead it was based on the short story, The Body, by Stephen King.
65. TomJ - March 16th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
I strongly suspect anyone writign a list like this in a few years time would include Juno pretty high up…
66. sue - March 19th, 2008 at 11:03 pm
So true abt Juno….
67. Sivren - March 25th, 2008 at 11:19 am
I don’t think anyone mentioned Empire Records. Clerks 2 and Knocked Up were also very good, but probably aimed at a slightly older demographic than the “teen movies.”
68. ChuChu353 - May 13th, 2008 at 8:27 pm
About #15 Dazed and Confused……. I grew up in Texas and went to high school in 1976 only 30 miles from Robert E Lee High School in Tyler, TX
69. Cassy - May 19th, 2008 at 2:33 am
CAN’T HARDLY WAIT!! I hate Super Bad….
70. Cassy - May 19th, 2008 at 2:34 am
I like all the movies….
71. MPW - May 19th, 2008 at 10:20 pm
Stand by Me was excellent
72. beff - May 20th, 2008 at 3:30 am
dazed and confused
73. nicole - May 27th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Omg seriously Mean Girls! And what about John Tucker Must Die, Drive Me Crazy, the Perfect Score, Lean on Me… Come on! lol =)
74. Braden - May 29th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
A very good list, but without a John Cusack movie on it, it must be considered incomplete.
75. donatello - July 13th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
62. Rofloctopus - i don’t agree with you saying that Elephant is a complete waste of time. It is not and never will be. it is one of the films that shows how far reality and violence can get. well, to each his own. it won the golden palm in cannes by the way.
76. wickeddavis - July 18th, 2008 at 4:17 am
anyone ever seen “Hot Moves”? i have only seen it on beta and somehow sat through the whole horrible thing…absolutely iconic in how not to make a teen movie. i think it’s worth watching however, for these 3 scenes:
1. the paperboy in the lady’s house
2. the fat kid and the teddybear
3. the ending at the beach
otherwise: horrible acting, bad story, unlikable characters…but lots of early 80’s t&a if that’s your thing…so stupid it’s hilarious
77. KC - July 20th, 2008 at 8:51 pm
How about Clueless for teen girls in the 90’s?
78. Cambrex101 - July 29th, 2008 at 12:05 am
Oh, I love most of these movies!
And the others, I haven’t seen them.
Yet.
=]
Except I’m disappointed not to see more Molly Ringwald.
No 16 Candles?
Really?
79. Mallik - August 3rd, 2008 at 8:53 am
I am expecting “Freedom Writers” in the list.
Happy to see “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” in the list.
80. dustin - August 4th, 2008 at 11:22 am
i dont think they should be top 15 but sixteen and angus could be on a general list of teen coming of age movies
81. rushfan - August 15th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Cool list. I want to see Elephant, never heard of it. Reminds me of Kids and Thirteen.
82. em - August 21st, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Great list. I also think Freedom Writers should be on the list its a totally great movie.
83. Drogo - August 25th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
I’m not sure if “Porky’s”(1982) would be considered iconic, but it was popular enough to have several sequels.
84. rushfan - August 26th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Yes! Porky’s is iconic in my book. I watched that movie at so many slumber parties. I don’t know if it was a good idea for 8 year old girls to be watching, but I loved it!
85. Rare - September 3rd, 2008 at 4:16 pm
What about the outsiders? (:
86. MT - September 10th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
Summer of ‘42-The first movie I saw where teenagers bought condoms.
Bully-Based on a true story.
Kids- I thought this was a real documentary at first glance. Teen sexcapes and drugs at it’s worst!
87. Ash - November 3rd, 2008 at 6:32 am
Suprised Rushmore or American Pie aren’t here…
88. Guinevere - November 3rd, 2008 at 4:27 pm
I think you could do with a few more modern contributions and would suggest ‘thirteen’ it’s rather dark but deals with issues of peer pressure, self harm and eating which are very relevant today.
89. karolina - November 10th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
Good list but Rushmore, Clueless, & Juno were awesome movies too…Though my generation is of Superbad, Nick & Norah’s, etc, I grew up watching these..
90. Tailer - November 12th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
Am I old or does anyone else here think Kids should be here?
91. Spunkydragon - December 5th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Rushfan,
I agree with KIDS and Thirteen. Very influential teen movies I actually didn’t see until I was an adult. Loved them. I absolutly love Dazed and Confused and agree everyone should pick up Freaks and Geeks on DVD. See Seth Rogan in his earlier days. I also agree with RoflOctopus, I hated Elephant! It looked like the kind of movie I would love but it was terrible.
92. Paro - December 15th, 2008 at 8:50 am
I love this list, very true…La Haine is a superb film and more Americans should watch it. I feel it’s currently limited just to Europe
93. superstar - December 28th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Good List but fogot about Empire Records, American Pie, Clueless, Mean Girls and Superbad