A checklist for a teen chick flick cast: a popular mean girl; a douche-but-hot rugby player every girl wants to go to prom with; a nerd secretly in love with the mean girl; and a bully who uses mischief as a coping mechanism for childhood trauma. Another requirement is that the actors in teen movies must be much older than the roles they are casting for. Seems pretty accurate, right? No matter how cliche many high school movies are, they are fun to watch nonetheless. And to be fair, we don't watch teen romance movies to learn or educate ourselves. Heck, we just want some silly, careless fun and light entertainment!
My heart truly goes to early 2000s teen movies when I think of them. How many of you had a crush on John Tucker? I certainly did. However, he was kind of a douche. Nonetheless, nothing can beat the iconic The Breakfast Club from the 1980s. It's perhaps one of those movies for teens that you need to 'mature' for and will enjoy just as much after your teen years. And among all the hits released in the ‘80s (and there were MANY), it might be one of the best. And that's a statement. I said it.
However, the recent years in the filmmaking world weren't disappointing either. Plenty of good movies for teens have been released in the past few years that can be enjoyed by late Gen Z-ers, Gen Alpha, and millennials. Heck, boomers, you are more than welcome to watch too! By the way, the Netflix original film Senior Year featuring the hilarious Rebel Wilson will fo sho (must keep up with that teen slang) give you the giggles!
Below, we've compiled some of our favorite, beloved, and in our opinion, best teen movies that are a must-watch growing up. Or if you want to escape "adulting" for about two hours. What were or still are your favorite teen movies to watch? Let us know!
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