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- Seija Rankin
- Thirteen (2003) This movie, about a (you guessed it) 13-year-old, is basically every parent's nightmare. It follows Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood), a middle school teen who befriends a troubled classmate and gets into...
- Lady Bird (2017) Greta Gerwig's coming-of-age dramedy perfectly taps into the highs and lows that come with desperately wanting to find oneself, being on the brink of young adulthood, and the complicated beauty of the mother-daughter relationship.
- Love & Basketball (2000) The hyper-specific locale of the Los Angeles suburb Baldwin Hills, a.k.a the Black Beverly Hills, adds an extra layer of authenticity by highlighting a real neighborhood that is home to Black prosperity—something rarely depicted onscreen.
- Now and Then (1995) If you went to a slumber party between the years 1995 and 2005, chances are, this movie informed the night's activities (#seance). Before women sat around at brunch debating who was a Samantha or a Miranda, they were tweens who were a Chrissy (Ashleigh Aston Moore), a Teeny (Thora Birch), a Sam (Gaby Hoffmann), or a Roberta (Christina Ricci).
- Electrick Children (2012) Dir. Rebecca Thomas. This is a beautiful film. Rebecca Thomas’ mastery of camerawork and lighting in particular are truly something spectacular to behold.
- Blue is the Warmest Color (2013) Dir. Abdellatiff Kechiche. Abdellatiff Kechiche’s 3-hour-long, queer epic came under a lot of fire last year for its lengthy, graphic sex scenes.
- Pariah (2011) Dir. Dee Rees. On the whole, Dee Rees’ 2011 film Pariah is about having the courage to embrace yourself even when you know it is bound to alienate others from you.
- An Education (2009) Dir. Lone Scherfig. Lone Scherfig’s classy 2009 film put Carey Mulligan on the map (and nabbed her an Oscar nomination). Mulligan plays Jenny, a somewhat precocious English schoolgirl who, though possessed with certain joie de vivre, is disenchanted with her circumstances.
1. The Breakfast Club. 1985 1h 37m R. 7.8 (438K) Rate. 66 Metascore. Five high school students meet in Saturday detention and discover how they have a great deal more in common than they thought. Director John Hughes Stars Emilio Estevez Judd Nelson Molly Ringwald. 2. American Graffiti. 1973 1h 50m PG. 7.4 (99K) Rate. 97 Metascore.
- 8 Thirteen
- 7 Premature
- 6 The Virgin Suicides
- 5 Girlhood
- 4 The Edge of Seventeen
- 3 House of Hummingbird
- 2 The Diary of A Teenage Girl
- 1 Lady Bird
Future Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke came out with her directorial debut Thirteen in 2003, starring Holly Hunter, Evan Rachel Wood, and Nikki Reed. Thirteen-year-old Tacy (Wood) is the daughter of a divorced alcoholic (Hunter), and juggles her perfect image with the life that she lives at home. She befriends Evie (Reed), a popular girl at h...
Premature is a hidden gem, a movie that was buried underneath 2020 blockbusters and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ayanna (Zora Howard) is a 17-year-old girl from Harlem. During summer vacation, she meets an older man named Isaiah (Joshua Boone), a record producer, and there is instant chemistry between the two of them. Ayanna dreams of becomi...
Sofia Coppola’s directorial debut was in 1999 with The Virgin Suicides, an adaptation from the literary novel of the same name. Its focus is on the Lisbon sisters, five young women who live in the suburbs of Detroit with religious, strict parents that forbid them from living lives like their classmates. Neighborhood boys romanticize and sexualize t...
French movie Girlhood was directed and written by Céline Sciamma, who would later go on to direct the film Portrait of a Lady on Fire. This film stars actor Karidja Touré as Marieme, a 16-year-old African-French teenager living in the outskirts of Paris. Her neighborhood is a poor one and her mother works long hours, leaving Marieme to struggle in ...
Before taking on the role of Kate Bishop in Hawkeye, one of Hailee Steinfeld’s best roles was in The Edge of Seventeen. She portrays Nadine, a 17-year-old that feels estranged from her family, especially her brother, after the sudden death of her father. After discovering her best friend in bed with her brother, Nadine begins to spiral and lead on ...
Kim Bora’s House of Hummingbirdmight have a very Korean context, but its overarching themes touch upon a global understanding of coming-of-age. The year is 1994 and the main character, Eun-hee, lives in Seoul with her family. She has a secret boyfriend, likes to hang out with her best friend, and has after-school tutoring sessions in Mandarin Chine...
2015’s The Diary of a Teenage Girl was based on a graphic novel, which, in turn, was based on the author’s own life. And perhaps that is where the charm of this movie lies: it refuses to place judgment on the main character, 15-year-old Minnie (Bel Powley). Minnie has decided she wants to discover her sexuality before it is too late, and so she bec...
Lady Bird, directed by Greta Gerwig, has become an icon of the woman coming-of-age story in cinema. Christine or Lady Bird (Saoirse Ronan) wants to escape the boring town of Sacramento for the East Coast, where she thinks culture will be. She rebels against her mother (Laurie Metcalf) and the rules set against her by the Catholic school she attends...
- Jeremy Urquhart
- Feature Writer/Senior List Writer
- 'Almost Famous' (2000) Director: Cameron Crowe. Almost Famous helped the 21st century get off to a great start, as it was one of the best movies released in 2000.
- 'Y Tu Mamá También' (2001) Director: Alfonso Cuarón. Before he directed a Harry Potter movie and incredible works of science fiction like Children of Men and Gravity, Alfonso Cuarón also made one of the 21st century's best coming-of-age movies.
- 'American Graffiti' (1973) Director: George Lucas. Perhaps most well-known for being a Harrison Ford film directed by George Lucas before they became synonymous with the most famous sci-fi movie ever, American Graffiti also happens to be a coming-of-age classic.
- 'The Graduate' (1967) Director: Mike Nichols. Any young people living today who struggle with the early stages of adulthood may take some comfort in watching 1967's The Graduate.
May 18, 2023 · Here’s our pick of the finest coming-of-age movies out there. Cue Simple Minds. Air punch. Freeze frame. 25. Bend It Like Beckham. Like almost everyone in England around the turn of the ...
Feb 29, 2020 · 47. Boy. When you’re a kid, idolizing at least one of your parents is practically the default. This is especially true for Boy (James Rolleston), a Maori pre-teen who elevates his absent father ...
