80s Movie Month – The Teen Movie

The teen movie was a genre that definitely came into its own in the 80s. While there was movies aimed at teens earlier on (everything from Gidget to Rebel Without a Cause), the 80s teen movie was the beginning of the genre that we know today, specifically when it came to high school-centric plots.

The few years we spend at high school seems so short when we look back on them, but at the time it seems they’ll never end, and that everything that happens is the be all and end all of life. So it’s not surprising that there is an infinite number of takes on high school life, and many of these were put on film in the 80s. Think films as varied as the magical Teen Witch, the raw Fast Times at Ridgemont High, the romantic Say Anything and the ridiculous Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (all personal favorites of mine!).

Then of course came the king of the 80s teen movie – John Hughes. His first in the genre, Sixteen Candles starring Molly Ringwald, was an exaggerated comedy, yet it hit home with teens around the world who felt it spoke to how they really felt about life. Hughes kept the hits coming with the Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Weird Science and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, before he eventually branched out into different movie genres. Even though Hughes himself moved on, he left as his legacy a group of timeless, enduring teen movies that I think we’ll all keep watching forever.

What are some of your favorite teen movies from the 80s?