Coming of Age Films....................

[SaintMort]

Swingers, Clerks, Goonies, Monster Squad, Sandlot, Garden state, Say Anything, Breakfast Club, Chasing Amy are all greats

Seriously SLC Punk was a great choiceto whoever said that one, I forget who.

[LH-C]

My Bodyguard (1980) And on a much darker note - Bad Boys (1983)



Post Edited (10-25-05 15:55)

[LilCerberus]

Last American Virgin - I dunno. I guess I can relate to being robbed & cheated by a girl who knows you've got a crush on her.

Repo Man & Rumble Fish - I think anybody can relate to being fresh out of high school & everything around you starts changing.

[ulthar]

Teen girl angst over first love: Fast Times at Ridgemont High and it's B-Movie Rip: Hot Times at Montclair High

Someone mentioned Animal House; bunches in this genre.  Revenge of the Nerds (one of my favorites) in a way covers the (slight) maturation of Anthony Edwards' character.  

Also, we have Spring Break (lad breaks from Daddy's iron fist) and it's B-Movie Rip: Fraternity Vacation (starring the one and only Tim Robbins as a pretty sleazy dude named "Mother", etc).

Class of Nuke 'Em High and all of those in that niche; coming of age with campiness.

For learning teamwork and self reliance: all those in the Up the Creek/Meatballs niche.

[Shadow]

Dead-Alive. Think about it - Lionel grows up, steps out from the shadow of his domineering mother and grows a spine, making his own decisions and choosing his own destiny, not what she had planned for him.

[Shadowphile]

American Pie

Little Darlings

Here is a question.  Is a 'loss of virginity' movie by definition a 'coming of age' movie or is the 'coming of age' movie best defined without such an obvious landmark?

[ulthar]

Shadowphile wrote:

>
> Here is a question.  Is a 'loss of virginity' movie by
> definition a 'coming of age' movie or is the 'coming of age'
> movie best defined without such an obvious landmark?

I think it is best defined without such a bright line test. Coming of Age, in the broadest sense, means maturation - physical, sexual, emotional, etc.  If at least one of these is present, I would be willing to accept it classified as Coming of Age.

[AndyC]

I'd say the movies dealing with loss of virginity generally have the characters growing up in some other, more meaningful way anyway.

[ulthar]

AndyC wrote:

> I'd say the movies dealing with loss of virginity generally
> have the characters growing up in some other, more meaningful
> way anyway.
>

Porkey's?  American Pie?

[AndyC]

Sure. Porky's had a serious side. Redneck kid stood up to his dad and made friends with Jewish kid. The group as a whole stood up for themselves and took down Porky and his band of thugs.

No matter how much crazy stuff goes on, there's usually at least one kid who comes out wiser in the end. It's more obvious in some movies than others, but it's there.

[ulthar]

AndyC wrote:

> Sure. Porky's had a serious side. Redneck kid stood up to his
> dad and made friends with Jewish kid.
>

Yeah, that's true (Cyril O'Reilly, he played a cool part in Purple Hearts)..blanked out on that one.

[odinn7]

Could we say that Caddyshack is one? If you think about it, Danny does grow up in that film from what he learns.



Post Edited (10-27-05 10:42)

[ulthar]

And so does Carl.

[odinn7]

Well, Carl I have to assume is somewhat already "grown up" so I had to leave him out. "A real cinderella story ladies and gentlemen..."

[Shadowphile]

Can't forget Bambi.

The lead character grows up, learns to stand up for himself, and learns his place in the world.  And he gets the girl!

Besides, how can you dislike a movie with teleporting raccoons?