No duh! No comedies are more entertaining than the ones about the most awkward phase of life. Catch the silliest insults, the cattiest cliques and most awww-inspiring romantic moments from the best teen movies of all time in the video above!
10. Can’t Hardly Wait
This 1998 flick has all the components for a classic teen film: a high school outcast (Ethan Embry) who’s pining for the most popular girl in school (Jennifer Love Hewitt), the class clown (Seth Green) on the hunt for some “honeys” and the thuggish jock (Peter Facinelli) who’s been a Class-A jerk to the nerds. Mix in some cameos from stars-in-the-making Jaime Pressly, Jason Segel, Selma Blair, Jerry O’Connell and Melissa Joan Hart and you’ve got the perfect ‘90s artifact.
9. She’s All That
Did glasses really hide the fact that clumsy Laney Boggs (Rachel Leigh Cook) was just a swan waiting to transcend her ugly duckling status? It doesn’t matter. When popular jock Zack (Freddie Prinze Jr.) makes her feel like the Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman — except for the whole hooker thing — we get all the feels.
8. Bring It On
It’s no cheerocracy when cheertator Torrance Shipman (Kirsten Dunst) is around! Nothing recalls the pettiness of high school like spirit squad members besting each other with flips and digs! After the huge success of this film, there were four direct-to-video sequels, none of which featured the original cast.
7. Grease
The 1978 movie, which features songs that remain on every single wedding DJ’s playlists, never gets old. The wave of 1950s nostalgia brought us this teen tale about good girl Sandy (Olivia Newton-John) and bad boy Danny (John Travolta) trying to make their romance work amongst the Thunderbirds and the Pink Ladies. All high school cliques should have customized jackets this cool.
6. The Breakfast Club
Don’t you forget about this one! Five high school archetypes — the jock (Emilio Estevez) the punk (Judd Nelson), the geek (Anthony Michael Hall), the popular girl (Molly Ringwald) and the outcast (Ally Sheedy) bond over eight hours in detention, ultimately teaching us that, as Andrew says, “We’re all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it, that’s all.”
5. Clueless
Was there a better teen comedy out in 1995? As if! The modern take on Jane Austen’s Emma became an instant classic. Alicia Silverstone’s loveable teen queen Cher gives new girl Tai (Brittany Murphy) a makeover and sets her up with the guy who’s after Cher’s own heart, Elton (Jeremy Sisto). A generation of teen girls melted at the sight of Cher’s step-brother Josh, played Paul Rudd in his first major movie role.
4. 10 Things I Hate About You
This 1999 update on Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew made breakout stars of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger. When Cameron (Gordon-Levitt) bribes Patrick (Ledger) to date Kat (Stiles), the unlikely pair fall for each other — which leads to Ledger’s sweet rendition of Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, backed by the high school marching band.
3. American Pie
After inexperienced Jim (Jason Biggs) violated an unsuspecting pastry, dessert was never the same. The 1999 ensemble comedy about four high school seniors looking to lose their virginity introduced Tara Reid and Alyson Hannigan to the world. It also ensured that no one ever again started a story with the phrase “This one time, at band camp…”
2. Mean Girls
We’re still trying to make fetch happen, over a decade after Tina Fey’s deliciously catty comedy hit screens in 2004. In one of her best roles, Lindsay Lohan plays Cady, the newest member of pretty girl clique The Plastics, headed by the villainous Regina George (Rachel McAdams). Only a school-wide burn-book scandal could pull them all back down to earth.
1. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
No one’s better at faking a sick day than the impish title character, played by Matthew Broderick. Much to the dismay of his sister (Jennifer Grey) and principal Rooney (Jeffrey Jones), the wise-cracking BUELLERRRRRRRR escapes the ‘burbs, crashes an NYC parade and leaves us with the enduring tagline: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
