Feeling angsty? Not as much as these guys you aren't. Whether they are actually teens or not is irrelevant, they act the part with aplomb when it comes to their showdown of mood swings, self-questioning and overall adolescent coming-of-age, adolescent behaviour. If either in a bit of a strop yourself after having an off day, feeling rather 'nobody understands me' self-reflective or in search for some nostalgia at when you once were a misfit teen, sift through this film selection to both wallow and simulataneously remind yourself, hey, you're not that bad.
1. Mysterious Skin
Joseph Godon-Levitt will make you feel incredibly comfortably in your own skin by comparison. Two boys cope with teenagehood and their traumatic pasts in very different ways both of which will once again make your your teen drama seem pretty damn minimal. One thinks he was abducted by aliens, the other is in the closet. Beat that.
2. Detachment
Adrian Brody stars as a downtrodden trwacher in this incredibly underrated film that came out in 2011. Both he and his miserable students are hit by a torrent of abuse from all sides in their neglected American high school and its surrounding rundown neighbourhood. Christina Hendricks co-stars if that urges any wavering readers to go see it.
3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Hermione is no longer the only defining role of Emma Watson's young career, not to mention this film gave us Ezra Miller in another problematic teen and yet very different role to his notable lead in We Need to Talk About Kevin. Logan Lerman is achingly deserving of both empathy and sympathy in his role as a shy, young teen reluctant to enter the unfamilar world of high school.
4. Donnie Darko
Have you ever been visited by a giant rabbit man? No? Then you've never had as hormonally twisted, psychotic day as Donnie. High five to that.We've all experienced the Donnie 'dead eyes' numerous times over the years though, if not for long stretches in our teens.
5. The Virgin Suicides
Living in the suburbs ain't easy, as Coppola clarifies. When the youngest of four daughters kills herself, the seemingly wholesome family is thrown into a mysterious light they cannot rid themselves of due to their own mishandling of affairs; they retreat. Kirsten Dunst plays an ephemeral blonde teen caught in the stifling grip of propriety and in desperate need of some escape. It's a Sofia Coppola movie so you can also expect a soundtrack with a modern twist.
6. Harold and Maude
Again, ask yourself, have you ever found yourself in such dire straits that the only person you connect with is eighty? Even if the answer is yes, have you ever really been as morbid as Harold? Most likely not, and in this case this film will really shed new light on how happy-go-lucky you actually are in comparison. If so, then this really still is the film for you. Who else can empathise with you more than a defiant banjo-playing, Cat Stevens-loving odd-couple?
7. My Own Private Idaho
I don't think I need to actually ask the question anymore, do I? Do a comparison. Idaho-based narcoleptic rent boy you ain't. Count you're lucky stars. If there is one director who knows how to capture the essence of an outsider, it's Gus Van Sant. Pretty sure unless you're poetically talented homeless person, he isn't going to make a film based on/inspired by you. Your're life will never be so deep, even if while watching it you're not fully sure what's going on. That's how bemoaningly angsty it is.
8. Dead Poet's Society
Many a folk has been put off this film for the satirical harrassment it has received since it came out in 1989. If really unsure of whether to watch it or not, follow what Nike would say; just do it. There may be a billion parodies of it but in a way isn't that the mark of a stalwart film? Though I can't help think fo the Friends rip on it, 'It's like, kid, wait a year year, leave home, do some community theater'. Still love it. Oh captain, my captain!
9. What Richard Did
The festival favourite Irish film takes on the dark subject of teen brawls and pack behaviour. Stellar acting and a consuming drama that shouts out a big 'beware!'
10. Fish Tank
As much as I LOVE Michael Fassbender- and really this next part is a tribute to him- he knows how to play a scumbag incredibly effectively. The young teenage girl's mother in Fish Tank makes the parents on Hotter than my Daughter look good. Having little outlets for expression, too much responsibility, a wayward alcoholic mother with a perverse boyfriend makes for one bad teen time. Again, an underrated, low-key performance by the lead Katie Jarvis.
