In honor of the high school comedy, Booksmart, hitting theaters this Memorial Day weekend I decided to list my ten favorite high school movies of all-time. Keep in mind...I'm 33. My favorite high school movies might not be your favorite high school movies. You won't see 'Dazed and Confused' on this list (overrated), you won't see 'American Graffiti' on here either. Before we begin, let me just say that Booksmart is really good and could wind up on this list in a few years. If you like this style of movie, it's worth the trip. Without further ado, let's unveil the list of Josh Odson's ten favorite High School movies of all-time...
10 - FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH
The best of the 80s raunchy teen comedy. Some of the other movies have plenty of sleaze, but Fast Times is also a good movie. It launched a TON of careers. Sean Penn (Oscar winner), Jennifer Jason Leigh (Oscar nominated), Phoebe Cates, Judge Reinhold, Forest Whitaker (Oscar winner), Nic Cage (Oscar winner), Cameron Crowe (Oscar winner), and director Amy Heckerling (not her last movie on this last)
9 - SHE'S ALL THAT
Hokey, yes. But utterly watchable. This movie launched a thousand parodies. Freddie Prinze Jr at the height of his powers. Rachel Leigh Cook only had to take off her glasses and become a bombshell! Who would have thunk? Usher leads a school dance that is completely choreographed. What an absurd movie that absolutely works. It shouldn't but it does. This movie came out in 1999 and is a perfect swansong for the decade. For better or worse.
8 - 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU
Heath Ledger won a posthumous Oscar for playing The Joker. For a certain segment of the population, THIS is the iconic Ledger role. While I disagree with that assessment, the movie is an excellent retelling of The Taming of the Shrew from William Shakespeare. This is probably Julia Stiles best role. Definitely Larisa Oleynik's best work. A young Joseph Gordon-Levitt gets forgotten when discussing this movie. 10 Things is sweet, truly funny, and has that big romantic moment we all want in a rom-com.
7 - VARSITY BLUES
If you're counting along at home, this is the fourth movie on our list. It is the second movie to co-star Paul Walker. That's a strong percentage. Varsity Blues is very much a high school movie for the MTV Generation. James Van Der Beek's most high profile movie. Varsity Blues is a high school football drama that is also funny, cool, sexy, and portrays teen angst in a very real way. Say it with me everyone: I. DON'T. WANT. YOUR. LIFE.
6 - THE BREAKFAST CLUB
A movie that would be higher ranked, except it has not aged well. Also worth noting, Sixteen Candles would ABSOLUTELY be on this list if it had aged well...at all. Have you watched these John Hughes movies lately? A lot of sexual assault as the basis for comedy. Very cringy by today's standards. But The Breakfast Club's heart and comedy outweigh the brief moments that would be inappropriate if released today. Still a gold standard for going outside your comfort and getting to know people outside your clique.
5 - LADY BIRD
The most recent movie on this list, Lady Bird, is a great coming of age tale of a girl who graduated high school the same year as me...2003. So it feels like it's speaking directly to me. Director Greta Gerwig feels like a new fresh voice. Great side characters, a killer soundtrack, and a high school comedy grounded in reality make Lady Bird a movie not to be missed. 99% on Rotten Tomatoes. They can't ALL be lying!
4 - FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF
High school movies don't usually focus on playing hooky, and maybe that's because Ferris Bueller nailed it. Any movie about skipping work or school would be immediately compared to this, and odds are it would pale in comparison to the 1986 Matthew Broderick comedy. High school movies do this thing where they make you feel nostalgia for your "high school glory days". High school sucked. But these movies make you pine for a time that was less stressful, when you wanted to take over the world. Bueller does a great job of making you long for a time that passed you by in the blink of an eye. And the genius of this movie is that it STRAIGHT UP TELLS YOU that time is fleeting and you need to cherish it before what you had is gone and you can never get it back.
3 - SUPERBAD
The single funniest movie on this list. One of three movies that have caused me physical pain from laughing so hard. (Old School and Wedding Crashers being the other two) So few movies get the high school experience "right". Superbad is probably the closest. Beyond holding on to your high school days, Superbad is a movie about male friendship. A friend so close that he is your brother. That's what Superbad highlights. High school sucks, and few high school movies are willing to embrace that fact.
2 - MEAN GIRLS
Yes, I'm serious. Mean Girls is actually a real intelligent movie. Sharp writing, the adults are played by great SNL alums. So many quotable lines. So many memes were launched from this movie. This is incredibly rewatchable. And it's always nice to remind yourself that Lindsay Lohan was an adorable kid.
1 - CLUELESS
Another classic literary tale modernized into a cinema classic. Clueless is a re-telling of Emma and is ICONIC. If you were forced to name three movies that defined the 90's this would be on that list without a doubt. Quotable, a ton of heart, and well written. Director Amy Heckerling starts and finishes this list. Clueless launched a bunch of careers and is one of many favorite movies regardless of genre. Ant-Man gets the girl in this!