1980s Coming of Age Films Not Directed By John Hughes
There was more to the genre than "The Breakfast Club", "Sixteen Candles", and "Pretty in Pink". Here are some of the better non-John Hughes offerings.
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- DirectorRobert M. YoungStarsTrini AlvaradoJeremy LevyKathryn WalkerTwo 12-year-olds, the products of Upper-West-Side broken homes, struggle to make sense of their parents' lives and their own adolescent feelings.Okay, this one was released in '79, but you have to start someplace!
- DirectorTony BillStarsChris MakepeaceAdam BaldwinMatt DillonWhen a boy comes to a new school and gets harassed by a bully, he acquires the services of the school's most feared kid as a bodyguard.One of the better ones, this one will leave you with a lump in your throat.
- DirectorRon MaxwellStarsTatum O'NealKristy McNicholArmand AssanteTwo fifteen year-old girls from different sides of the tracks compete to see who will be the first to lose their virginity while at a summer camp.A tad racy, this one flips the script and shows the race to get laid from the girls' perspective.
- DirectorMichael DinnerStarsDonald SutherlandAndrew McCarthyJohn HeardA new transfer student to St. Basil's Boys' Prep School tries to fit in while romantically pursuing a troubled young girl.Getting through high school is doubly tough when all your teachers are men in dresses.
- DirectorJoe DanteStarsEthan HawkeRiver PhoenixBobby FiteA boy obsessed with '50s sci-fi movies about aliens has a recurring dream about a blueprint of some kind, which he draws for his inventor friend. With the help of a third kid, they follow it and build themselves a spaceship. Now what?Sci-fi + coming of age drama --what's not to love?
- DirectorMatthew RobbinsStarsHelen SlaterChristian SlaterKeith GordonA Texas teenager cuts her hair short and becomes an outlaw martyr with her brother and friends.Helen and Christian Slater as modern-day teen outlaws. Some heavy themes mixed in with a teens-on-the-lam narrative.
- DirectorRob ReinerStarsWil WheatonRiver PhoenixCorey FeldmanA writer recounts a childhood journey with his friends to find the body of a missing boy.An ode to friendship, a journey to adulthood, a coming to terms with personal demons and fears ---man, I tear up just thinking about it.
- DirectorLinda FefermanStarsJennifer ConnellyByron ThamesMaddie CormanWhen her father goes out of town, beautiful A-student Natalie lets best friends Jeff and Polly move in. Separately and together, the trio of young teens learn much about life, love, and growing up.One of the few teen films that can stand toe to toe with any of the John Hughes offerings.
- DirectorNick CastleStarsLucy DeakinsJay UnderwoodBonnie BedeliaAn autistic boy who dreams of flying touches everyone he meets, including a new family who has moved in after their father dies.Lovely fable for anyone who didn't fit in in high school.
- DirectorDavid SeltzerStarsCorey HaimKerri GreenCharlie SheenA socially inept fourteen-year-old experiences heartbreak for the first time when his two best friends - Cappie, an older-brother figure, and Maggie, the new girl with whom he is in love - fall for each other.Sweet film that subverts most of the teen arch types in these kinds of films, featuring some of the most realistic characters you'll see