The Coming-of-Age Cinematic Universe
Photos courtesy of Summit Entertainment, Buena Vista Pictures, Universal Pictures, and Sony Pictures Releasing.
Coming-of-age is a genre of film that focuses on the transition of a protagonist from youth to adulthood. Personal growth and change is an important characteristic of this genre. It uses dialogue and emotion rather than action to tell stories.
Decades Worth of Coming-of-Age Films
1980s
In 1985, The Breakfast Club premiered in theaters. This film is one of the most notable films, not just in this genre, but of all time. It’s one of the best films to come out of the 1980s. It follows five teenagers from different cliques, Claire (Molly Ringwald), Andrew (Emilio Estevez), Brian (Anthony Michael Hall), John (Judd Nelson), and Allison (Ally Sheedy), who serve a Saturday detention with their vice principal Richard Vernon (Paul Gleason) watching over them. While I do believe this film is overrated, it is a pivotal film for the coming-of-age genre. John Hughes started a revolution with his films since most of them focus on teenagers.
Big was released in theaters in 1988. It follows a young boy who makes a wish to be a big and his wish comes true. He (Tom Hanks) must learn to cope with the reality of the adult world and encounter his first experience with romance. This is such a fun film and Tom Hanks is wonderful in it.
In the same year, Mystic Pizza was released in theaters. This film is one of my all-time favorites. It follows three teenage girls, Daisy (Julia Roberts), Kat (Annabeth Gish), and Jojo (Lili Taylor) at a pizza parlor in Mystic, Connecticut. I included this film in my Underrated Gems series because it’s not appreciated enough. This is another one of my favorite films of all-time. I love that it explores the lives of all three women.
1990s
Let’s move onto the 1990s. Mermaids was released in theaters in 1990. It follows Charlotte Flax (Winona Ryder) as she moves to Massachusetts with her mom (Cher) and her little sister (Christina Ricci). Charlotte experiences the rollercoaster that is growing up and falls for an older man (Michael Schoeffling). This film is so underrated and one of my favorites. My mom always asks me why I love this film so much and I honestly don’t know how to answer her. I just do.
Reality Bites was released theatrically in 1994. It follows the lives of a group of college graduates. Leilana is an aspiring filmmaker. She makes a documentary of her life and her friends post-grad. Her romantic life gets complicated when she meets Michael (Ben Stiller) while maintaining a love/hate relationship with Troy (Ethan Hawke). Vickie (Janeane Garafolo) works in retail and Sammy (Steve Zahn) attempts to come out to his parents. Here we have another one of my favorite films. I adore Winona Ryder and she owned the 1990s. I think this film is pretty underrated. I love that this film focuses on young adults rather than teenagers.
In 1995, Now and Then was released in theaters. It follows four women, Teeny (Thora Birch/Melanie Griffith), Chrissy Ashleigh Aston Moore/Rita Wilson), Samantha (Gaby Hoffman/Demi Moore), and Roberta (Christina Ricci/Rosie O’Donnell) as they recall the summer of 1970. The perspective that this film is told in is pretty unique because it’s told by the girls’ adult counterparts.
10 Things I Hate About You was released theatrically in 1999. It follows Kat (Julia Stiles), an independent teenage girl who finds herself entangled in a romantic scheme and isn’t even aware of it. Kat’s younger sister, Bianca (Larisa Oleynik), can’t date until Kat does. This is when the scheme is born. Kat meets the charming Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger). Meanwhile, new kid Cameron (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) falls head over heels for Bianca. Similar to The Breakfast Club, this film is a cult classic.
2000s
Shifting to the 2000s, Almost Famous was released in 2000. While most coming-of-age films are comedies, this film is a drama. It follows William Miller (Patrick Fugit), a teenager who is given the opportunity to interview and tour with up-and-coming band, Stillwater, for Rolling Stone magazine. This film is so good and Kate Hudson gives my favorite performance of all-time in this. I love the vibes and the acting is so good.
2001 brought us Anne Hathaway’s debut as Princess Mia in The Princess Diaries. It follows Mia, a socially awkward teenager discovers she heir to a royal throne. This film brings me so much warmth and nostalgia. While I love the sequel more, I absolutely love the original. I relate to Mia so much.
In 2004, 13 Going On 30 was released in theaters. This cult classic follows Jenna Rink (Christa B. Allen/Jennifer Garner) as she wishes to be thirty, flirty, and thriving. Her wish comes true and she must learn how to adapt to the real world while experiencing love for the first time. There’s not much to say about this film since it’s overrated but I still adore it. Jennifer Garner is incredibly charming.
Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging was released theatrically in 2008. It follows Georgia (Georgia Groome) and the reality of being a teenager, awkwardness and all. This film is nostalgic because I remember watching this when I was a pre-teen.
2010s
The 2010s was a decade full of coming-of-age films. This decade turned the genre on its head. In 2010, Flipped was released in theaters. It follows Juli (Madeline Carroll) and Bryce (Callan McAuliffe) as they fall for each other at different points in the story. This film is a prime example of unrequited love, especially on Juli’s end. It’s so adorable and it’s one of my favorite films ever. There aren’t many films that have perspectives from both leads and that’s one of the reasons why I love this film so much.
In 2012, The Perks of Being a Wallflower was released theatrically. It follows Charlie (Logan Lerman), a freshman in high school who’s an outsider. This is until he meets Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller). While living it up with Sam and Patrick, Charlie is dealing with his own demons. I know that I’ve said many of these films are my favorites and they are. Perks is no exception. This film is in my top favorites and has been for several years. It’s based on the novel written by Stephen Chbosky. I find its approach to genre so heartbreakingly real. I’ve never seen a coming-of-age film approach the genre in such a poignant way. The acting is absolutely incredible.
A modern version of Mia Thermopolis appeared through Nadine (Hailee Steinfeld) in 2016’s The Edge of Seventeen. Nadine is one of the most relatable characters ever. It’s hard to explain the plot but I just describe it as a teenager who experiences the awkwardness of growing up while her best friend (Haley Lu Richardson) falls for her brother (Blake Jenner). I love this film so much because it feels authentic and realistic.
Greta Gerwig’s 2019 remake of Little Women is an immediate comfort film for me. While I haven’t seen it too many times, I’ve seen it enough to know how at peace I am when I watch it. If you don’t know what the film is about, let me explain. It follows the lives of the March sisters: Jo (Saoirse Ronan), Meg (Emma Watson), Amy (Florence Pugh), and Beth (Eliza Scanlen) in Massachusetts during the nineteenth century.
2020s
Lastly, we have the 2020s. The first two films I’m going to talk about were released in 2020. Enola Holmes follows the younger sister of Sherlock Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown) as she searches for her missing mother while helping a runaway lord (Louis Partridge). During a time of uncertainty, this film was needed. Millie Bobby Brown is absolutely charming as the young sleuth and Louis Partridge quickly became a household name after the film’s release on Netflix.
The Half of It follows Ellie (Leah Lewis) who is hired by Paul (Daniel Diemer) to woo Aster (Alexxis Lemire), the most popular girl in school. Ellie’s and Paul friendship becomes complicated when Ellie starts to fall for Aster. Another film that was so needed during this time. It just felt like a warm hug.
In 2022, Crush was released on Hulu. It follows a young aspiring artist (Rowan Blanchard) who decides to pursue her crush (Isabella Ferreira) but ends up discovering what real love feels like through AJ (Auli’i Cravalho). I enjoyed this film a lot. It’s entertaining and I love the LGBTQ+ representation.
The Evolution of the Coming-of-Age Genre
Over the last five decades, the coming-of-age genre has evolved quite a bit. The core of the genre is overall the same but the way the stories are told has changed. What makes this genre one of my favorites is how versatile the storytelling can be. From The Princess Diaries to The Perks of Being a Wallflower, it’s clear that the storytelling for this genre is unique to each individual story.
Coming-of-age is one of those genres that audiences can relate to, especially teenagers and young adults. These films resonate with a lot of people including me.
