Your Back to School Movie Study Guide
New exteriors, same old interiors filled with fears of first days and growing up another year in the educational realm. Yes, it’s that time of year again. The time when parents start to smile and kids’ faces turn to grimaces as the calendar nears the start of school. Adios to summer nights watching reruns of MTV shows that shall remain nameless (let’s not give them more attention than need be). Bad TV taste aside, there are at least ten things you’re bound to face and these movies are the best examples of how to either embrace those factors or deal with them until the next summer break. So whether you’re a wimp with a diary or pretty in pink, these movies can always be looked at as the craft to not leave you clueless when it comes to the ins and outs of school.
1. Napoleon Dynamite (Elections)
Tired of the way things are run in your halls? Well, damn, don’t just sit there, get up and do something about it! Break out of your shell like Pedro and run for office to make a difference, and maybe your best friend will do an interpretive dance to win you the gold.
2. Matilda (Nasty Elders)
Poor girl, a bookworm among a family of couch potatoes. And her life didn’t get easier once she encountered a head master who would quickly toss you out the window or force you into the “chokey.” Okay, okay, you can’t learn to move things with your mind like Matilda, but what you can do is trick school officials into thinking they’re mad and run them out of town and only hope your parents are run out by the feds.
3. American Pie (Sex)
I hope this one only applies to high school kids, but don’t let the idea of “everybody’s doing it” get in your head, and for god sakes don’t make a pact like this gang. I mean, look at this movie — Jason Biggs was banging a pie. So ladies, keep them closed and gentlemen, keep it in your pants. Because wouldn’t you rather be in school than on the next season of Teen Mom?
4. Jack (Friends)
When you think you have no one, absolutely no one in the world to do homework with, eat lunch with, or to listen to your latest “woe is me” stories… always know you have to have at least one. Jack was a fifth grader who looked like, well, he was Robin Williams — enough said. And even that guy had a friend to call his best.
5. Better Off Dead (Heartbreak)
John Cusack takes heartache a little too serious when suicide looms over his breakup. No one, seriously no one — well, maybe Zac Efron — okay, back on track because seriously no one’s worth it. When a breakup happens, just shake it off and know that it’s never the end of the world. Instead of a bottle of pills or a blade, do yourself a favor and watch this flick instead.
6. The Breakfast Club (Detention)
It happens to even the best of us, one minute late and we’re sentenced to a room full of the next crop of America’s Most Wanted. But what we learned from this teen movie classic is that we all think we’re so different and unique, but by stepping outside of our comfort zone, we learn we’re all broken in a way. So if you find yourself in detention, look at it as an opportunity to learn from your peers.
7. Mean Girls (Bullies)
Take out the queen bee, become her, and then destroy her from the inside. It’s the only way. That’s what that movie was about, right?
8. Dangerous Minds (Good Teachers)
Matilda dealt with some of the worst, but this is the good: teachers who actually show a genuine interest in what you do. Don’t shove them away. Keep those ones around because they’re rare.
9. Can’t Hardly Wait (Parties)
Stressed? Know a girl in town with a sick house that is without parental control? Invade her home and make sure everyone, everyone is there. You never know what can happen at these massive high school parties that always seem to be a bit much, but always appear to be the best nights of the year.
10. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (Ditching)
Not all the time, but every once in a while, take a break from the books and have an adventure outside of the weekly routine.
