There’s been a lot of talk about movie anniversaries this year, but two of the movies that have been left out of the discussion are two of my childhood favorites. There’s the 1995 teen drama “Angus,” and the 1980 “My Bodyguard.” Oddly enough, both films deal with the idea of coming of age, surviving high school, and learning to deal with a specific kind of bully. Both films also confront the idea that sometimes staring down the bullies is a right of passage we all must confront at one time or another. And yet, both films have been off the radar for a very long time.
Tag Archives: Teen
Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (2015)
It’s not often a zombie movie can pay tribute to a ton of classic horror and still come out as one of the genuinely funny and novel horror comedies of the year. “Scout’s Guide” is a fan boy movie from the word go, with big winks like the opening that echo’s “Night of the Creeps,” to small touches like the sign indicating the direction to the town of Haddonfield. And come on, the hilarious trampoline scene is so “Zombies Ate My Neighbors,” I was admittedly giddy. “Scout’s Guide” has a damn good time as a tribute to horror comedy while also painting a pretty good one and done tale about nerds rising to the occasion to save some lives.
The Breakfast Club (1985)
John Hughes’ iconic eighties drama has always remained a timeless favorite for me. It’s not just because he manages to speak to the teenage condition, but the human condition. Surely, “The Breakfast Club” still manages to speak waves about how teenagers lived back in the eighties, and how they still live today, but “The Breakfast Club” had something to say about being an adult and how the lessons we learned as a teenager would carry us in to adulthood, for better and for worse. The characters we meet in “The Breakfast Club” essentially find common ground in the way they approach life, and think about themselves, but when we part from them we never quite know where they’re headed.
Love at First Bite (1979)/ Once Bitten (1985) [Blu-Ray]
Once Mel Brooks proved that horror could be lampooned while also paid tribute, Hollywood followed suit with a lot of horror comedies that were sometimes mild spoofs and other times very heavy (“Transylvania Twist”) to the point where it was literally nothing but winks and gags. In either case, “Love at First Bite” took advantage of George Hamilton’s star power and put him front and center in a full fledged Dracula spoof.
Neighbors (2014)
Director Nicholas Stoll’s comedy at least has entertainment value going for it. It may not be the most consistent or tonally even film of the year, but it’s kind of fun when you get down to it. That’s mainly thanks to Zac Efron and Dave Franco that save the movie from being another self indulgent Seth Rogen improv-athon. Rogen literally can’t play anyone but Rogen anymore, even when playing an alien from outer space, but the supporting cast for “Neighbors” really keeps the film from diving in to abysmal depths and keeps it a notch above mediocre. That also includes Rose Byrne, and the hilarious Carla Gallo.
100 Things to Do Before High School
You really have to give it to Nickelodeon. They’re in no position to mock Disney, since their programs are superior and garner bigger ratings, but they waste no time in ridiculing the company. The TV movie for “100 Things to Do Before High School” which is supposed to open the door for a series next year, spoofs “High School Musical,” and most of the movie rips on “Star Wars” big time. That said, while it’s derivative, “100 Things to Do Before High School” is a fun tween dramedy that might be the teen oriented hit Nick has been looking for, for a while now. I got shades of “Ned’s DeClassified School Survival Guide,” but I really enjoyed the TV movie for “100 Things to Do Before High School.”
My Boyfriend’s Back (1993)
It’s unusual how a film made in 1993 actually feels like it was made in 1983. And that’s likely because of producer Sean Cunningham and composer Harry Manfredini, both of whom inject an eighties atmosphere that makes Bob Balaban’s “My Boyfriend’s Back” a surreal but entertaining zombie romance comedy with a very funny script by Dean Lorey. It even has something of a Tim Burton aesthetic where the small town the story is set feels perpetually stuck in the fifties despite being the nineties.





