This is probably my most adored subgenre of film. I love the time period, the multiple storylines, the various outstanding casts, and of course the humor of it all. Not to mention that most of their soundtracks also kick a lot of ass.
I say "teenage" since most of us know that the cast is usually older than they portray. You will also notice that a lot of the mentionable cast on this list are in more than one movie on this list.
I was going to make this list a Top 5, but feel like all of these films should be watched.
Anyway... on with it!
10. Wet Hot American Summer (2001) Okay, so I know this isn't 90's, but oh well! I recently just saw this film for the first time, which inspired me to make this list! It reminds me so much of Dazed and Confused (to be discussed...), except set during summer, instead of the last day of school. Cast includes Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Bradley Cooper, Janeane Garofalo, Molly Shannon, Michael Ian Black, David Hyde Pierce, and Elizabeth Banks. A funny one that had slipped under my radar.
9. Clueless (1995) Cast includes Alicia Silverstone, Brittany Murphy, Paul Rudd, Breckin Meyer, and Jeremy Sisto. A serious classic. You should've already seen this movie.
8. Varsity Blues (1999) Cast includes James Van Der Beek, Amy Smart, Paul Walker, Scott Caan, Ali Larter, and Jon Voight. One of my favorite moments is right when the football game is heating up, with ACDC's "Thunderstruck" playing over it. So epic.
7. Dogma (1999) This doesn't exactly fall into the "teenage" genre, but decided that it needed to be on this list for being such a great ensemble comedy. Written and directed by the legendary Kevin Smith. A farcical look at religion. Cast includes Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Alan Rickman, Linda Fiorentino, Janeane Garofalo, Salma Hayek, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Chris Rock and, of course, Alanis Morissette as "God". I would even say that this is my favorite Kevin Smith (even though Chasing Amy is a close second!)
6. Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999) Cast includes Kirsten Dunst, Denise Richards, Allison Janney, Kristie Alley, Ellen Barkin, Brittany Murphy, Denise Richards, and Amy Adams (just realized she plays the slutty cheerleader upon rewatching this the other day!). I cannot even express in words how hilarious I find this movie. I literally watched it 3 times within the first 24 hours of seeing it. If you don't think it's funny, then I feel sorry for you. Allison Janney is a definite favorite of mine & this is one of the roles that I adore her in.
5. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) A reimagining of Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew". Cast includes Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julia Stiles, Larisa Oleynik (omgz, it's Alex Mak!), Andrew Keegan, Allison Janney, Gabrielle Union, and Larry Miller. (& let me say, for the top 5 films, check out ALL of their soundtracks.) Again, you really should've already seen this movie. Sad to think about Heath Ledger. But Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a fox, as always.
4. Empire Records (1995) Cast includes Renee Zellweger, Liv Tyler, Ethan Embry, Robin Tunney, Brendan Sexton III, Rory Cochrane, Debi Mazar, and Anthony LaPaglia. You may not have caught this movie, and it's a real gem. I had seen it actually after receiving the soundtrack from my dad as a gift (free from work?) & it's an amazing movie (any time it's set in a record store? think High Fidelity). I happened to like the movie more than the soundtrack, learning to love its music later :)
3. Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997) Cast includes Lisa Kudrow, Mira Sorvino, Janeane Garofalo, Alan Cumming, Camryn Manheim, and Justin Theroux. Seriously, if you don't enjoy Kudrow, Sorvino, & Cumming dancing to Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" then you can just leave. This is one of my all-time favorite films. Entirely too enjoyable.
2. Dazed and Confused (1993) Cast includes Ben Affleck, Jason London, Rory Cochrane, Adam Goldberg, Anthony Rapp, Matthew McConaughey, Joey Lauren Adams, Parker Posey, Milla Jovovich, and Wiley Wiggins. At first, I think I was kinda like, "What?" with this movie. I liked it, but I grew to like it more after watching it plenty of times. You have to enjoy the nostalgia, the classic rock soundtrack, tons of bit parts, and hilarious lines of dialogue. I constantly think about Adam Goldberg's line, "I wanna dance!"
1. Can't Hardly Wait (1998) Cast includes Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ethan Embry, Lauren Ambrose, Peter Facinelli, Seth Green, Freddy Rodriguez, Jaime Pressly, Jason Segel, Clea DuVall, Selma Blair, Eric Balfour, and Sara Rue. ABSOLUTELY one of my all-time favorite films. Entirely too underrated, I feel. Probably slipped past your radar. I can't express to you how much I like this movie for its casting, AMAZING indie-ish soundtrack, hilarious 90's dialogue, & the fact that it's set around a party celebrating a group of high schoolers graduating. WATCH IT.
