Top 10 Coming of Age Movies

10. Welcome to the Dollhouse

Appreciating the deficiency of authentic coming-of-age portrayals, director Todd Solondz appeared in 1995 with Welcome To The Dollhouse, a gloomy satirical Bildungsroman that whirls about Dawn Wiener (Heather Matarazzo), an archetype of the least-liked plain-featured middle schooler who is an ideal object for seventh graders to torment. She has no companions or clique, her parents side with her siblings, her first crush doesn’t reciprocate and, as though that weren’t all bad enough, her stormy relationship with her school bully (Brendan Sexton III) convolutes things even further. The early half of the movie characterizes a fresh perspective in the coming-of-age genre in how it demonstrates to what degree teenagers frequently take bullying a bit too far. Spectators can’t help but feel for Dawn when her agony looks to be enduringly and rapidly becoming more intense as time goes on. Accompanying its cruel though genuine manner in narrative, it depicts a remorseless rendering of an excruciatingly average human being that many people can connect or identify with. —Natalie Bauer

9. The Lion King

There are a lot of reasons why The Lion King is great: the epic Hans Zimmer score and elite Elton John musical numbers, the balance of meta and wacky humor with deadly serious drama, the stunning animated vistas, the delicious scenery-chewing voice work of Jeremy Irons. But what earns it a spot on this list is how fully it embodies the characteristics of a hero’s journey and coming-of-age story. Taking inspiration from Hamlet, The Odyssey, and the biblical Moses, Simba’s journey from spoiled scion to humbled outcast to redeemed warrior—complete with a literal coming-of-age montage—makes for a timeless, toe-tapping tale of transformation. Amidst life’s ups and downs, may we all remember who we are and recognize our places in the circle of life. —Chad Comello

8. Big

Big sets itself apart from most coming of age stories because rather than growing in maturity and experience over time, our hero—a 12 year old named Josh magically transformed into a 30 year old overnight—has to survive in an adult world without any precluding life lessons. Everyone Josh meets as an adult is either challenged or inspired by his playful, simple nature and childlike wonder. So when he gets to do all the stuff he couldn’t do as a kid—get a job at a toy company, buy all the toys and candy he could possibly want, get a girlfriend, and be taken seriously—we end up learning more about adulthood than childhood. That compels us to consider: if you were given the option to relive your childhood again or remain an adult, would you choose “to be big”? —Natalie Pohorski

7. Empire Records

In this coming-of-age merry-go-round melodrama about a hub of nonconformists and weirdos, staff members at a record shop learn about one another and society and love, host the autograph session of a fading pop star, and try to protect their workplace from being consumed by a big conglomerate—all over the course of 24 hours. It’s a movie that absolutely profits from that nostalgic feeling infused in the human subconscious that time gone by is forever superior. Its characters are the sort of admirably abnormal people you want to hang out with, and Empire Records begins and ends with the collective energy of the folks who assemble there—where capital is coincidental, music is everything, and The Man is the adversary. As a generational snapshot it may be one-dimensional, but as a coming-of-age film it illustrates the stamina of this flawed teen orphanage chosen family of grief counselors trying to nurture their community. —Natalie Bauer

6. A Brighter Summer Day

Nobody comes of age on their own. We are all born into circumstances beyond our control and with them we do our best to build a life. In Edward Yang’s 2011 masterwork A Brighter Summer Day, our young protagonist Xiao Si’r comes up in the streets of 1960s Taiwan in the wake of the Chinese Civil War. In the years preceding, millions of mainland Chinese fled to Taiwan, creating a confluence of identities, tension and conflict. But even so, Si’r has the same fundamental dreams as any other kid: A longing for friendship, love, attention, a place to belong. But it’s in his entanglement with a local gang and his intense love for the girlfriend of a gang leader that the film adjusts its dramatic gears. Capturing real people in real time on the streets of Taipei, not a second is wasted in this film’s bittersweet 4-hour runtime, packing each scene with an intimacy and intensity that’s impossible to shake. The film’s title is taken from the 1960 Elvis song “Are You Lonesome Tonight,” and its lyrics feel massive under the weight of the film’s violent and reverberant climax: “Now the stage is bare and I’m standing here / with emptiness all around / and if you won’t come back to me / then they can bring the curtain down.” —Kevin Prchal

5. Boyz n the Hood

In Rob Reiner’s 1986 classic Stand By Me, four friends set out on a soul-searching journey prompted by one question: “You guys wanna go see a dead body?” Their will is tested, their bond is strengthened and the dead body, indeed, seen. Five years later, John Singleton’s seminal debut Boyz n the Hood was released in which it plainly and profoundly contrasted the experience of black kids in the city to that of our heroes in Stand By Me. As four friends walk along the tracks in Boyz n the Hood, one of them asks “You guys wanna see a dead body?” and they mozy around the corner to look at it. Growing up, my childhood more closely reflected that of Reiner’s rendering, so seeing this for the first time as a teenager shook my worldview, confirming that cinema is at its best when it can do exactly that. Pair this with Singleton becoming the youngest and first black director to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Director, career-defining performances by Laurence Fishburne and Angela Bassett, and one of the most resounding endings in film history, and you’ve got yourself a coming of age film for the ages. —Kevin Prchal

4. Boyhood

“The days are long but the years are short” goes the parenting adage. It’s never been truer than in Boyhood, Richard Linklater’s 12-years-in-the-making biopic of a kid named Mason as he grows from kindergartener to high school graduate, accumulating memories and traumas and lessons along the way. But more than capturing a specific person’s life, the movie is also a profile of adolescence itself—an often confusing time when self-expression is stifled, when the specter of sexuality haunts every peer interaction, when you’re constantly being told what to do and who to be, and when your well-being is subject to the whims of adults who may or may not deserve such power. Linklater’s eye is trained on the truth of these small yet significant elements of growing up, and being able to witness them slowly accumulate into a rich life on screen feels nothing short of miraculous. —Chad Comello

3. Moonlight

Moonlight is for the kids who had to grow up too fast. For the kids who feel like they have to hide who they are. For the kids who might not think they are deserving of love. In Moonlight we experience three different stages in Chiron’s life growing up in Miami. We see through his eyes as he searches for parental figures, for friends and respect, for love. He gets glimpses of what his life could be, but we see all of the setbacks too, and when we finally see him as an adult it feels like he has mostly been standing still. At every stage in his life he is left longing—and boy do you feel that longing. Soft and patient in his character development, writer/director Barry Jenkins offers no judgment or excuses for Chiron, presenting the experiences of a person whose potential is forever bubbling under the surface and who remains forever hopeful. I think about Chiron all the time. —Natalie Pohorski

2. Little Women (2019)

Louisa May Alcott’s seminal autobiographical novel has been adapted to film several times, always with the core story of the March sisters—dutiful Meg, headstrong Jo, shy Beth, and vain Amy—subsisting in Civil War-era Massachusetts while undergoing rivalries, rites of passage, and the pressures of growing up. What sets Greta Gerwig’s version apart is how it’s told, jumping back and forth between two time periods to follow the sisters in both their younger, idyllic days and older, more weatherworn times. This non-chronological approach somehow feels more natural than a sequential telling because it mimics the time-turning tendencies of memory, especially when reckoning with your formative years. The title itself is a perfect representation of the liminality of adolescence, and the frustration of feeling stuck between childhood and adulthood without enjoying the full benefits of either. So it’s a bittersweet joy to watch Gerwig’s March sisters navigate through this transition with as much grace as they can muster. “I can’t believe childhood is over,” laments Jo before Meg gets married. “It was going to end one way or another,” replies Meg. “And what a happy end.” —Chad Comello

1. Almost Famous

The true miracle of Cameron Crowe’s 2000 coming of age film Almost Famous is not only its impeccable cast, including Kate Hudson, Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and Frances McDormand. It’s not only its endlessly rewatchable scenes playing like a highlight reel of Crowe’s career. And it’s not only its script offering an arena-sized collection of quotes worthy of their own t-shirt or bumper sticker. Above all, it’s the film’s big, beating Crowe-shaped heart that gives this film the pedigree, admiration, and permanence it has so rightfully procured. Every scene, character, and song is torn right from the pages of Crowe’s heart and soul, infusing it with a sincerity and care that’s impossible to resist. From McDormand’s manic whistling in the parking lot, to Hoffman’s sermon for the Uncool, to Hudson dancing on an empty confetti-filled concert hall floor, to its heartening final moments between Fugit and Crudup—every minute of this film lives in me like a memory. I first saw the film when I was coming of age myself, and to this day whenever I get lonely, I just go to my Blu-ray player and visit my friends. —Kevin Prchal