Mean Creek..."important" teen flicks...

When I think of "ultimate teen movies,"I immediately think of movies I watch/watched. I suddenly recall tons of 80s flicks that my friends and I watched in middle school and/or high school. I wans't technically a teen in the 80s, but those teen movies from the 80s definitely impacted me during my teen years. Some of the movie lines are still stuck in my head:
"If I was in a Turkish prison with you, I'd still be having a good time." [Pretty in Pink!!! Is there a movie quote/pointless knowledge gameshow in existence??]

I looked online at google for "best teen movies ever." Practically every list had a majority of 80s flicks, most of which I had seen. Most lists included movies such as: 16 Candles, Breakfast Club, Karate Kid, Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller's Day Off... Some lists included more recent movies, like Cruel Intentions, Dazed and Confused, Clueless, and even Mean Girls! For the most part though, the list was 80s-centric.

I felt like watching a teen movie that I had never seen. After much thought, I decided on watching Mean Creek, a 2004 drama. Quickly said, the movie is about a boy named Sam who is bullied and beat up by a "fat kid" named George. Sam's older brother, Rocky, and his friends come up with a plan to get back at the bully. The plan is to invite George on a "boating trip" at the local creek. It is planned that a game of Truth or Dare will ensue--- George will be dared to jump into the river naked. Sam, Rocky, and his friends plan on having George find his own way home, without clothing. Their form of revenge is utter humiliation.

If this was Wikipedia, I could forewarn you about "spoiler details" ahead. I don't plan on giving away the movie.

The point is this: The movie was clearly about bullying and its origins. Is it worth it to try to get revenge? Isn't revenge just carrying the bullying farther?

I felt that this was the perfect "teen movie." It taught a complex lesson but the film didn't feel "preachy." The kids in the film felt like real teens and they had "real" issues in their lives: busy parents, alcoholic parents, siblings acting as replacement-parents, and so on. I also liked that the film used fairly unknown actors...it gave it a more realistic feel.

Even though I think this is a wonderful film for teens, if I did an informal survey, I guarantee the numbers would be low for who had heard of it, let alone seen it. I think that "teen movies" are fun--- movies like Not Another Teen Movie, Napoleon Dynamite, American Pie--- but I wonder if enough teens are exposed to movies like Mean Creek. Would teens find it too serious? Would they think that a movie about bullying was lame? I wonder....

In the meantime, I've been told that Not Another Teen Movie is hilarious-- I've never seen it! I'm slightly ashamed that I have never seen it... I'm into pop culture references and I'm sure I'd love this movie! Even though Comedy Central has showed the movie countless times, I've managed to avoid it. I don't know why...movie snobbery, I suppose... although I watched the movie Waiting the other day, so what am I talking about? Another Teen Movie is supposedly FILLED with 80s references...that will be in my upcoming Netflix queue. Let's see...it was only released in 2001!!!.....

On a side note, I searched online for "current top teen movies" and most lists did not match one another. Timothy Shary, a professor from Clark University (Massachusetts) created his own list of top teen films since 2000...again, we have to also think about what makes a "top teen film"-- what are the criteria? Anyway, his list included Saved! (starring Mandy Moore). A friend had told me that was a funny movie too but again...that stupid movie snobbery must have been in bloom during that time of year. Saved! is another movie for the Netflix queue.