How have coming-of-age movies affected me?
my favorite coming-of-age movies
Understanding My Generation
Lady Bird (2017)
Read, Bridget. “Lady Bird Shows Us a Different Side of California Dreaming.” Vogue, 2 Nov. 2017, www.vogue.com/article/lady-bird-greta-gerwig-review.
Bridget Read’s review of Lady Bird gives an interesting analysis of the film’s setting. In particular, the year it is set: 2002–2003. Read’s review has given me a new perspective on Lady Bird and how the movie relates to my generation. Interestingly, I was born in 2002. However, as Read notes, between then and now our daily lives have changed substantially mostly due to the advancements of technology. Technology is not absent in the film, rather Gerwig includes small moments (such as Christine explaining to her parents that she can now check her college application status on their home computer) to signify the changing times. Read agrees the movie is an “honest portrayal of growing up.” However, she argues Christine’s coming of age would not be the same if she had been a teenager with a smartphone. A quote that is worth noting is Read describing the movie as:
“… an elegy to a time when that question of figuring out who you were and what you want your world to be had less ready-made, search engine–indexed answers.”
Honestly, Read’s tone is harsh towards Generation Z, who are having to come of age with technology whether they like it or not. Still, Read brings up several good points. For one, Lady Bird was made in 2017 for Gen Z but is not ABOUT Gen Z. This prompts a question: what would a coming-of-age story look like in a technology-driven world? As a Gen Z kid, I find this question important to help navigate my own life and define the effects of growing up with technology.
(For more about my personal connection toward Lady Bird, look here. )
Eighth Grade (2018)
Burnham, Bo, director. Eighth Grade. A24, 2018.
O’Malley, Sheila. “Eighth Grade Movie Review & Film Summary (2018): Roger Ebert.” Roger Ebert, 13 July 2018, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/eighth-grade-2018.
Coming out a year after Lady Bird, Eighth Grade (2018) is the answer to the lack of technology-driven, Gen Z coming-of-age stories. Directed by comedian Bo Burnham, the movie is about 13-year-old Kayla dealing with middle school popularity (or lack thereof) while her first year of high school looms close. Sheila O’Malley’s review is similar to Read in that it highlights the impact of the time period the movie captures. Set in modern times, YouTube, Snapchat, and the Internet are heavily present in Kayla’s daily routine. Interestingly, the film sets up a contrast between Kayla’s digital persona (talkative and digitally connected) and her real-life persona (awkward and lacking close relationships).
Unlike Lady Bird, this is a movie made for Gen Z ABOUT Gen Z. Shy, self-conscious, and addicted to her phone, Kayla is another scarily accurate representation of me on screen. Her character is important to me because this is the first instance I have seen my generation be represented in the coming-of-age genre. Kayla being in middle-school is even more impactful because it is this stage where our generation becomes social media users, something that influences our feelings about ourselves and our peers (I remember downloading Instagram in 7th grade). It is incredibly important for individuals to realize the pressures and standards social media puts on its users, or how addicting it is in general. Before I saw this film, I didn’t realize how silly it looks to have your phone out at the dinner table. I have to note, Burnham doesn’t mean to put down Gen Z, rather he carefully represents us (O’Malley also points this out). This movie is a well-done time capsule of my middle-school experiences (including cringe-inducing dabs from teachers) and it has become helpful in recognizing the pros and cons of technology while coming of age.
Shaping My Interests
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)
Gomez-Rejon, Alfonso, director. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2015.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was life.” Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (one of my favorite directors), Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015) is about high-school senior/loner Greg befriending Rachel, who has been recently diagnosed with leukemia. In their spare time, Greg and his “co-worker” Earl (called “co-worker” because Greg is afraid of attachment) make really bad movies together. Ultimately, they are pressured to make one for Rachel before her passing. Throughout the film, Greg confronts his fear of friendship as he gets closer to Rachel and learns to embrace life less cynically.
If La La Land inspired my passion for the art of filmmaking, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl inspired me to actually try filmmaking. I have always had a passion for story-telling because of my early love of books, but I had never considered filmmaking as a hobby before this movie. However, along with their low-key passion for their hobby, Greg and Earl’s formula for producing horrible movies (watching a movie and creating a stupid movie inspired by it) caught my attention for its simplicity and low expectations. Their mindset demystified filmmaking ad made it approachable to me. I’ve only ever finished two whole projects (a parody of The Little Mermaid (1989) and a personal documentary), but I had SO much fun through the whole process including writing, filming, and editing. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl helped me discover it is okay to do things poorly especially when it is fun and puts you outside of your comfort zone.
Dealing with Loss and Change
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
Chbosky, Stephen, director. The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Summit Entertainment, 2012.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) is best known for iconic quotes like “We accept the love we think we deserve” and “In that moment, I swear we were infinite.” Directed by Stephen Chbosky (who is the author of the original book), the movie is about Charlie’s first year of high school and becoming friends with seniors Sam and Patrick. Charlie’s mission for the year is to “participate more,” which Sam and Patrick help him do. Similar to Lady Bird, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a classic example of the coming-of-age genre. As Charlies moves through the school year, he seeks guidance from his English teacher, deals with bullies, goes to homecoming, and watches his friends graduate. The story is full of similar conventions to most coming-of-age high school movies.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is possibly the best example I can give of Fearing’s previously mentioned ideas. I watched/read Wallflower before the summer before my junior of high school, which was a hard, emotional time for me. A lot was happening at once: my grandma was sick which meant my mom wasn’t around much, I had my first internship which only made me aware I was close to being an adult, my close friend of five years ignored me all summer, and my brother started going to college. There were few people I could talk to about all these changes, but I NEEDED someone to help me deal with what I was experiencing (ie. the sense of loss that comes with growing up). Somehow, I found The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Charlie was going through similar changes to me. I like to think I borrowed Charlie’s perseverance. However, he was really essential to me understanding that what I was feeling was normal and that I would get through it soon.
Quintanilla, Emily. “I Don’t Know Any Quotes about Final Pieces.” Da Vinci Design High School, 10 Sept. 2018, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ktoEw4s8pPPZPP_GBcWJAtMHRXsNOEQQ/view?usp=sharing
In junior year, I actually wrote about my experience with the book and how specific quotes reflected my personal changes throughout the summer. I pulled a quote from the paper that sums up how The Perks of Being a Wallflower met my emotional needs at the time:
“When you face so many aspects of your life changing so dramatically, it’s nice to know that you aren’t alone, even if the person you feel most connected to is fictional” (Quintanilla 1).
My Education
Real Women Have Curves (2002)
Cardoso, Patricia, director. Real Women Have Curves. Newmarket Films, 2002.
Real Women Have Curves (2002) stars America Ferrera as Ana, a Mexican-American girl living in East L.A. The movie begins with Ana, a recent high school graduate, deciding what she wants to do with her life: go to Columbia University at her teacher’s recommendation or work at her mother’s textile factory? The movie is famous for its inclusivity, body positivity, and for being Ferrera’s breakout performance (she is one of my favorite actresses and she coincidentally went to USC).
While I love the movie’s messages, what I appreciate more is its accurate portrayal of what it’s like to be a Latina woman growing up in an unromanticized version of Los Angeles. I am the oldest daughter of two immigrants (my mom is from Nicaragua and my dad is from El Salvador). Luckily my parents were very encouraging of me to go to college, making me the first woman in my family to attend a four-year university. Still, when I was deciding where to go last year, my parents’ expectations weighed heavily on my decision. For example, my dad’s excitement about my acceptances was always more obvious with local, public universities. I felt my being a girl and wanting to study English made my parents hesitant to send me to a big school despite MY biggest dream was to move away to a well-recognized school (proven by my consistent work ethic in high school). In the movie, Ana struggles between her mother’s traditional expectations and wanting to forge a new path for herself. In my life, I felt just as torn. As the first woman going to university, I didn’t have anyone to advise me what was the most reasonable decision. Would a big school even be worth it? At the end of Real Women Have Curves, Ana leaves her mother and leaves for New York. She is visibly happy and free and excited to start her new life. Yet again, a character in a coming-of-age movie met my NEEDS; Ana gave me a role model. She inspired me to never settle in any stage of my education. While cultural traditions or parental expectations can be overwhelming, educational decisions should be an individual choice.
Dead Poets Society (1989)
Weir, Peter, director. Dead Poets Society. Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, 1989.
Dead Poets Society (1989) is about a group of students at a top boarding school in 1959. The group is inspired by their English teacher, Mr. Keating (played by Robin Williams), to question their places in society, ultimately defying their parents and school authorities. Classmates of mine have thoroughly discussed Dead Poets Society as it deals with “vulnerability in the classroom.” I, of course, agree with these connections. Yet, my experience with Dead Poets Society remains slightly different from that of my classmates.
What makes coming-of-age movies unique is their ability to be relatable at every stage of your life. I watched Dead Poets Society for the first time in my first semester of college (Fall 2020). In the short time I have been familiar with the film, it has already evolved to be a source of inspiration for my college years. To explain, I am an English major and I chose my major because I am interested in story-telling. While I am passionate about what I am studying, I often question how my interest can be useful after I graduate. To address my doubt, I look to the words of Mr. Keating:
“Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.”
I return to this quote to reaffirm the validity of my interests because the movie lets me know there’s at least one person who recognizes there IS a purpose to what I am studying. The movie has taught me not to doubt myself or my educational path because my major is equally as important as any other major. Even when I doubt its usefulness, it is my prerogative as a human being to pursue what I love. After all, “Carpe Diem.”
