Gregory’s Girl (1980)
Hardly underrated, Gregory’s Girl is rightly considered a modern British classic but we’re including it here on the off-chance that it hasn’t been recommended enough lately. In short: it’s lovely. A low-stakes, fresh-faced, totally endearing 90-minute snapshot of teenage innocence, filled with awkwardness that’s charming instead of soul-destroying (unlike some on this list. Eighth Grade, see me after class). Written and directed by Bill Forsyth and starring a young John Gordon Sinclair and a young Claire Grogan (just as her post-punk group Altered Images were taking off), it’s a simple, Glasgow-set story about a football team, a boy, and a multi-level date masterminded by teenage girls: “It’s just the way girls work. They help each other.” Preach. – LM
Three O’Clock High (1987)
Three O’Clock High is a high school-themed reimaging of High Noon with cinematography by Barry Sonnenfeld and a Tangerine Dream soundtrack. While it is generally as fantastic as that description hopefully makes it sound, there’s so much more to this story of a kid facing the fear of an after-school fight than a mere tribute to one of the greatest Westerns ever made.
Three O’Clock High examines the fragile social structure of the high school experience that is often the cause of many fights. It recognizes the terror of genuinely believing that violence could erupt at any moment because…well, you’re surrounded by hormonal and emotionally underdeveloped teens, and it probably could. Rather than simply give us another Gary Cooper, though, it focuses on all the things you would probably do to get out of a fight you never wanted to be a part of in the first place. In its ending, we even find a touch of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance which leaves us to both romanticize and critique the creation of the high school hero. – MB
Être et Avoir/To Be and To Have (2002)
Few expected this simple documentary about a French village school to find as wide an audience or as much acclaim as it did – not least its ‘star’, teacher Monsieur Lopez, who unsuccessfully attempted to sue the production for a profit share following its success. Push that dirty laundry out of your mind, and it remains among the most charming school-set films ever made. Documentarian Nicholas Philibert and his team filmed a year in the life of the one-teacher school in the tiny French commune of Saint-Étienne-sur-Usson. The children, of various ages all taught in the same class, are absolute scene-stealers and Mr. Lopez gently guides them with patience, wisdom and humor. This is the film to show anybody going into the teaching profession (if you want to encourage them, that is. If you want to put them off, there’s plenty on this list to choose from). LM
Bottoms (2023)
Going to great lengths to impress a crush isn’t necessarily a new premise for a school-set movie, but Bottoms might be the only one that sees its queer lead characters set up an entire fight club at their school disguised as a self-defense class to get closer to their crushes. Not only is Bottoms a unique take on a coming-of-age female empowerment story, it is also hilarious. The entire cast is phenomenal, but Ayo Edebiri, Ruby Cruz, Rachel Sennott, and Nicholas Galitzine especially have impeccable comedic timing. Bottoms is one of those movies where it feels impossible to convey the true depths of its vibes and tone to someone who hasn’t seen it. I mean how else do you describe watching a group of girls attach a bomb to one of their ex’s cars while “Total Eclipse of the Heart” plays in the background, or watching them brutally murder a rival football team that’s trying to poison their school’s star jock other than a playfully unhinged must-watch? – BA
The Hunt (2012)
Like the rest of director Thomas Vinterberg’s films, The Hunt (Danish title: Jagten) is an extremely uncomfortable but extremely worthwhile watch. It’s the story of Lucas (Mads Mikkelsen), a primary school teacher accused of an act of child sexual abuse by a young pupil. As the accusation bleeds through his small Danish community, Lucas is ostracized and attacked before the truth can be established. Mikkelsen gives an exposing and powerful performance as the man at the center of the storm, and was rewarded for it with multiple awards nominations. The film, too, received a nod for best foreign-language film of the year. Difficult but truthful. – LM