12 Days of Cinematicalmas: DVDs Santa Should Slip in Your Tween/Teen's Stocking
Filed under: Classics, Comedy, Drama, Music & Musicals, Noir, Mystery & Suspense, Family Films, 12 Days of Cinematicalmas
Last week, I gave you a nice list of DVDs for younger kids. This week it's time to give a little love to the older kids in the family. Sure, they'll sneak a peek at the younger sibs' kiddie flicks when they think you aren't looking, but they really want to know that you know they're getting older, and they have their own taste in movies. Some of these recommendations are more current films that older kids might enjoy; others are well-loved classics you might remember from your own teen-hood. In any case, adding a couple of these selections to your shopping list for that tween or teen in your life is sure to make you tops on their list.
- High School Musical -- If you have a tween or teen daughter in your house, chances are fair-to-middling that you already know what High School Musical is. You've probably been subjected to repeated viewings of it, and had the catchy songs from the show stuck in your head at the most inappropriate moments (trust me, there are few things more likely to put a damper on a sexy mood than your partner hearing you hum "We're All In This Together" from the show during an intimate moment). Nonetheless, as my husband could tell you, having just survived a night at the High School Musical Live Tour with our 9-year-old daughter, this film, its songs, and its stars are like pre-teen crack. You have some hard decisions to make in your selection: Should you go with the Encore edition, or the two-disc remix edition? Should you up your coolness quotient by tossing in the High School Musical Karoake CD? That's a decision only you can make.
- Kubrick Madness -- The teen years are the best time for introducing your kids to the delicious genius of Stanley Kubrick, via some of his better films. If you're feeling like being a little spendy, you can snag the seven-disc Kubrick Collection for just under $200, but if Santa isn't feeling quite that generous, save some bucks and put together your own Kubrick Pack. My picks? Dr. Strangelove, natch -- one of the best films ever made. This one's a must for the older set. Extra points if you start overhearing your teen and his friends saying things like, "Let's get this thing on a hump -- we got some flyin' to do!" and "You can't fight in here! This is the War Room!" Round out your Kubrick fix with my other fave Kubrick gem, A Clockwork Orange (goth teens will especially appreciate this one), and to round it out, 2001: A Space Odyssey. Just because.
- Donnie Darko -- Donnie Darko is a great first pic to choose to expose your teen to films outside the multiplex. This film came out when my oldest was 16, and she and her friends latched onto it immediately. A trippy teenager with an invisible friend -- a rabbit who tells him to commit crimes? As an added bonus, it also has Patrick Swazyze, so you can totally gross your teen out with tales of how hot Swayze's ass was in Dirty Dancing, and how you and your friends used to watch it over and over again just to see him getting nasty with Jennifer Grey on the dance floor. For added fun, you and your spouse can mortify your teen by demonstrating aforesaid dirty dancing while singing "I Had the Time of My Life" at the top of your lungs. Teens love that.
- Monty Python and the Holy Grail -- Another great quotable film, and not just for the teen set. Nine-to-eleven-year-olds (at least, if my daughter and her friend are any indication) find this movie absolutely hysterical. Any Monty Python will do, really (my 4th grade Girl Scouts love doing "silly walks"), but if you have to choose just one, this would be my pick. One note of caution: Don't expose your teens to too many British flicks at once, or they'll start to get the idea that it's super-cool to walk around talking in fake British accents. Teens today didn't invent this game -- my friends and I used to speak with all kinds of fake accents when we'd hang at the mall (my personal specialty was pretending to be a Polish exchange student, which, since I'm half-Polish, I felt I could almost pull off, especially in Oklahoma, where the likelihood of anyone actually knowing Polish was pretty slim) -- but trust me, it sounds so much more annoying when you're pushing 40 and you hear teens doing flitting around doing wretched Brit accents.
- Rocky Horror Picture Show -- Okay, maybe you're not the type of parent who wants to necessarily encourage your teen son or daughter to want to run around a movie theater wearing lingerie and yelling at a movie screen. Chances are, though, if they're inclined to be drawn to weird stuff like RHPS, they're likely already going there anyhow when you think they're at a "church lock-in" (yeah, I used that one a few times -- but it's okay, I always confessed and did my Hail Marys afterward). This film is definitely not for the younger set, but older teens -- especially if you have one of those artsy intellectual teens who reads Nietzsche and glowers a lot -- will love it. With some teens, though, you have to watch out for your inherent parental uncoolness causing them to reject it outright as "lame." Save this one for when they're 16 or 17, and when they unwrap it, sharply say, "Who gave you that? I'm not sure I think that's appropriate ... " Your adolescent son will be singing "Sweet Transvestite" in the bathroom mirror while using a bath towel as a boa before you can say Magenta.
- Rebel Without a Cause -- The classic rebellious teen flick that set the gold standard for all future rebellious teen flicks. Teenage sons will appreciate James Dean's coolness factor, while the girls will swoon over his inherent bad-boy good looks. It's not as flashy as the crap they're used to seeing at the multiplex, but it's one of the best stories ever written for film. Every time I see this film, I'm blown away by how relevant it still is today, more than 50 years after it was written. You could also dig a little deeper and get the James Dean Collection for a little more moolah.
- Brick-- This film-noir-meets-high-school flick was one of the sharpest films to come out in 2006. Tight, cleverly crafted dialogue, surprising moments, stellar performance by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and an interesting, fast-paced story make this DVD an excellent choice for older teens. And hey, if you're into proselytizing, you can use the film as an excellent launching pad for a serious discussion on the dangers of hanging out with drug kingpins who still live with their mom.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-15-2006 @ 1:37PM
Steven said...
Good grief. I wouldn't suggest the majority of those films for early teenagers.
Donnie Darko for younger kids? I think not, unless you want them to hear the f-bomb over and over again.
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12-15-2006 @ 3:21PM
Alex said...
steven, if you think that kids as young as 10 or 11 don't hear swear words every day, you need to leave your house more.
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12-15-2006 @ 10:44PM
Catie R. said...
I agree with the majority of the movies on that list. LABYRINTH should be added to it. My life was incomplete for 17 years until I saw that movie for the first time, so no other child should have to suffer like me.
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12-16-2006 @ 10:28AM
Karyn said...
No way I'd recommend a Cloockwork Orange for tweens. Kids as young as 11? I saw that movie for the first time when I was about 12 and the violence and the rape and the whole thing was really just too much.
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12-16-2006 @ 10:54AM
Shelley said...
As a teenager, here are a few more suggestions:
The Graduate: Obviously not for "tweens", but teens will recognize feelings they have been going through. And it doesn't hurt that it's hilarious.
MASH: The perfect introduction to Altman. Expect to hear, "My lips are hot. Kiss my hot lips." for days.
Scorsese: Give them pretty much anything by Scorsese, and they'll think you're cool. Girls (and some guys) will love "The Age of Innocence". (Give them the book as well. It's amazing.)
To Have and Have Not: Even jaded teens who are used to the frank sexuality of today's movies can't deny the fact that Bogey and Ball are hot. Any of their movies would be good, but this one's my favorite.
A Bout de Souffle: The epitome of cool. Once they warm up to the idea of subtitles, they'll agree.
Annie Hall: Introduce them to the wonderful Woody Allen, and start with the best.
Chinatown: If they've seen The Departed, show them this. They'll get a kick out of seeing a young Nicholson being impossibly cool.
A Room with a View: My friend's movies of choice are John Tucker Muster Die and the like, but even she loves this one. Show them this one first, to see how they react to the slower pace. Then, if they like the pacing, show them "Days of Heaven".
Duck Soup: One of the funniest movies they will ever see, and definitely the best the Marx Brothers made.
Lawrence of Arabia: If they like epics, show them this and blow their socks off.
8 1/2: If your teenager is thinking about going into film making, make sure they see this. Now. Don't wait until Christmas.
The Conversation: They've probably already seen the Godfather movies, so show them some more Coppola(that is possibly even better).
Truffaut: If they like "A Bout de Souffle", show them more awesome French New Wave. "The 400 Blows" and "Jules and Jim" are his most famous, but "Shoot the Piano Player" is what I would suggest starting out with.
Well, there's my list. It's much longer than I intended it to be (and I didn't even include any Bergman), but hopefully it has something for everyone.
Happy Holidays
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