In the ever-turning wheel of pop culture, the world never fails to create yet again another movie or television show about high school. Some popular examples include The Breakfast Club, Riverdale, Mean Girls, and 90210. But as relatable as some of these high school universes might feel, some can seem outrageous, whether they intend to or not. The variation between these respective worlds raises some questions, such as: Can a movie about high school still be good even if it’s not completely accurate? Should high school movies be about different aspects of high school, instead of focusing on social lives and sports? What are some timeless high school movie tropes, and what just seems trendy? When asked what movie represents high school the best, Megan Blankenship (12) pondered, “I think it’d be Ferris Bueller [‘s Day Off]. Tons of kids skip school and get away with it and I think it’d be really fun.”
But it’s not just high school movies that remind Hillgrove students of their current education.
“[It reminds me of] Saw, because of the horrors that come with becoming an adult and growing into yourself, along with AP classes. And then Shrek because most of these people remind me of Donkey, and other various extra characters,” Alana Kinnebrew (12) explains.
High School Musical came up quite often, especially when it came to “fantasy” high school movies. “I wish it was like High School Musical,” Alexa Schultz (10) says, when asked what she wishes high school was like.
Some thought HSM was unrealistic, though, along with a certain aforementioned television show.
“The show Riverdale, I think, is an awful representation of high school. There’s no such things as, like, mean girls like that. And then High School Musical is also terrible because nobody sings in school like that,” Blankenship rants.
However, it seems that students can still like a movie and believe that it’s relatable to high school, even if it’s just about coming of age or has an outrageous plot.
“I don’t watch a lot of teen movies, but I love Heathers. Sure, you don’t have people dying everyday in the real world, but the characters are so funny and relatable that I can’t help but appreciate it,” Schultz confesses, “I like Real GOT7. It’s a show about a K-Pop band I really like, and they’re all growing up.”
It seems that movies and television shows, no matter where they’re located or what they’re about, will always be relatable, even if high schoolers themselves will openly acknowledge the absurdities and differences between real life and the universes presented on screens.
Photo Credit: www.imdb.com
