Some of the best teen movies were made in the 90s and 2000s because life was simpler then. Social media wasn’t a thing (or it was in its early stage), being authentic was in, and everything was cheaper.
I refuse to add another streaming bill, so Tubi comes in handy when I want to watch hard-to-find fan favorites and cult classics. I wrote about the service’s Super Soul September additions, so let’s explore another genre of classics: teen films.
Mean Girls
“On Wednesdays, we wear pink.” – Karen Smith
Taking down the Queen Bee of a popular clique is serious business. In Mean Girls, transfer student Cady Heron (Lindsay Lohan), a 16-year-old attending public high school after being homeschooled, sets the plan in motion after befriending two outcasts.
Rachel McAdams, Tina Fey, Tim Meadows, Amy Poehler, Ana Gasteyer, Lacey Chabert, Lizzy Caplan, and Amanda Seyfried star in the popular 2004 comedy.
Good Burger
“Welcome to Good Burger, home of the good burger. May I take your order?” – Ed
If you wreck someone’s car and don’t want your parents to know, you have to get a job. Dexter Reed (Kenan Thompson), a high school student, takes a summer job at the fast-food restaurant to pay off damages to his teacher’s car. There, he and Ed (Kel Mitchell), his gullible co-worker, stumble upon an evil plot by a rival restaurant.
Did you know that the 1997 movie is a spinoff of a sketch from the ’90s variety series All That?
Love Don’t Cost a Thing
“Popularity is a job, Al, not a privilege.” – Paris Morgan
Teens back then sure loved to wreck cars, didn’t they? Alvin (Nick Cannon) is far from popular, but when the most popular girl, Paris (Christina Milian), crashes her mom’s car during an argument with her NBA rookie boyfriend, an opportunity opens up. Alvin agrees to help repair the car, and Paris gives him an expensive makeover and agrees to pretend to be his girlfriend for a few weeks.
Things were going well until Alvin lets this new life get to his head. Kenan Thompson and Steve Harvey also appear in this 2003 film.
Save the Last Dance
“We spend more time defending our relationship than actually having one.” – Sara
Sara (Julia Stiles) and Derek (Sean Patrick Thomas) are an interracial couple whose love is connected through dancing. Sara, a ballet dancer, is training for her Juilliard School dance audition, but the road to get there is filled with drama.
Fredro Starr, Bianca Lawson and Kerry Washington also star in the 2001 film.
Seventeen Again
“Just like a M.P.G.I.S. chick.” – Julie
Grandparents should live forever, but what if they could go back to being 17? When 12-year-old Willie’s experiment turns his grandparents into teens, the incident may bring the two joy, but it also could have deadly side effects.
The film stars Tia Mowry, Tamera Mowry-Housley, Tahj Mowry and Maia Campbell.
Header image credit: Courtesy of Tubi
