Film series: Too Cool for School
School is officially in session at Cornell Cinema!
The high school experience has been a staple of Hollywood cinema since the 1940s. This formative, four-year period has been represented by filmmakers through everything from angsty teen dramas and colorful musicals to raunchy sex comedies and biting satires.
Our “Too Cool for School” series explores the American high school experience through classic films from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. The series kicks off in September with some more recent entries in the high school cinema canon: Reginald Hudlin’s iconic coming-of-age comedy House Party (1990); Justin Lin’s thrilling crime drama Better Luck Tomorrow (2003); and the now cult-classic Mean Girls (2004), written by Tina Fey and starring Lindsey Lohan.
Nothing screams Halloween like a little high school horror. We are delighted to celebrate the spooky season with screenings of The Craft (1996) and Scream (1996), both of which celebrate their 30th anniversary year, and a special 50th anniversary presentation of Brian de Palma’s Carrie (1976) on Halloween night.
Finally, the 1980s introduced some of the most iconic American high school movies of all time and our series will include three: Amy Heckerling’s Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986), and The Breakfast Club (1985), the latter of which were both directed by John Hughes, the quintessential chronicler of the American high school experience.
These films share a common focus on the trials and tribulations of adolescent life, including evolving friendships, romantic relationships, journeys of self-discovery, and the consequences of newfound independence.
