24 movies that perfectly showcase teen angst

James Dean set the bar in 1955 with Rebel Without a Cause, but he wasn’t alone as Jim Stark. Natalie Wood's Judy was dealing with a lousy father who accused her of being too sexual, while Sal Mineo stole the show as Plato. Each teen represented the overall anguish associated with various facets of life at that age, from rocky home lives to their sexuality. Mineo later noted that Plato was intended to be a gay teen struggling.

Superbad is often viewed as one of the best comedies of the 2000s, and rightfully so. McLovin quickly became an iconic character in pop culture, and while the movie relies heavily on jokes, there is some heart there. Jonah Hill and Michael Cera's Seth and Evan are best friends not only looking to party and hook up with their respected crushes, but they're also dealing with the reality of having to say goodbye to one another after graduation. That’s a hard pill to swallow when friends have been attached at the hip for years, and the stress of not having a bestie around can be a lot to wrap one’s head around.

On the surface, Now and Then is a drama with a fun little mystery, but at its core, it’s not only a tale of how important friends are in life, but each girl comes with their own internal struggles from dealing with their parents' divorce in the ‘60s to the loss of a parent.

Teen angst in the 2000s could best be compared to the mall store Hot Topic. The one that used to blast metal music and appeared to be a lair to the underworld. A character that best fell in line with that then was Hayden Christensen's Sam Monroe in Life as a House.

Some argue that Ariel traded everything for a man, but Ariel’s fascination with the human world and a life beyond the sea preceded seeing Prince Eric. Her longing for adventure and frustration with her father not supporting her dreams is very commonplace for many teens, which is why Ariel is one of the most relatable Disney characters out there, whether she’s animated or life action.

Sometimes even the simplest movies about a summer vacation can display the downside of feeling stuck in a less-than-perfect situation at 14.

Body changes, dealing with her widower father dating again, and the untimely death of her best friend. Vada Sultenfuss is put through it, and My Girl is a life lesson that heartache does not have an age limit.

Every so often, a weird little movie comes along and helps the teens of that generation feel like their quirks are okay. Napoleon Dynamite was that for many millennials.

If there was a Mount Rushmore for teen movies, The Breakfast Club would be there. No doubt. John Hughes pieced together the most common high school tropes, making this a movie anyone could relate to. Most people can be described as either a popular kid, an athlete, a burnout, and so on. There is a reason this Hughes classic has often been imitated but never fully duplicated.

Nadine struggles to grasp life after her father's death. While that drives the plot, it's her seemingly perfect brother, Darian, and his breakdown that stands out, as many often forget the pressure teens can be under when it comes to school and extracurriculars.

Robin Williams delivered one of his best performances in Dead Poets Society, but that doesn't mean this is an easy watch, as the lack of parental support in the film as a teen can lead to the worst of scenarios.

Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird puts a lot on the table and leaves no crumbs as far as teen-centric movies go. Saoirse Ronan's Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson delivers the highs and lows of dating, friendship, and that universal feeling of wanting more than one's hometown can provide at a certain age.

Edward Scissorhands will always appeal to those who grew up outside of the norm.

The Virgin Suıcides is one of the most telling tales about how the lack of freedom can lead to the unimaginable.

S.E. Hinton started writing The Outsiders when she was 15, and by 18, she had it published. Almost 20 years later, Francis Ford Coppola transformed it into a movie that starred the biggest names in young Hollywood. While the teen heartthrobs were likely the reason many initially watched, the heartwrenching performances of this ragtag group kept people rewinding those VHS copies.

Addams Family Values is not a teen movie in the same regard as The Breakfast Club or She’s All That, but Wednesday Addams setting fire at the summer camp to toss a middle finger up to the historical lies society teaches is so iconic in regards to teen rebellion that it makes the cut.

Charlie Bartlett walked so Netflix's Sex Education could run as the late Anton Yelchin starred as the titular character who dished out advice (and prescription drugs) in his school's bathroom to a cascade of peers who were in need. Seemingly ahead of its time in 2007, this movie highlighted the importance of mental health.

13 years after The Perks of Being a Wallflower was published, it became a film that — as great as the book was – stood on its own. Shifting the focus a bit and omitting a scene here and there, Perks kept true to the unparalleled feelings of first loves, finding one’s tribe, and trauma at that age.

While the world has come a long way regarding the LGBTQ+ community, there is still so much further to go. This is why But I’m a Cheerleader still stands out over two decades later as Natasha Lyonne's Megan is sent away to a conversion therapy camp after her parents suspect she's a lesbian. This movie isn't just about a teen fully accepting their truth, but also how parents should never turn their backs on their children for just being who they are.

Was Zac Efron’s Troy Bolton a little extra when it came to choosing between being a jock and a musical theater kid? Yes, but High School Musical does demonstrate the pressure teens face when wanting to break out of the box they’ve been placed in.

While John Hughes pretty much painted the most iconic picture of teen life in the '80s, Heathers flipped that picture on its head and delivered a darker portrayal of the actual hellscape that high school can be for some.

Thumbsucker is a little indie film from the mid-'00s that dealt with infatuations, parents, and a so-called bad habit. In the end, it leaves audiences with the notion that it's okay to accept their quirks and smile.

Thirteen covers the one aspect that never fails to arise for many in middle school: the obsession with being “cool” and the act of rebellion.

Birthdays as a little kid seem to be grand events, but as the years roll by, the importance others place upon the day you were born gets questionable. Sixteen Candles relays the truth of aging too well with Molly Ringwald's Sam Baker.