With the recent release of the final episodes of Stranger Things, many fans are feeling nostalgic for days gone by. The kids have grown into young adults but are still attempting to remain steadfast friends despite their distance. The kids in Stranger Things remind viewers of what it was like to be carefree and young (when they're not battling monsters, of course).
Now, more than ever, audiences feel the nostalgia of childhood days and the ease of living before the reality of adulthood takes hold. Many movies encapsulate that feeling, and according to IMDb, these movies are all about childhood friendships and how important they are to young people.
Now And Then (1995) - 6.7
Now and Then is a coming-of-age comedy-drama about a group of girls growing up together during their adolescence, and as adults recount one adventurous and transformative summer. The girls get up to all sorts of trouble: performing seances in a cemetery, prank wars, first kisses, and even fights with boys.
Certain movies do really well critically but aren't well-liked by audiences, and others bomb but have a huge following. For Now and Then, the latter is exactly what happened. It's considered a cult classic for its accurate representation of girlhood and female friendships.
Skate Kitchen (2018) - 6.8
Skate Kitchen is loosely based on the experiences of an all-female skateboard group in New York City. Most of the cast was made up of the real Skate Kitchen group and the director, Crystal Moselle spent eight months hanging out and getting to know the girls before writing the script. "Skate Kitchen" is a play on words after the group received YouTube comments telling the girls to "get back in the kitchen."
Skate Kitchen was originally a short film created for Miu Miu (available to watch on Vimeo) and after its success, developed into a feature film. It was supposed to be a documentary but Moselle decided to go with a narrative structure instead after observing the girls and including candid conversations they had.
My Girl (1991) - 6.9
My Girl is a classic coming-of-age story about a young girl named Vada who navigates life with a single father, a grandmother with Alzheimer's, and her best friend, Thomas J. Though My Girl holds a 50% on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert gave it a 4.5 out of 5 saying, "the beauty in this film is in its directness. There are some obligatory scenes. But there are also some very original and touching ones. This is a movie that has its heart in the right place."
My Girl is excellent at portraying big emotions in young people, including one of the saddest deaths in a movie. Vada often thinks she has the world figured out but always has Thomas J. by her side, bringing her back to reality.
It (2017) - 7.3
It is a horror movie about a murderous clown who haunts and terrorizes children and a remake of the 1990s TV mini-series, which is adapted from Stephen King's novel of the same name. In the movie, a group of adolescent kids bond over shared experiences in which they all have been haunted or marked by Pennywise.
After the success of Stranger Things, It had a similar feeling to it with a group of kids around the same age set in the '80s. They both starred Finn Wolfhard, as well. Due to the nostalgic feeling both gave audiences, It was a smash hit.
Mid90s (2018) - 7.3
Mid90s was written and directed by Jonah Hill, loosely based on his own youth in the '90s. It's about an adolescent boy, Sunny, who, struggling with a troubled home life, befriends a group of older skateboarders and the antics he gets up to in Los Angeles.
Mid90s was received fairly well and, as a directorial debut for Jonah Hill, showed a lot of promise. The critic's consensus on Rotten Tomatoes is "Mid90s tells a clear-eyed yet nostalgic coming-of-age tale that might mark the start of an auspicious new career for debuting writer-director Jonah Hill."
Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone (2001) - 7.6
Perhaps one of the most defining movie series of a generation, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone took the world by storm following the success of the first four novels. Harry Potter is a young boy living with his aunt and uncle in England when he is told he's a wizard. He goes to school at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and is the first time he experiences having friends.
One of the best parts of Harry Potter is his relationships with his friends and peers. Harry, Ron, and Hermione have such an effortless friendship in Sorcerer's Stone, and for Harry and Hermione, learning magic for the very first time. Roger Ebert said, "during 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,' I was pretty sure I was watching a classic, one that will be around for a long time, and make many generations of fans."
The Goonies (1985) - 7.7
The Goonies is about a group of kids who find a treasure map and attempt to track down the treasure while fending off criminals who want the riches for themselves. The Goonies stars Sean Astin, Corey Feldman, and Josh Brolin, among others.
In 2017, The Goonies was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the US National Film Registry. Surprisingly the movie only receives a 76% on Rotten Tomatoes but a 91% audience score. The Goonies has become a cult classic and is regarded as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress.
The Sandlot (1993) - 7.8
One of the most defining sports films, The Sandlot is about a group of boys who love baseball and spend the summer playing ball and getting into trouble. The film harkens back to a time before social media, smartphones, and excessive use of the internet. The boys play ball outside all day long, all summer long, having sleepovers in a treehouse and telling scary stories to each other.
Now more than ever people are nostalgic for times past, and movies like The Sandlot give these people a window into the past, pre-technology. Unlike Mid90s, the boys in The Sandlot don't have very troubled home lives and the movie steers clear of most home life drama, giving it a carefree feeling and the boys' biggest worry is when will they get to play ball again.
Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - 7.8
Moonrise Kingdom is about an orphaned boy, Sam, and his pen pal, Suzy, who run away together to live in their secluded cove called Moonrise Kingdom. The movie is based on Wes Anderson's memories of being young and having fantasies that feel like reality. He said in a Vanity Fair interview, "The movie is kind of like a fantasy that I think I would have had at that age. When you’re 11 or 12 years old, you can get so swept up in a book that you start to believe that the fantasy is reality."
Wes Anderson's films are known for their thematic elements, attention to detail, and overall whimsical feeling. Moonrise Kingdom was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy.
Stand By Me (1986) - 8.1
When it comes to classic coming-of-age movies, Stand By Me will always be included in the list. It's about 4 boys who, during a summer weekend in 1959, discover the body of a missing boy. Through the boys' trials and tribulations in their home life, the boys are there for each other and encourage each other to follow their dreams.
The film encapsulates what being young, having no responsibilities, and getting to spend unlimited time with your friends looks like. As adults, it's hard to maintain friendships the same way as when young people, perfectly summed up by Gordie at the end of the film, "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve."