sA modern response to classic teen drama shows like Dawson's Creek and One Tree Hill, Netflix's Outer Banks released last month to strong viewership and generally favorable reviews. Following a group of teenagers searching for a missing person and a lost treasure, the story separates itself from stereotypical teenage soap opera melodrama by introducing thrilling action and adventure elements with dangerously real stakes.
Another distinguishing factor is the unique setting of the Outer Banks coastal islands of North Carolina, which often acts as an additional character in the show. If you enjoyed the series and want more gripping Carolina drama, then you'll love these ten movies!
Logan Lucky (2017)
Charlotte Motor Speedway - that's the unconventional target of a daring heist from an unforgettably entertaining cast of characters in Logan Lucky. When the notoriously unlucky Logan brothers (Channing Tatum and Adam Driver) attempt to rob the race track during its smallest event, the stakes are amplified when they're forced to reschedule to the day of the massive Coca-Cola 600 race.
In typical Soderbergh fashion, the heist is complicated and difficult to follow at times, but the movie has tense moments, hilarious one-liners, an all-star cast, a wholesome story, and hopefully a sequel.
George Washington (2000)
Like many adventures following kids or teenagers, Outer Banks made for a great coming-of-age story, much like the impoverished North Carolina small-town set George Washington. The story is told by 12-year-old Nasia (Candace Evanofski), who leaves her braggart boyfriend (Curtis Cotton III) to be with the introverted but charming George (Donald Holden)
When these actions prove to have unexpectedly deadly consequences, the surrounding community of characters reacts in complicated and unexpected ways. The low-budget independent movie turned little profit but was a film festival darling almost universally praised by critics.
All Summers End (2017)
Another coming-of-age teenage romance story taking place during a small Carolina town's Summer is All Summers End, a starring vehicle for talented young actors Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart, Unbelievable) and Tye Sheridan (Mud, Ready Player One).
Dever and Sheridan play Grace and Conrad, two young lovers navigating their first romance. What's their main obstacle? How about the fact that a childish prank played by Conrad and his friends led to the accidental death of Grace's older brother (Beau Mirchoff), something unbeknownst to the town and Grace's family.
Cape Fear (1962, 1991)
Martin Scorsese's remake of Cape Fear earned two Oscar nominations, but the thrilling story and acting are terrific in both versions. Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) is a North Carolina lawyer who intentionally inadequately defends psychopath Max Cady (Robert De Niro).
When Cady is released from prison 14 years later, he stalks Bowden and his family. It's not long before Bowden is fearing for the lives of himself, his wife (Jessica Lange), and his daughter (Juliette Lewis), prompting them to flee to the family's houseboat in the Carolina cape, where a terrifying confrontation awaits.
Happy Campers (2001)
Providing the raunchiest and most irreverent humor on this list is Happy Campers, the story of inmates running the proverbial asylum when the teenage counselors take charge of a North Carolina summer camp after the camp's director (Peter Stormare) is injured by a bolt of lightning.
With rampant drug use and underage sexual encounters causing coming-of-age chaos and laughs, the movie was screened at Sundance but saw little financial success, likely due to its Winter release, and being overshadowed by the similar and more popular Wet Hot American Summer that same year.
Message In A Bottle (1999)
There are several North Carolina-set romantic dramas based on the works of novelist Nicholas Sparks, but the one closest to Outer Banks is likely Message in a Bottle.
The story follows a reporter named Theresa (Robin Wright) as she tracks down and romantically pursues Garret (Kevin Costner) - the Outer Banks-based author of a mysterious and beautiful love letter Theresa finds washed up on a Cape Cod beach. The Best of Me, A Walk to Remember, Safe Haven, The Choice, The Longest Ride, and Nights in Rodanthe are also all good choices.
Blue Velvet (1986)
There are several great mystery elements that make Outer Banks so intriguing, but perhaps the most well-crafted North Carolina-set mystery movie comes courtesy of auteur David Lynch's Oscar-nominated Blue Velvet.
The story follows Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks) in just his second role as he plays a college student who returns to his hometown, where his discovery of a severed human ear triggers his investigation down a darkly twisted rabbit hole that tears him between two extremely different women and involves him with some violent psychopaths.
Hero's Island (1962)
Early in Outer Banks, it's stated that two types of people live in the area - those that work two jobs, and those that have two houses. This sets the stage for the theme of classism to run throughout the show, which is also a major theme of Hero's Island.
In 1718, the life of a small impoverished family is dramatically changed when they inherit a small Carolina coastal island, but it's not long before local fisherman, a castaway, an outlaw, and violent goons who all want the property turn the family's blessing into a curse.
I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
A dramatic teenage mystery playing out in a North Carolina cape town, I Know What You Did Last Summer plays on horror and thriller elements far more than Outer Banks. While driving home from a Summer party, a group of four rambunctious friends hits and kills a pedestrian, which they hide by dumping the body in the water.
A year later, someone begins harassing and threatening to expose the four friends (Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Freddie Prinze Jr.), who soon find themselves being systematically hunted by a mysterious hook-wielding maniac.
Loggerheads (2005)
Of the many themes explored in Outer Banks, perhaps none are more powerful and consistent than the relationships between children and their parents. Using loggerhead turtles' parental behavior as a metaphor, Loggerheads elegantly weaves together the stories of three different people connected by unconventional lineage, all leading up to Mother's Day.
Based on a true story, the movie is not only a beautiful message about parents, children, and identity, but it also takes place in three separate and distinct regions of North Carolina, doing an excellent job of showcasing the state's geographic diversity.