Coming of Age films often have a special place in a cinephile’s heart. Films are more powerful when we can identify character’s circumstances and challenges that they face, and how that shapes them as human beings. Coming of age is about awareness, an awakening about the world in which we live, and facing the inevitable maturity and how frightening that can be.
Why do these films resonate so much? A good coming of age film touches our innate human connection to always be growing, to always be improving, and to always be reckoning with and enduring this crazy thing called life. Some of the films are celebratory, reminiscent of halcyon days from when we had very few cares or worries. Others are more somber, when during those same ages where we were supposedly protected and were secure, something shook us up to the point that we realized how fragile our world really was.
The best coming of age films tend to come from a deep personal place from the director or others involved with the production. The worst is when the film seems implausible. Coming of age can’t be faked. We all as humans know better.
During this journey, we have divided the films into three different stages of early aging. We start with adolescence, which we are calling Boyhood. Richard Linklater’s film is optional, but it is a good example of a film that touches on multiple life situations where the characters come of age. Instead we’ll be watching Stand by Me and Crooklyn. We’ll then visit the teenage years with Superbad and The Edge of Seventeen. Finally, we’ll get to adulthood with Dazed and Confused and The Green Ray.
During this month, we’ll check in with the participants of the Journey and see how these films resonate with them as having gone through all of these life stages, and seeing friends, siblings, or even children have similar experiences. We’ll go a little further and talk about continued coming of age through adulthood, and how reminiscing with the past — often with films — can be a healthy way to grow as individuals.
Back in 2015, I had posted my favorite coming of age films (technically called “adolescent and childhood films) on my personal blog. We will see how much my outlook on these films will change after this Journey.
