As a millenial, I can say that the 90s were the best time to grow up in. So many things from that time have had a great impact on the pop culture, especially movies and TV. The 90s gave us Buffy, Pokemons and MTV. And the 90s gave us the best teen movies ever. From “Cruel Intentions” to “Clueless”, here are the top 10 iconic teen movies from the 90s that are still legendary after all these years.
“Cruel Intentions” (1999)
This movie showed us an incredible transformation of Sarah Michelle Gellar. A do-gooder Buffy the Vampire Slayer transformed into a manipulative, twisted-minded teenager Kathryn Murtagh who decides to put her step-brother’s seduction skills to test by challenging him to seduce an innocent girl Annette.
“Can’t Hardly Wait” (1998)
Whether it was the best of times or the worst, everyone remembers their last year of high school. Living the last night of high school like there’s no tomorrow is pretty much sums up the plot. Drinking, partying, laughing, crying, falling in love and breaking up – this movie has it all.
“Scream” (1996)
A group of teens who love horror movies are forced to relive all the horror movie cliches in real life. They get chased by a serial killer in the now famous Ghost Face mask. It’s like high school isn’t awful enough that you have to make it a total nightmare.
“The Craft” (1996)
A new girl Sarah who is looking for new friends joins the group of outcast girls who happen to have witch powers. Unfortunately, things went south when Sarah realizes that the girls are using their powers to do evil. The movie that started out as a thriller with a drop of comedy ended up as one of the darkest teen movies ever made.
“She’s All That” (1999)
This one is a classic “ugly duckling into a prom queen” kind of movie. A high school playboy Zach gets dumped by his popular girlfriend right before the prom. In order to restore his popularity, Zach challenges himself to turn a nerdy student Laney into a prom queen. Later on, Laney finds out about the bet but eventually she gives up and forgives Zach, because we all know that they are meant to be together.
“Dazed And Confused” (1993)
The movie follows a group of teens celebrating the last day of school and it captures the spirit of adolescents so well. I know the movie might seem like not a big deal but there’s something so charming about this movie. It reminds us about our own high school moments. Seriously, it’s hard not to feel nostalgic watching this amazing flick.
“American Pie” (1999)
An iconic comedy that made our favorite actors, like Jason Biggs and Alyson Hannigan famous. This movie captures the quintessential emotions of being a teenage boy and a virgin, so you know the movie is going to be awesome.
“Never Been Kissed” (1999)
We are used to seeing Drew Barrymore radiating beauty and grace, but this movie shows us that she can be pretty dorky as well. Drew plays Josie, a journalist who is forced to go undercover as a high school student for a research and relive some of the worst days of her life. The entire office watched her reinventing herself via a hidden camera. It’s really exciting to watch how Josie becomes one of the popular kids, or gets voted prom queen… or gets her first kiss.
“10 Things I Hate About You” (1999)
A high school heartthrob trying to win the heart of the class brain is always fun to watch, especially when the main characters are played by the American sweethearts Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles. Their charming performance turned an average rom-com into one of the most iconic teen movies ever.
“Clueless” (1995)
Alysia Silverstone steals the show in this cult classic with her amazing performance. Her character Cher managed to be charming, rebellious and annoying all at once. The movie follows a classic story of a queen bee trying to make over a new girl. But things don’t go as planned and the new girl takes over Cher’s place as the most popular girl in school.