Teen movies, meant for the adolescent hearts, stir in them a sensation of hope, dreams, aspirations, and fantasies.
This particular section of movies has been huge blockbusters on every streaming platform because of the broad spectrum of stories it represents.
The stories range from teenagers trying to enter their dream college, dealing with mental stress, or trying to find love or falling out of it.
These stories are undoubtedly, to some extent, the most relatable ones for teenagers curious about exploring every new aspect of life.
Netflix brings about the broadest range of teenage movies to its young audience, in almost every genre, like drama, romance, action, thriller, etc.
These movies make every adolescent feel like living “a teenage dream.”
Here is a list of some of the best teen movies on Netflix that you could watch and not help but fall in love with.
Found (2021)
IMDB rating: 7.5/10
Genre: Docudrama
Runtime: 1hr 38mins
Top Cast: Chloe Lipitz, Lily Bolka, Sadie Mangelsdorf, Liu Hao
After a DNA test, three adopted teenage girls discover that they are cousins to each other.
They had met virtually online, decided to meet in person, and planned a trip to China to find answers about themselves, their family, and its history.
This movie also gives insights into the character of Liu Hao, a genealogist from My China Roots, who helped adopted children reconnect with their biological parents.
The three girls’ quest to discover their identity keeps the young teens glued to the screen.
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
Genre: Romance, Action, Comedy
Runtime: 1hr 52mins
Top Cast: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Michael Cera, Ellen Wong, Chris Evans
Scott Pilgrim, a bassist in the band Sex Bob-Omb, falls in love with a delivery girl named Ramona Flowers.
At a band competition, Scott comes across one of Ramona’s exes and learns about seven exes Ramona whom he had to defeat at the battle of bands to woo her finally.
This movie features a perfect balance of visual comedy, quick camera action, and some incredibly inventive transitions that makes this movie an absolute treat to watch.
Ready Player One (2018)
IMDB rating: 7.4/10
Genre: Science Fiction
Runtime: 2hr 20mins
Top Cast: Olivia Cooke, Tye Sheridon, Mark Rylance, Ben Mendelsohn
Based on Ernest Cline’s novel, Ready Player One is a sci-fi movie based in the year 2045, which revolves around OASIS, an application providing a pathway to virtual reality.
The movie turns exciting when after the death of the owner of OASIS, it is announced that whoever finds the Golden Easter egg will be awarded the ownership of OASIS.
Wade, a teenager, sets out on the quest for the egg with his allies and tries to win ownership before other corporations do so.
With the beautifully woven plot, drama, blockbuster cast, and fantastic music, Steven Spielberg gift his young audience a surprise yet again.
The Edge Of Seventeen (2016)
IMDB rating: 7.3/10
Genre: Coming-of-age teen drama
Runtime: 1hr 44mins
Cast: Woody Harrelson, Hailee Steinfield, Haley Lu Richardson, Hayden Szeto
This coming-of-age drama features Nadine Franklin, a seventeen-year-old girl who does not share the best bond with her brother and mother.
She resonated only with her dad, who passed away when she was thirteen. She could only trust and properly talk to her best friend, Krista.
However, Nadine finds out Krista is dating her brother, which makes things worse for her as this means losing her go-to person, her secret keeper. This urges her to take on a relationship, which she does eventually.
Whether the relationship worked out or whether she sorted the beef with her best friend, find out in this carefully crafted and sincerely portrayed teen comedy.
To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018)
IMDB rating: 7/10
Genre: Young adult romance
Runtime: 1hr 39min
Cast: Lana Condor, Noah Centineo, Anna Cathcart
This romantic movie features Lara, a quiet high-school girl who wrote secret messages meant for five of her crushes but never really mailed them.
One day all her secret messages reach the hands of each of her crushes, which turns her shy, introverted image upside down in front of the entire class.
The romance between Lara and Peter makes every teenager feel butterflies and re-imagine the scenarios with their crush.
This movie highlights the love angle, why family should always come before anyone, and how it becomes difficult to forget someone you have lost.
This is one of the most popular movies among teens, and not just only teens, one of the top-rated romantic dramas on Netflix, hands down!
Run (2020)
IMDB rating: 6.7
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Runtime: 1hr 29mins
Top Cast: Kiera Allen, Sarah Paulson, Sara Sohn, Tony Revolori
Run is a psychological thriller that depicts the story of a mentally disturbed mother, Diane, and her teen daughter, Chloe, who is physically challenged.
Chloe was said to have been ill since birth and had used a wheelchair for most of her life. The story turns out when Chloe learns that her mother is poisoning her and weakening her.
She goes on to investigate and confronts her mother regarding the same.
How the tables turn by the end makes this movie a never-seen-before original thriller that keeps the audience on edge. This movie features many satisfactory yet shocking scenes, featuring a fantastic cast that has brought each character to life beautifully.
The Half Of It (2020)
IMDB rating: 6.9/10
Genre: Coming-of-age comedy drama
Runtime: 1hr 44min
Cast: Alexxis Lemire, Leah Lewis, Daniel Diemer
The Half Of It revolves by introducing Ellie Chu, a Chinese-American student who used to do assignments for other students to cope with her financial problems.
One day, Paul, the school jock, asked her to write a poem for Aster on his behalf. Ellies does as directed, but things take a complete turn soon.
This movie addresses many issues prevalent in American society, including the bullying and the name-calling that immigrant students still have to face. It also portrays the age-old question of whether homosexuality was a sin.
This movie doesn’t try to force its message into the minds of its young audience but wants them to feel it silently with every dialogue as the film progresses.
Shazam! (2019)
IMDB rating: 7/10
Genre: Action
Runtime: 2hr 12mins
Cast: Zachary Levi, Grace Caroline Currey
This story revolves around a fourteen-year-old foster child named Billy, who is on a quest to find his biological mother from whom she was separated after getting lost at a carnival.
However, circumstances become such that he comes across a wizard who chooses him as his successor, “Shazam.”
Billy now has superpowers like that, super-humanly strong and electrically manipulative, etc.
How Billy, now Shazam, utilizes his superpowers and how things change over time acts as the backbone of this movie, accompanied by the fantastic visuals, perfect cast, and full-packed comedy.
Carrie Pilby (2016)
IMDB rating: 6.7/10
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 1hr 38mins
Cast: Nathan Lane, Bel Powley, William Moseley
Carrie Pilby, the protagonist, is a 19-year-old prodigy child who often finds herself lonely.
It was difficult for her to talk to people or make friends easily.
She visits a therapist who asks her to make a checklist and try taking up things she would have enjoyed doing as a child. The list included activities like getting a pet or going on a date.
This movie is highly relatable for high schoolers who have alienated themselves from their fellows just because of the high moral and social standards they have set.
This story pictures the lives of introverts who seem to enjoy their own company but still end up feeling lonely.
22 July (2018)
IMDB rating: 6.8/10
Genre: Crime Drama
Runtime: 2hr 23mins
Cast: Anders Danielsen Lie, Jonas Strand Gravli, Seda Witt
The story is based on the most heinous terrorist attacks in Norway on July 22, 2011.
A group of teenagers had arrived at the location given Youth League, out of which 77 teens get murdered.
However, a student named Viljar survives even after being in a coma; he appears as a witness of the tragedy in front of the court and gets the terrorist Breivik imprisoned for 21 years.
Overall this movie is a deep dark drama based on actual incidents that give its audience chills and shivers of fright throughout; it raises the question of how individuals can be so merciless to take the lives of innocent ones, especially students, brutally.
All The Bright Places (2020)
IMDB rating: 6.5/10
Genre: Romance
Runtime: 1hr 48mins
Cast: Justice Smith, Felix Mallard, Elle Fanning
This is a beautifully crafted romantic drama portraying Finch, a loner, and Violet, who still is trying to recover from her sister’s suicide.
Finch saves Violet from a potential suicide. They bond well as they pair up for a school project which needs them to explore the parts of Indiana.
They help to change each others’ lives for the better until the story takes a sudden, shocking turn at the end.
This movie is a clear portrayal of how a close one committing suicide affects one. It does not depict suicide as a negative thing; it shows how hard the situations become to deal with that one prefers death over life.
It is a one-of-its-kind movie you must watch with a box of tissue by your side!
Spontaneous (2020)
IMDB rating: 6.5/10
Genre: Fantasy
Runtime: 1hr 41mins
Cast: Katherine Langford, Charlie Plummer, Hayley Law
This movie teaches one to live in the moment because no one can ever promise a tomorrow.
A phenomenon breaks out in school where all the students explode, spreading blood across others. W
hen everyone in the class is nearing their doom, Mara, and Dylan, two school seniors, fall in love with each other without knowing how many days of life they have in hand.
It is a dark comedy movie with perfect casting and perfect background scores.
Moxie (2021)
IMDB rating: 6.7/10
Genre: Drama, Music
Runtime: 1hr 51mins
Cast: Nico Hiraga, Josephine Langford, Patrick Schwarzenegger
A 16-year-old Vivian, inspired by her feminist mom and her zines, anonymously starts a zine, “Moxie,” that helps the girls call out all the sexist remarks they face.
Many girls, with the help of Moxie, shared the trauma that the pervert comments gave them. However, situations hit a low for Vivian when she and her best friend cease being friends and when she caught her mother involved in a secret relationship.
However, when a girl confesses to being raped by someone in the school, havoc protests occur with the support from Moxie that the rapist was punished, and Moxie regains its lost popularity.
This movie puts up a great picturization of the female experience of gender discrimination and reaches out to all those young women trying to find their voice to face the perverts.
Featured Image Source: TG