“Coming of age.” What a diplomatic term for such an indelicate experience! For all it’s warts, adolescence is a time of incredible self-exploration, pain, and growth. And nothing captures it more poetically (and grotesquely) than a coming-of-age movie.
For our next film series, “Grow Up!” MoPOP is exploring adolescence in all its lusty, zitty, complicated glory. Starting September 6, we’ll be celebrating cult classics from all over the genre map that show just how joyful and confounding being a teenager can be.
As with all our virtual watchalongs, to participate you’ll need to register in advance, and then on event day make sure you have a copy of the film queued up and ready to watch on your end while keeping an eye on your e-mail inbox for a link to join our online discussion.
Here’s a look at all the films included in our “Grow Up!” series. Mark your calendars, don’t forget to register, and RSVP for each event on Facebook!
Bend it Like Beckham
Date: Sunday, September 6
Time: 4 p.m. PT
Special Guests: Roxana Hadadi & Krystal Kiran
IMDB Summary: The daughter of orthodox Sikh rebels against her parents’ traditionalism and joins a football team.
But I’m a Cheerleader
Date: Sunday, September 13
Time: 6 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: A naive teenager is sent to rehab camp when her straitlaced parents and friends suspect her of being a lesbian.
Hairspray (1988)
Date: Friday, September 18
Time: 6 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: A ‘pleasantly plump’ teenager teaches 1962 Baltimore a thing or two about integration after landing a spot on a local TV dance show.
Edward Scissorhands
Date: Saturday, October 3
Time: 4 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: An artificial man, who was incompletely constructed and has scissors for hands, leads a solitary life. Then one day, a suburban lady meets him and introduces him to her world.
Attack the Block
Date: Saturday, October 10
Time: 6 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: A teen gang in South London defend their block from an alien invasion.
Pan’s Labyrinth
Date: Saturday, October 17
Time: 6 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: In the Falangist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world.
The Virgin Suicides
Date: Saturday, November 17
Time: 6 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
Date: Thursday, December 17
Time: 6 p.m. PT
IMDB Summary: Scott Pilgrim must defeat his new girlfriend’s seven evil exes in order to win her heart.
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