It's really hard to believe how fast summer came and went. It's not clear if it felt like an instant because the global health issue just melded every day into the next, or if we were just too busy having fun to watch the clock. Either way, reality hit, and we're approaching the official start of fall, which means the back-to-school season is here.
We're never ready for this time when we have to make a return to the routines and craziness of back-to-school time. It's hard for all of us – parents and kids – because every year, it feels like the moment we finally find our relax and go-with-the-flow groove, we have to switch it all up again. So, now that we're in back-to-school time, we can't bury our heads and pretend it's not the reality.
In an effort to help us get back into the swing of making lunches, keeping tabs on homework, and some extra bits of confusion for the 2020 school year, we're turning to movies. These back-to-school movies help us get our head back into the homework and pencils game, and pumps us up for what we're about to face. They span across many areas of schooling — from kindergarten through college — and take us on a variety of emotions.
These 20 back-to-school movies will help get us in the mood for the upcoming year, and give us the confidence (or laughs) to put us in the right headspace to take on all the challenges.
'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'
The very first Harry Potter movie in the franchise set up the path for others to be as successful as it has been. In this first one, we get to see Harry find his way to Hogwart's School of Witchcraft, and the rest became history. While we doubt our kid's school year is going to start with an owl and a secret letter, we can at least hope.
'Monsters University'
What Disney and Pixar do well are stories, and this prequel to the Monsters Inc movie gives us the backstory of how Sully and Mike met in college — and how they became to be the best friends. Monsters University gives us fun college-for-the-first year feels, and it's helpful to already know things do end up working out.
'The School of Rock'
This year — maybe more than any other — substitute teachers are going to be a vital part of the school plan. In this movie, we fall in love with a substitute teacher who walks into a class full of fourth graders, and helps build up their confidence in their band and music.
'Old School'
This movie is a different feel than the most, because it centers on a college, but the students are 30-somethings like many of us. It's a fun movie where nothing taken too seriously, and a great watch if having a legitimate belly laugh is what's needed.
'Mr. Holland's Opus'
When we think about our own history of school, it's easy to pick out the teachers who made or broke our school years, and that's why this movie is a great one to watch. Focused on the life of the music teacher, Mr. Holland, it highlights the stress teachers feel, and the impact they have on the kids they teach.
'Election'
Election is an interesting mix of a movie for back to school that focuses on the politics of school. It goes beyond the typical teenage school movie, and it touches on some big topics that most of the humor-focused back-to-school movies don't typically cover.
'Clueless'
As if we'd have a list that didn't have this classic back-to-school movie! This one has everything we need to get us in the mood — from being the new person at the school (in a whole new element), navigating teenage love and crushes, and the social hierarchy that is high school. Basically, all the clichés that go along with it.
'Superbad'
Superbad is super hilarious and awkward, just like the lives of most teenagers. This one focuses on two teenage boys as they navigate the pressures and hormones of high school who want to have the best year, before they're separated for college.
'Dazed and Confused'
While we're focused on going back to school, we don't want to leave out this movie that highlights the last day of school – because it gives us something to look forward to. Dazed and Confused is an interesting look at what high school is like, with all the webs of the interesting lives of teenagers going along with it.
'Grease'
Classic, classic is what Grease is, and it's hard to think of any back-to-school focused movie that doesn't seem somewhat inspired by this movie. It has everything for a good pick-me-up: love and romance, music with catchy songs, and an ending that can't be forgotten.
'She's All That'
This movie is one of the first we think about when listing the high school movies that take a girl from basic obscurity into popularity, thanks to a little makeover. Also, She's All That was the height of the Freddy Prinze Jr. phase, which is a reason enough to watch on its own.
'Bring It On'
Sometimes, school is more than just math, English, and science. Competitive sports are important, too. In this movie, we love that this takes the focus away from the typical high school sport (football) and puts it all on the cheerleaders who are more than just on the sidelines.
'Easy A'
Easy A is comedy that takes on the stigmas girls and young women have in school, attacking the trope with humor — and it's always fun to see the females take the lead (especially Emma Stone!). High school can be really cutthroat, and it's not going to keep any girl down – not at this school.
'The Breakfast Club'
As an iconic movie, it's easy to see the influence The Breakfast Club had on all the teen flicks that came after it. It's one of the first to point out the cliques in high school and how they always seem to butt against each other. They all came together after a random stay in detention, and it changed the course of their lives forever.
'Heathers'
This dark comedy is one that stuck with us the moment we watch it, and it would be a shame to have a list of back-to-school movies without this one included. The movie focuses on the cliques so many high schools have, and takes a dark and interesting look at the minds of teenagers.
'High School Musical'
Not everything has to be taken so seriously, and while this movie is marketed more to kids or preteens, it's the perfect balance of catchy and cheesy — which is sometimes exactly what we need. Sing and dance along to these random dance numbers and root for the new girl in the school.
'Akeelah and the Bee'
Sometimes, we want a movie to inspire us, one we can watch with an air of seriousness, instead of laughing or nodding in agreement. Akeelah and the Bee highlights the inspirational side these movies can give us and rooted in an real-life event, coming away from watching this movie before back-to-school time will put us in the right frame of mind to take on the year.
'Mean Girls'
A classic movie about back to school, and one for good reason. This movie is so good, the lines are ones we find ourselves saying over and over in real life, which is totally fetch. There is more to this movie than just humorous lines, though, it's a smart look at what typical high school is like, and where these experiences can be better.
'Fame'
When we think about school, it's easy to go to the typical high school experience, but they're not all like that. Some kids go to specialized schools, and that's what the movie Fame centers on: a dance school and all the extra pressures that come along with trying to pursue passion as well.
'Fast Times at Ridgemont High'
It would be a bad thing to have a back-to-school movie roundup and not include Fast Times at Ridgemont High, because its such a classic in pop culture. The movie touches on teenage sexuality in a comedic way while still keeping the sentiments realistic.
