Have films about ‘growing up’ grown up? Why I’ve made the ‘coming-of-age’ movie my go-to at the EIFF

The classic coming-of-age genre film centers on key, life changing events that mature its main characters. These events often include losing one’s virginity (Superbad, 2007; Juno, 2007), forming new relationships (Perks of Being a Wallflower, 2012; The Breakfast Club, 1985), or finding one’s way after drifting along aimlessly (The Graduate, 1963; American Graffiti, 1973). Characters are usually faced with a decision, the outcome of which will have a significant impact in shaping their lives. Decisions are presented in a way that one option is more difficult but also symbolic of growing up, while the other is the ‘easy way out,’ symbolic of the character’s youthful comfort zone.

As a young person, I love these kinds of movies because I find them relatable. I’m 21 years old and go to a top college, but am unsure what I want to do with my time or talents. I haven’t ‘grown up.’ Though coming-of-age stories can be campy, they help me express my own struggle to ‘find myself,’ and let me know I’m not alone.

While some of the productions I’ve mentioned have been relatively recent, there’s been discussion about how the coming-of-age movie is no longer the norm for films geared toward young people. As one op-ed in the Princeton Buffer points out, other genres like fantasy series (Harry Potter, 2001-11; and Twilight, 2008-12), science fiction (The Amazing Spider-Man, 2012; Man of Steel, 2013), and dystopia (Hunger Games, 2012-15; Divergent, 2014) have “cannibalized” the traditional coming of age film. For these big-budget productions, the coming of age plot serves a strategic purpose; it’s borrowed to convey the intimacy of smaller budget teen films. This device takes a story, such as a teen bitten by a radioactive spider, and makes it relatable. It’s “a markable means to an end.”

Many of these films speak to the struggle of trying to fit in, but they don’t serve the same purpose as the classical coming-of-age formula. For those of us who aren’t superheroes, wizards or friends with vampires, these narratives can be seem wholly un-relatable. With this in mind, I find comfort in the prevalence of traditional coming-of-age genre movies at the 2016 Edinburgh International Film Festival. Several independent films making their UK premieres at the festival follow the classical genre formula.

For example, Moon Dogs (2016) uses the formula of a buddy road movie to show the coming of age of two brothers: Michael (Jack Parry Jones) and his step-brother Thor (Christy O’Donnel). The two are forced under the same roof by their parents’ marriage and barely talk. Michael has grown distant from his mother, and Thor from his father.

When Thor ruins Michaels chances of going to university with his girlfriend, Suzy (Kate Bracken), the two runaway from home and begin a chaotic road trip to Glasgow. Michael hopes to win back Suzy, and Thor hopes to meet his mother (Shauna Macdonald) who walked out on him when he was a baby. On the way, they meet Caitlín (Tara Lee) a runaway singer who has escaped an abusive relationship. When the three arrive in Glasgow, both brothers face painful rejection. Suzy has a new boyfriend and Thor’s mother has a new child. Empowered by their newly formed bond, the two brothers come to terms with the problems of their youth and return home to Shetland the wiser.

The Fundamentals of Caring (2015) uses a similar formula of the road-trip/buddy comedy model the coming of age of one of its main characters, Trevor (Craig Roberts). Trevor has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a rare disorder that requires him to use a motorized wheelchair. He also remains shut inside his house, afraid to leave for home for more than an hour. This changes when Ben, (Paul Rudd) is hired as Trevor’s caretaker. When Trevor’s mother goes away on a business trip, Ben seizes the opportunity to take Trevor on a road trip.

Along the way, the two meet Dot (Selena Gomez), a truck stop heartthrob hitchhiking her way to Denver. Trevor takes a liking to Dot and must overcome his shy, boyish nervousness to ask her to tag along on their road trip. Trevor also works up the courage to ask Ben to drive to Salt Lake, so that he confront his father, who walked out on him when he was diagnosed with his disease. Trevor faces rejection from his father, and eventually has to say goodbye to Dot, his first crush. Coming to terms with these experiences mean that he returns home more confident, and more mature.

It’s easy for film critics to take issue with the familiar coming-of-age genre formula. Perhaps it’s a good thing that filmmakers are starting to use more subtle approaches to explore themes outside of what we normally expect from coming of age movies. Cookie-cutter expectations about the genre won’t work like they did in the 1980s. But as the EIFF demonstrates, filmmakers are beginning to use the formula to tackle subject matter previously considered off-limits. Portrayal  of coming-of-age has expanded to include themes like rejection and abuse (Moondogs) and physical disabilities (The Fundamentals of Caring). This development builds on the characteristics that define the genre, but brings representation closer to real-life experience.

The fact that the coming-of-age formula is familiar doesn’t mean it’s unwanted. For many young people, the coming-of-age genre film offers just what we’re looking for. As long as there are young people, there will be stories to tell–stories about being confused, discovering the passage to adulthood, and living it out. From the perspective of a wayward millennial, every now and then, it’s satisfying to sit back and enjoy a good old-fashioned coming-of-age movie.