There are all kinds of movies you could watch with your teen. From the latest chick flicks with your teenage daughter to the latest action blockbuster with your son (or the other way around if that is what they prefer), you can have special bonding moments with your child on movie night.
However, there are some movies that could be considered essential. These are the films that contain life-changing messages for your teen. And so, in this article, we are going to highlight just two of them.
#1: Beautiful Boy
Beautiful Boy stars Timothee Chalamet as a young man with seemingly high potential. He has good grades, has a promising career ahead of him, and has a loving family around him. The perfect life, right? Sadly, no. Chalamet’s character develops a meth addiction, and we watch as he goes in and out of addiction treatment programs and takes turns that threaten to destroy his life. We also see the heartbreak present in his family, and the heart-wrenching toll the teen’s meth addiction has on them. It’s a real gut-punch of a movie.
Why should you watch it with your teen? As you will probably understand, drug addiction among teens is a real thing, even for those who have seemingly have good lives. By watching the film with your teen, you will be able to use the lessons learned in the story to talk about the dangers of drugs with your child. They will also understand the repercussions of drug-taking on family life, and how everybody can be affected. It’s a heavy movie, but an important and excellent one, and it could have a profound effect on your teen.
#2: Eighth Grade
In Eighth Grade, Kayla, an introverted teenager, tries to survive her final week in Middle School before High School begins. She tries to do what she has struggled to do before, and that is to assert herself by making friends with others before life gets even harder for her in her new school. It isn’t easy for her. We watch as she struggles with social situations, and we see how hard it is for her to fit in with people who aren’t like her at all. It can be a painfully awkward watch at times. Thankfully, there is a happy ending of sorts, when Kayla finally succeeds in making friends, even if they aren’t the cool kids that she aspired to hang out with,
Why should you watch it with your teen? For two reasons. Firstly, if your teen struggles in the way the main character does in the film, you will have the opportunity to talk about social issues with them. You might be able to offer advice, and give your teen the tools they need to communicate better with others. You can also remind them that not everybody will like them, but that’s okay.
There will be people in their school that will respond to them, so you can encourage your teen to find their own tribe. And secondly, you can encourage your teen to look out for girls like Kayla, and suggest that they do what they can to help and befriend similar outcasts at school. Two excellent reasons to watch this film then, and thankfully, there is also a lot here to make you both smile and find enjoyment too, despite the awkwardness within.
These are just a couple of the films that could be considered essential when planning a movie night, but if you have any other suggestions, even if they are just frivolous and fun, please let me know!
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