The Dude’s High 5s: Top 5 Movies Every Prospective College Student Needs to See
June is upon us my friends. And that can mean only two things, beach days and high school graduations. This high five will be dealing with the latter. As a new high school grad, there are some notions of college life that have to be explained. Where better to look than the silver screen? These are the top 5 movies every prospective college student should see, and subsequently emulate (not really) if they want to fully embrace the collegiate experience.
5. Back to School (1986)
Back to School on its surface may seem a little hokey. A super rich man (Rodney Dangerfield) decides that he’s going to attend college with his quirky, not-so popular son. By the end of the movie we learn life lessons like don’t lie to save face, accept yourself, and don’t mess with Burt Young.
4. Rules of Attraction
The rest of the movies on this list are comedies, this one not so much. Derived from the Brett Easton Ellis (American Psycho) novel of the same name, this film shows the seedier side of college. It has a wide array of druggies, thugs, whores, and degenerates. There is a complicated love hexagon between the main characters and deals very well when displaying the mixed up emotions of young adults on their own. As a side note, this is also one of the best shot, from a cinematography stand point, movies that I’ve ever seen.
3. Old School
I don’t quite know what makes Old School enjoyable. I don’t think I’ve even seen it in one sitting. I think I like it because it shows that life after 30 (yuk!) doesn’t have to be so bad, and if you’re in a bad situation, you can change it.
2. PCU
On its surface PCU is just another Animal House clone. This isn’t really a problem for me as I also love that movie too (Guess what movie is number 1). PCU does make fun of some of the people that I too enjoy taking a stab at. The cause heads. These are the people that move from cause to cause without knowing what it is they are whining about. It also takes a look at the tribes that can form in a college environment and how those social interactions can impact our lifestyles. Plus it has a riled up Jeremy Piven acting like a pimp.
1. Animal House
This is still the most important film about college. Despite that it was made in the 70’s and takes place in the 60’s, it still is the measuring stick on which most young adult comedies, not just college themed ones, are based. Is there a more motivating person than Bluto?
So what movies prepared you college grads out there for life amongst the depraved? Or for you high schoolers out there, what movies have formed your perception of how college life will be?