TY Film Studies: The Comparative Studies
Compare & Contrast Teen Movies from Different Decades.
What is “Coming of Age” Genre?
A coming-of-age story is a genre of literature and film that focuses on the growth of a
protagonist from youth to adulthood ("coming of age"). Coming-of-age stories tend to
emphasise dialogue or internal monologue over action, and are often set in the past. The genre
is also known as Bildungsroman (German).Texts/visual texts also focus on the psychological
and moral growth of the protagonist in which character change is extremely important.
Our Two Visual Texts:
‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower’ (2012)
Set in the 1990s. Rating 13A (102 mins)
Also a novel (1999).
‘Love Simon’ (2018)
Set in 2018. Rating 12A (1 hr. 50 mins)
Also a novel (2015)
Essay Task: “The Culture of Teen Movies”. Your task to compare & contrast the selected
teen movies and evaluate the relevance of this genre in popular culture. You are required to
consider one/some of the following throughout your essay.
• Are the issues contained in these films
relevant/educational to teens today?
• Has the genre of coming of age films changed if/at
all in the past ten years?
• Is either of the films bolder in tackling societal
issues facing teens and modern society?
Essay Format:
Introduction
Para 1: Topic number 1: compare the two films in same paragraph.
Para 2: Topic number 2.
If you need help, you may
Para 3: Topic number 3.
Para 4: Topic number 4
complete this essay in
Conclusion
pairs/trios/groups of 4 and utilise
your group work and teamwork
skills. Divide up the workload as
well as drafting and editing skills.
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