North Texas Daily

It’s cliche, but the years that you spend in college are some of the best and worst years of a young person’s life. We know all about the teen dramas chronicling the lives of high school student, and the career dramas following doctors and lawyers, but there’s not much focusing on those who are supposed to be the leaders of tomorrow. Here are 8 movies with funny, inspiring, and sometimes accurate depictions of college.

Legally Blonde

Set at Harvard, Reese Witherspoon is Elle Woods, a fashion merchandising student who enrolls in law school in an attempt to win back her ex-boyfriend. She initially struggles to adapt to her new surroundings, including a foil played by Selma Blair, but learns that she can actually be a lawyer, even if it wasn’t her original intention. The comedy was a breakout role for Witherspoon and was easily a precedent for another hilarious sorority comedy, “The House Bunny.”

Scream 2

College is as terrifying as being chased by a masked serial killer with a knife and as suspenseful as trying to figure out who it is. In the sequel to the original “Scream,” Sidney starts college away from home hoping to get the past behind her. Unfortunately, people from her past won’t let her forget. It’s like you are Sidney and Ghostface is everything you’re trying to forget back home. He could maybe be that person you ghosted on Tinder a few weeks ago, too.

The Social Network

Jesse Eisenberg does a fantastic job in encapsulating the awkward and confused college kid that was in all of us at one point. The award-winning film tells the story of Mark Zuckerberg, one of the youngest entrepreneurs in the 21st century, as he launches Facebook, and follows him well after he dropped out of Harvard. It allows viewers to peek into the life of Zuckerberg, and helps answer the question on the minds of many, how was Facebook created?

Good Will Hunting

Matt Damon plays Will Hunting, a troubled genius who works at MIT as a janitor. With the help of Robin Williams’ Dr. Sean Maguire, Hunting reevaluates his surroundings and relationships to change his life for the better. College kids are often faced with circumstances that are out of their control, and it’s demonstrated well in this film. It’s a good movie to remind young adults to keep pushing through and cling on to the things that make you happy.

Neighbors

Starring Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne as two parents trying their best to keep the antics of Zac Efron and his fraternity to a minimum. Hilarity ensues as neither the parents or the frat boys refuse to back down from a fight. Toward the end of the film, Efron’s character struggles with the fact that college will be over as he is unsure of what he plans on doing after. That’s an anxiety anyone who’s graduated has dealt with.

Happy Death Day

This slasher is as funny as it is accurate to the college experience! Waking up in a random dorm, ignoring the people handing out pamphlets on campus and being annoyed by your roommate. After realizing all these things are getting her killed, the main character changes her attitude, and eventually figures out who’s hunting her down. It does take her a couple tries.

Everybody Wants Some

Richard Linklater’s film captures the amazement and anxiety faced when being in college for the first time. You don’t know how it’s going to turn out, but it’s gonna be a ride. A spiritual successor of “Dazed and Confused,” the films sees a college freshman meet his basketball team, a wild group of party-goers whose favorite hobby is to go around skirt chasing. It’s a nostalgic look at life in 1980’s Texas.

Rudy

This movie had us rooting for the main character non-stop, all the way into the final scene. It’s about a man who walks on at Notre Dame and beats all odds to earn his spot on the team. It’s an inspirational story to remind everyone that anything is possible. It’s lessons remain timeless through the decades and it depicts an educational environmental as cut-throat yet rewarding.

Featured Image: Courtesy of IMDB