10 Amazing Teen Movies You Might Have Missed

SubUrbia sits relatively early in the canon of Richard Linklater. He had already made Dazed and Confused as well as Before Sunrise but hadn’t quite hit later fame.

SubUrbia seems overshadowed by his other films, and almost left in limbo, this is fitting in a sense as it’s a feeling portrayed distinctly through the film, particularly by Giovanni Ribisi’s character. The film is set over one night and concerns a group of late teens whose primary function is to hang around a strip mall, drink, listen to music and otherwise cause chaos. On this night they are waiting for the appearance of an old neighbourhood friend who has made it big with his band.

As with all Linklater movies, the beauty is in the handling of the dialogue and character exchanges. The script was originally written as a play and this shows: it’s very dialogue heavy but draws you in completely.

Ribisi stands as the most thoughtful character. He has strong opinions on the world around him and more than once seems to have a significant epiphany on where his life should be going but as the film progresses you are left with the feeling it’s his character that will be trapped in this cycle of waiting for life.

It’s a very watchable and underrated movie and has some terrific soundtrack moments from Sonic Youth and Ministry.