What makes a classic?

Sarah digs into the 90s teen genre to find the difference between an iconic movie and a forgotten one…

The 90s revival cant be ignored any longer.

No matter how old that makes us feel.

If theres one film genre that screams 90s, its the teen movie.

Well, some of them, anyway.

What makes the difference between an eternal classic and an unloved flop?

Sometimes, its an obvious question of quality.

Lets start with the most obvious one of them all.

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Okay, sure, everyone remembersBuffy The Vampire Slayerthe TV show.

And most of them are probably dimly aware that there was a movie first.

But in terms of actually remembering anything about it or having seen it in the first place?

Even mostBuffyfans probably dont.

The thing is,Buffy The Vampire Slayerthe movie isnt actually terrible.

Even the snarky female best friend and annoying posse of nerds are present and correct.

It ends in tears and sexual assault.

Whats your favourite scary movie?

In the late 90s, it might well have beenScream.

Or, you know, several hundred more scares.

Known asThe Curvein the US, this was Matthew Lillards next movie afterScream.

As aScream-obsessed teenager, I tried for ages to track it down with no luck.

It basically disappeared for a while.

But its kind of great.

He just wasnt quite the leading man the filmmakers were hoping.

Robert Rodriguezs teenage take onInvasion Of The Body Snatchersis underrated.

Youll have seen it, but its better than you remember.

Every time its on TV I get sucked in and realise how brilliant it is.

Youve probably seen this, you probably remember it, but its worth another look anyway.

Disturbing Behaviour, on the other hand, probably isnt.

It flopped hard on its first release, and no-ones queuing up to rediscover it.

And snogging Selma Blair.

Its hard to deny that was part of the films appeal, for much of the audience.

As a film, its actually not all that great, but it definitely made an impact.

Which is probably for the best, to be honest.

But none of them have got the chops to elevate material this dopey.

ending is irritating all the more so because they bloody did, too.

It just came too late.

Or at least start wearing more eyeliner.

LikeMean Girls, but with spell books instead of Burn Books.

And then having to chop off your hand, because it was harbouring an evil spirit.

Its a weird concept thats sold surprisingly well by lead Devon Sawa.

And the comedy sidekicks, played by Elden Henson and Seth Green are pretty great too.

Im not sure why this one isnt better known its even got Jessica Alba in it.

Everyone knows this one.

What you might not remember, though, is that this movie is terrible.

No, really, its terrible.

Matthew Lillards handful of scenes are quite fun, but the rest of this is crap.

Inevitably they fall for one another, despite having nothing in common.

The final twist about their parents just adds to the awkwardness.

Its… you know what, its not as obnoxious asShes All That.

But its not great, either.

(Another third isShes All That.)

By the time the triumphant ending rolls around, youll have lost interest completely.

Eliza Dushku plays a bad girl.

Kirsten Dunst plays an uptight girl.

It spawned four sequels and a stage musical, and ruined the phrase bring it on forever.

So yeah, you probably saw this one.

Hey look, its Kirsten Dunst again!

Its a dark comedy that doesnt entirely work, but its got some fun moments.

You might find this one on TV late at night sometimes.

Tell me your favourites.

Which ones do you still reference today?

Bonus points if none of the people youve quoted it at has ever seen the film.