Top 10 High School Comedies from the 80s

Pretty in Pink is a movie that I have found people either really like or they hate! I have always enjoyed this 1986 classic and think that it is one of Molly Ringwald’s most memorable roles of the 80s. This is the story of Andie who is a regular high school student who along with her friend Duckie are often bullied by the rich kids at school.

Well, Andie ends up falling for one of the rich kids, a dude called Blaine. As a kid I never understood why Andie liked Blaine, he always came across as a jerk and, to be honest, Duckie was not much better! Anyway, this is a movie about trying to fit in and it manages to capture the more awkward side of being a teenager really well. It perhaps does lean more towards drama than comedy, but I felt it was the perfect movie to start this list with.

Tom Cruise is one of the biggest movie stars of all time, but you could make the argument that it was 1983’s Risky Business that truly launched his career. This is one of the more risqué movies on my top 10 high school movies of the 80s list.

Cruise plays the role of a rich kid called Joel. Joel is left home alone for a little while and embraces the freedom, he embraces it a little bit too much as he ends up on the wrong end of a pimp’s wrath and with a huge repair bill for his dad’s car. The only responsible thing for Joel to do is to turn his parent’s house into a brothel to make some quick cash to fix his problems. Risky Business is best known for the iconic “Old Time Rock and Roll” scene, but there are so many other funny moments here.

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This 1984 high school comedy drama would be the first of the John Hughes classics from the 80s. It has a great 80s cast with the likes of Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall, not to mention Michael Schoeffling as the ultimate 80s dreamboat, Jake Ryan.

Samantha’s (Ringwald) sweet 16 does not exactly go the way that she always dreamed! She has a crush on the hottest guy in school, but the geekiest guy in school has the hots for her. This is a fun coming-of-age style story that well and truly embraces the cringy side of what it is like to be a teenager. This is a movie that I have come to appreciate more as I have gotten older. Plus, the fact this was the first of a string of 80s classics from John Hughes does make it a very important movie.

I am sure that some may be surprised that License To Drive is first of all on my list, but also above some of the others. I love this movie and I felt that we could not have a list of the top 10 high school comedies from the 80s and not have the Two Corey’s on it.

Starring Cory Haim and Cory Feldman. License To Drive is the story of teenager Les who fails his driving test, lies about it, but decides to drive anyway in order to impress a girl. As you would expect, this does not go well for him at all! This is an absolute 80s classic in my humble opinion and I feel that it is one of the more forgotten high school comedies of the 80s.

Released in 1981, Porky’s is by a mile the most risqué movie on this list. I remember seeing Porky’s when I was way too young and it sure as heck left an impression.

Set in the 50s, Porky’s is the story of a group of high school students who plan to go to the iconic Porky’s strip club bar to try and lose their virginity! Things do not exactly go as planned and they end up on the hit list of the crazy and no-nonsense Porky. There are many fun subplots and characters in this movie and it is always a blast to watch. This is a super fun gross-out teen comedy and there is no way that we would have gotten stuff like American Pie in the 90s or Superbad in the 2000s without Porky’s. One of the craziest things about this film is that it got a video game adaptation on the Atari 2600!

We had to have Michael J. Fox on this Top 10 high school comedies from the 80s list, didn’t we? Back to the Future did not have quite enough high school hijinks to qualify, but 1985’s Teen Wolf certainly does. Michael J. Fox plays the role of a high school basketball star called Scott Howard. Scott in many ways is your very typical high school student. He likes to have fun, he likes sports and he hates that he feels like he is just “average”.

Well, there is nothing average about Scott as it turns out he is a werewolf and this is something that runs in his family. Rather than hide it, Scott embraces his furry side and becomes the king of the high school! For as great as it is to be noticed, Scott does come to realize that being a big shot and having everyone love you comes with a price! This is awesome stuff and to be honest, while nowhere near as good, the sequel is not bad either!

Can you even say the title Weird Science and not think of the awesome Oingo Boingo theme song? This 1985 sci-fi high school comedy is just so much fun! We have two high school nerds/losers Wyatt and Gary who dream about scoring with chicks, but they are bullied and just made fun of in the most typical 80s fashion possible!

They decide to try and create their own dream woman with Wyatt’s computer so that they can practice being smooth with the ladies. Well, as you know, Lisa comes to life and completely turns things for these two boys upside down. Look, the eye candy that is Kelly LeBrock does not hurt one bit, but Weird Science is a really fun movie that has an awesome cast and despite all of the laughs and crazy stuff, Weird Science also has a message of being yourself which is cool. I tell you, John Hughes could do no wrong in the 80s!

It should be illegal to have a list of the top 10 high school comedies from the 80s and not have The Breakfast Club on it. Released in 1985 and brought to us by John Hughes, The Breakfast Club is the story of a group of high school students who have to come in on a Saturday for detention.

We have an amazing cast here with the 80s Brat Pack in full swing and what makes The Breakfast Club such a great movie is that the characters are very unique. Normally, these kids would probably never give each other the time of day, but here, they bond and get to know each other better. There are some funny moments in The Breakfast Club, but this is a movie that also has a ton of heart too. Plus, The Breakfast Club has an absolutely epic 80s soundtrack!

Released in 1986, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is another John Hughes classic and in contention for the best John Hughes movie ever! This is the story of a high school student called Ferris Bueller who decides to take a day off school and go on an adventure with his girlfriend and best buddy.

All the while these three are having the time of their life, they are being stalked by the hilarious Ed Rooney from Ferris’s school. Ed is played by an 80s icon in Jeffrey Jones! This is a movie that has a ton of charm and so many iconic scenes, plus Matthew Broderick is at his most charming here in the lead role, especially when he breaks the fourth wall and talks to the audience regularly, which was something that made Ferris Bueller’s Day Off unique over the other teen comedies of the decade.

Ok, so 1988’s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure may seem like a bit of a cheat to be the number one pick on my top 10 high school comedies from the 80s, but hear me out. First of all, this is an all time classic and the plot is actually about two high school students that have to pass their history report!

Seeing these two “dudes” travel through time to bring back various historical figures to help with their report is as much fun today as it was back in the 80s. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter have great chemistry and you legit want to see these two dudes succeed. This is such a fun movie and as soon as I started putting this list together, I knew that this was going to be my number one! This mixes high school comedy with a bit of sci-fi and it is a great mix indeed!