High School Dance Movies

That Still Move Us!

The sun sets a little earlier, and the nights get a little chillier. It’s fall in Texas, which means it’s time for Friday night lights and Homecoming – carnivals, mums, spirit days, and of course, the dance.

Here’s a specially curated list of high school dance movies that will (mostly) leave you feeling nostalgic for the good ole days… or in some cases, glad you didn’t go to “that” school.

Back to the Future

1985

Is there a better high school dance scene than Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) playing the guitar at his parents first dance after traveling back in time? Will he be able to get his parents together and make it Back to the Future?

Grease

1978

Good girl Sandy Olsson (Olivia Newton John) and greaser Danny Zuko (John Travolta) fell in love over the summer. When they unexpectedly discover they’re now in the same high school, will they be able to rekindle their romance despite being in different cliques?

Perks of Being a Wallflower

2012

Shy freshman Charlie (Logan Lerman) is enticed onto the dance floor by two outgoing senior students at the homecoming dance, who teach him about first love and friendship. However, as his friends prepare for college, Charlie must confront his troubled past.

Spider Man Homecoming

2017

Thrilled by his experience with the Avengers, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) returns home to live with his Aunt May and embrace his newfound normal daily routine juggling school, academic decathlon, getting a date for homecoming, and being the friendly neighborhood Spider Man when the evil Vulture emerges to threaten everything that he holds dear.

Lady Bird

2017

Golden Globe Best Picture winner, Lady Bird was written and directed by Greta Gerwig. Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Saoirse Ronan) navigates through her senior year of Catholic high school in Sacramento in 2002, including dealing with her strong-willed and opinionated mother (who she’s just like), relationships, prom, getting a job, and applying for her dream schools on the East coast.

Sky High

2005

At a school in the sky where teens learn how to use their powers to be heroes or sidekicks, freshman Will Stronghold (Michael Angarano) lands in the heroes class where senior Gwen (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) cozies up to him. When he learns her mother was a villain, he rushes to a school dance to stop her.

Footloose

1984

The quintessential high school dance movie stars Kevin Bacon as a Chicago teen Ren, who moves to a small Midwestern town that has made dancing and rock music illegal. He struggles to fit in and change things, and his new friend’s influential father, Reverend Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), stands in the way.

10 Things | Hate About You

1999

Kat Stratford (Julia Styles) is beautiful, smart, and abrasive, meaning that she doesn’t attract many boys. Unfortunately for her younger sister, Bianca, house rules say that she can’t date until Kat has a boyfriend, so strings are pulled to set her up. Soon Kat crosses paths with handsome Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger).

Carrie

1976

If you’ve got a taste for terror, take Carrie to the prom. Carrie is the story of a lonely teenage girl who possesses a strange and evil power that turns a high school prom into a nightmare. (Even if you’ve never seen it, you know how.) Based on the Stephen King novel, the 1976 movie version starring Sissy Spacek is the classic.