Childhood is the most important developmental time in one's life. It's a time to explore and learn, to have fun, and not worry too much about the future. important when growing up. There have been numerous movies and TV shows that have shown this special bond between childhood friends, and it's a bond that can last a lifetime.
Especially when people get older, it's so nice to watch movies and feel nostalgic about the past, to the good times and the bad. Through struggle and hardship, adventure and joy, these movies show the bond between good childhood friends, and it's hard not to feel sentimental about them.
The Goonies
This is a classic adventure movie full of treasure hunting, mystery, lost pirate ships, and exciting chases. But amongst all the fun and excitement, there's a strong feeling of love and comradery between the boys that are valiantly trying to save their homes and friendships in their small Oregon town.
Threatened with foreclosure on their homes, a rag-tag group of kids attempts to find a long-lost treasure so they don't have to move away. But they also have to deal with an evil crime family, nervous group , and mean older brothers.
Stand By Me
Stand By Me is a story of love and loss, friendship and strength, and the brutal reality of childhood trauma. After a group of friends hears of a missing boy's body near their home, they go out on an adventure to find it and become town heroes.
It's not just an outward adventure into the wilderness, but an inward introspection and connection between young friends, who each struggle with something deep in their lives, whether it be their problems at home and with their parents, troubles in school, or coming face-to-face with death itself.
Super 8
Written and Super 8 follows a group of teenagers out shooting a fun zombie movie on their Super 8 film camera, when they witness a train crash and the inadvertent release of a gruesome monster into their town.
Throughout the rest of the movie, the kids have to try and find out the truth about this monster, and also deal with their own personal problems at home. Things get even tougher when the kids have to rescue their own friend, who has been abducted by the monster.
The Sandlot
As the new kid in town, Scotty Smalls struggles to make friends in his new neighborhood. But after finding an old sandlot by his house, he tries to get in with a group of kids who play there and love baseball religiously. While Smalls isn't so great at the game, the other boys take him under their wing and show him how to play, and also get into some trouble.
This one summer in 1962 becomes an important moment in Scotty's life, when he and his new friends face off against rival baseball team bullies, come to with life at home, and battle a great Beast on the outskirts of their sandlot.
Bad News Bears (1977)
When Morris Buttermaker becomes the coach of a little league team, he finds out quickly that he's in way over his head. The kids were once banned from playing, due to exclusionary rules set out by the league. But after a lawsuit, The Bears were formed.
The team is full of troublemakers and brats, but even the deadbeat Buttermaker realizes that every kid deserves the chance to have fun and play baseball. The kids learn to come together as a team, come to with their own situations, and even become friends in the process.
The Outsiders
Based on the book by S.E. Hinton, The Outsiders shows the continuing rivalry between the Socials and the Greasers, two gangs full of young men on different sides of the socio-economic barrier. Greasers like Ponyboy and Johnny are continually at odds against the richer, preppy Socials, which leads to numerous violent encounters, and one ending in the death of a Social.
Ponyboy and Johnny then have to go on the run and come to with an accidental murder, and figure out what to do next. Directed by the great Francis Ford Coppola, The Outsiders is a classic coming of age drama about the consequences of one's actions.
Explorers
Sci-Fi lover Ben Crandall has been having strange dreams where he is flying amongst the clouds, with an intricate circuit board right underneath him. After drawing the circuit board when he awakes, he shows it to his friend Wolfgang, a young scientific prodigy.
With his help, the boys are able to build an actual spaceship and launch it into the sky. They're able to rendevous with aliens, who are quite friendly and surprisingly fond of old Earth television programs. After a space battle with other hostile aliens, the boys must be sent back to Earth, but not without a nice parting gift from their new friends.
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial
In E.T., a young Elliot finds a strange alien hiding out in his back shed. Befriending the alien, Elliot teaches it about life on Earth, while the alien, E.T., shows Elliot his wide array of supernatural abilities, like telepathy, telekinesis, and even healing powers.
Elliot decides to keep him hidden from his mother, while their connection grows stronger. What transpires is a movie about friendship, family, and the longing for home. Elliot must get E.T. back to his ship before it's too late, with government authorities close on their tail.
Heavyweights
This fun and quirky comedy, written by a young Judd Apatow, centers around Camp Hope, a weight-loss camp for overweight boys. After Gerry Garner is sent there over the summer, he befriends some of the other boys and has hope that it won't be as bad as he thinks.
But after he arrives, the camp is bought up by Tony Perkis, a tough, mean fitness trainer that is intent on pushing the boys way past their limits. Fed up with Tony's consistent cruelty, the boys fight back to take back control of the camp.
The Little Rascals
The Little Rascals is a goofy family comedy about young boys, first loves, and a healthy dose of competition. Several young boys are part of the neighborhood "He-Man Woman Haters Club," where there are no girls allowed, to the dismay of Alfalfa, who has his heart set on a young girl Darla.
But with an important soap-box derby race in the near future, Alfalfa has to deal with the goofy antics of his friends, their struggle to rebuild their burnt-down clubhouse, and of course the race that they must win for the all-important prize money.
