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?

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.

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.

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.

The Prom (2020)

Down-on-their-luck Broadway stars (Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, and James Corden) shake up a small Indiana town as they rally behind a teen (Jo Ellen Pellman) who wants to go to the prom with her girlfriend.

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.

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)

This cult classic gained a dedicated following after its premier at Sundance. Napoleon Dynamite (Jon Heder) is a listless and alienated teenager who helps his new friend win the class presidency in their small western high school, while dealing with his bizarre family life back home.

A Cinderella Story (2004)

 California teen Sam (Hilary Duff) toils in her stepmother’s diner. After a cell phone mix-up, Sam begins an anonymous text relationship with a boy. They agree to meet at a school dance, but when Sam finds out that her secret beau is Austin Ames (Chad Michael Murray), the cutest boy in school, she panics and looks for a way to make herself cooler.

10 Things I 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).

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.

She’s All That (1999)

Based on Pygmalian, high school hotshot Zach (Freddie Prinze Jr.) bets his friends he can turn the nerdy outcast Laney Boggs into the next prom queen. He has six weeks to gain her trust and transform her, but what happens when she finds out?  

16 Candles (1984)

It’s Samantha Baker’s 16th birthday, and somehow her family forgot. It’s possible with your sister getting married and the in-laws and a foreign exchange student invading your house. And the guy she’s crushing on doesn’t know she exists. This is THE iconic John Hughes 80s film about teenagers, but don’t watch it with your kids. There are definite cringe-worthy parts that didn’t hold up well to time. 

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.