Theme: Coming of Age Stories

The Coming of Age story is one of the staples of cinema. It takes place on the cusp between childhood and adulthood and centres around the defining events that leads to the protagonist(s) growing up.

Coming of Age stories are usually quasi-biographical realistic and not fantastic. There are however a number of occasions where Coming of Age story has been blended with the fantastic as in films like E.T. – The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) or in horror like the various films versions of Stephen King’s It (1986), along with a good many others that wind in encounters with the alien, magical creatures, ghosts and other elements.

For more detail and an overview of the genre see the Theme Essay Coming of Age Stories