Stepping into the 20s is not as easy as it sounds. You will go through that awkward phase where you realise that you are no longer a teenager but not yet an adult. Armed with more responsibilities in life, there’s no denying that there are some major life changes in your twenties, so much so that you’ll eventually realise that your twenties are simply going to be the best time of your life too.
Sure, you may become a little lost in the process but soon you’ll start to become curious about everything that’s happening in the society. There are other personal things you might be worried about in your life too but that’s okay. Because we’ve gone through that phase and so, we’ve put together a list of movies that you might want to watch during this awkward phase of life:
1. The Grand Budapest Hotel (or any Wes Anderson’s films)
You see, Wes Anderson always has a way to get us hooked on his films with its whimsical storylines. We were first introduced to him through a clever film of young love “Moonrise Kingdom” after we heard rave reviews on Wes Anderson’s films and his quirky commercials. Most recently, “The Grand Budapest Hotel” became one of our favourite films to watch in 2014.
The film is a way to escape from reality as we step into Wes Anderson’s fantastical world that is armed with a deadpan humour style. Set in a fictitious East European, Alpine country, the story follows the adventures of Gustave H, a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the first and second World Wars. When Madame D, a very rich old woman dies unexpectedly in the hotel, he is accused of murdering her as the woman left him a very precious painting. Instead of focusing on the death and despair of the wars, the film centres on Gustave’s friendship with Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy as Moustafa vows to get justice for his friend.
2. Life After Beth
Tired of the typical romantic comedy films? Well, “Life After Beth” could be your thing because Dane Dehaan has emphasised that this film is a “zom-com-rom-dram“. Yes, it’s a zombie romantic comedy drama and no, it’s not going to bore you at all!
Starring Dane Dehaan and Aubrey Plaza, “Life After Beth” is about Zach, a boy who becomes devastated and depressed after his girlfriend, Beth dies unexpectedly. But life decides to give him a second chance and he discovers Beth is resurrected! However, perhaps the dead should remain dead because Zach soon realises that Beth is not the same girl he used to know. Thus, this causes him to make a decision before Beth and the rest of the zombies become more violent than ever.
It’s an interesting film to watch as the film is filled with witty and funny dialogues. It steers clear of the cliches that appears in the typical zombie films and it doesn’t provide you reasons as to why the deads were resurrected. But perhaps that’s the point of the film because it focuses on the different reactions the people had towards the zombies instead of the horror side of the zombies.
3. What If
Well, this is awkward. So, a medical school dropout named Wallace strikes up a close friendship with Chantry, an animator who lives with her longtime boyfriend Ben. While they try to maintain their distance between each other, their chemistry between them grows stronger, leading them to wonder what it means if your best friend is possibly the love of your life too?
Starring Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan, the concept is pretty entertaining as it attempts to tackle the relationship problem that could be happening in real life. While the plot is unoriginal, endless possibilities have been provided for the relationship between the male lead and the female lead. YouTube star Anna Akana helped promote the film through a short film by featuring Daniel Radcliffe too
4. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
It’s never too old to read comic books, and it is certainly never too old to watch some of the craziest and most intense comic book scenes being brought to real life through “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”. Besides, the typical superhero film based on the comic book series can get a tad boring even though we enjoy watching them.
Based on a graphic novel, the film is about Scott Pilgrim, a college kid who plays in band which inspires to succeed. While still dating Knives Chau, a high schooler 5 years younger than him, he falls in love with Ramona Flowers, the girl of his dreams – literally. But here’s the problem, he has to break up with Knives Chau while trying to fight off 7 of Ramona’s evil ex-lovers! With their own power and skills, all of the fights are done in the hilarious video game style!
Sounds cool, huh? However, watching the film will make you realise that we are just like Scott as the film forces Scott to stay out of comfort zone in order to experience life and achieve the goal you’ve always dreamed of.
5. Reality Bites
“Reality Bites” is perhaps the most accurate film that represents the feelings we all had after college graduation. It has this emotional impact that hits us hard as the film focuses on the fresh grads’ feeling of being lost, which is often difficult to deal with because what they dreamed to have in life is just not the same reality.
It defines the world of how knowledge isn’t everything and sometimes our passion will lead you somewhere else instead. As shown in the film, Lelaina (played by Winona Ryder) wants to make it big as a documentary filmmaker in the entertainment world but found herself working with a rather unsatisfying job as an intern for a cheesy morning talk show. Just as the title would suggest, the film taught the viewers that dreams doesn’t pay the bills because mutual respect and credibility are things which must be earned before being on top of the career ladder.
6. 50/50
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMaJET7mD0M
There’s a reason why we put this film into the list. It’s because the film is inspired by Will Reese the screenwriter and his own experience with cancer and it’s a story that deserves to be told. Directed by Jonathan Levine, the film casts Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Adam, a radio journalist who fights his cancer with the support from his best friend, Kyle (played by Seth Rogen).
Through “50/50”, you’ll begin to realise that there’s nothing more important than having friendship, love, and positive energy in your life. Cancer can be scary but the film tackles the topic of cancer in a positive way, in the sense that there’s nothing to worry about as long as you keep an open mind. Unlike “The Fault in Our Stars”, the film as well as the dialogues aren’t too sentimental as the emotions just felt so real. The jokes are so spot on that we think it might be a real-life conversation between cancer patients and their friends.
7. Kill Your Darlings
While the gay sex scenes might attract those who are curious about the film, “Kill Your Darlings” tells the story of the great poets of the Beat Generation: Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and William Burroughs. The great poets are played by Daniel Radcliffe, Dane Dehaan, and Ben Foster respectively. For some, it may remind them of the “Dead Poets Society” but these poets are real people who find their unique means of expression in the midst of World War II.
However, the film is strongly based on Allen Ginsberg’s side of the story, which Lucien’s son argued that the story of the film is inaccurate and has been revised to serve Allen’s age and agenda. The story did stray away from the truth and the direction is unclear but perhaps that is intentional as a result of Allen’s agenda. On top of that, it felt like the film focuses more on Allen’s alleged intimate interaction with Lucien, resulting in a love-story kind of film.
8. Only Lovers Left Alive
Having lived in the human world for so long, vampires can get depressed and tired of the world too. “Only Lovers Left Alive” centres on the story of the centuries-old vampire, Adam (played by Tom Hiddleston) who is reunited with his lover, Eve (played by Tilda Swinton) after becoming depressed and tired of the human world with declined civilisation and blood contaminated by the zombies. In fact, the arrival of Eve’s carefree little sister, Ava, threatens their love and their survival in the world.
Both Adam and Eve have embraced their passion for music and literature, which helps to create a more elegant and artistic vampire film. The film is a little slow with moody scenes but it highlights their eternal love which is almost timeless. Directed by Jim Jarmusch, the film might draw you in with its concept on the society’s civilisation as well as the idea of escapism while displaying true romance in the modern world. One of the things we liked about the film was the excellent soundtrack that helps create the mood of the film.
So, what are some of the films that you would recommend to those who are in their twenties?
Let us know in the comments box below!
