I think Austin Powers pokes outside its demographic. American Pie a little, but not so much. I have absolutely no Ring-related perspective, but at the very least, everyone and their mother must have heard of it now. Hell, my father has, and Trek was a recent discovery for him.

Lessee. Thinking of teen movies -- I do wonder which ones affected people not actually teen at the time. Or sufficiently shaped the teens of the time to percolate into their adulthood (which makes most 90s movies too recent for me to really consider). I'm gonna have to go with Ferris Bueller's Day Off (which I hated) and Risky Business. I know I'm leaving out some obvious movies, but ... I haven't seen them. And I never felt the same sort of gap that not having seen, say, The Godfather had given me.

Oh. Grease. Can't forget that.

And I never felt the same sort of gap that not having seen, say, The Godfather had given me.

Oh thank God there's someone else.

Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles are major touchstones.

Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles are major touchstones.

Those, and Pretty In Pink were the very ones I was thinking of. Their effect must be more subtle than, say, Star Wars or even Gilligan's Island (P-C, I did eventually see Godfather, so you're flying solo) because I don't feel a blankness resulting (in fact or theory) from not having seen them.

I had them in my head in places more like Princess Bride, where the people that know, REALLY know, and really love, but isn't quite the badge of acceptance to general pop culture and beyond.

I still haven't seen any of the Godfather movies, but I still get what the references are. I don't care that I haven't actually seen the scene or whatever.

And I have no idea about the broader cultural relevance of the Molly RIngwald oevre, just because most of my friends have seen them as many times as I have.

Is Dirty Dancing a teen movie? I would say it is definitely a touchstone, and it has the teen movie plot of geeky girl gets sexy gets guy, plus dancing.

I don't care that I haven't actually seen the scene or whatever.

That's how I feel about Gilligan's Island. I know when something's a reference -- I filled all that in because my friends were very boring that way. So I can act like I've seen it.

I can't act like I've seen the aforementioned teen movies, because aside from putting lipstick on with cleavage (am I remembering that right?) which I can't actually do -- never felt the touchstonal loss of them.

In fact, I didn't watch teen movies in the 80s, really. I wasn't in the US, it wasn't so much of a big deal. It wasn't until I got to college in Canada when I realised everyone else had. I fell in love with John Cusack, saw most of his, and felt sufficiently up to date. Would that Dobler were a touchstone.

I would say it is definitely a touchstone, and it has the teen movie plot of geeky girl gets sexy gets guy, plus dancing.

Ooh. Yeah, I might be down with that.

Ooh. Yeah, I might be down with that.

Plus? Most quotable line ever: "Nobody puts Baby in the corner."

I haven't seen The Godfather or The Godfather Part II or Schindler's List or Lawrence of Arabia or Brazil.

I am aware that this makes me evil. I plan to rectify. They just all seem so long and serious and I am often in the mood for short and and giggleful.