The 32 Greatest COMING of AGE MOVIES (On my 32nd Birthday)

Inks on Bristol / 2010

"There is a fountain of youth:  it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love.  When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age."  -Sophia Loren

Today marks my 32nd year on Earth- down here on the ground with you guys.  Age is a state of mind; maturity is a state of mind.  We are all born artists with our third eye tuned to the channel of the world's creative circuit.  We make choices throughout our journey which weave the web of our existence.  I choose to create and don't think I'll ever stop helping to lift the curtain and show what's in my mind through color.  Many a mode and method of art expose us to definitions of change.  Movies are a powerful avenue of expressing stories of growth.  There are many aspects and definitions to "coming of age" which are defined in a broad spectrum by this list of films.  Here are 32 movies which have pried my own eyes open in some form or fashion (up to this point at least...)

32.  Garden State (directed by Zach Braff)

31.  Carrie (directed by Brian De Palma)

30.  Dazed and Confused (directed by Richard Linklater)

29.  Happiness (directed by Todd Solondz)

28.  The Truman Show (directed by Peter Weir)

27.  My Girl (directed by Howard Zieff)

26.  Waking Life (directed by Richard Linklater)

25.  Elephant (directed by Gus Van Sant)

24.  Good Will Hunting (directed by Ben Affleck)

23.  The Virgin Suicides (directed by Sofia Coppola)

22.  Almost Famous (directed by Cameron Crowe)

21.  Rushmore (directed by Wes Anderson)

20.  Stand and Deliver (directed by Ramon Menendez)

19.  American Beauty (directed by Sam Mendes)

18.  Tideland (directed by Terry Gilliam)

17.  Basketball Diaries (directed by Scott Kalvert)

16.  Lean on Me (directed by John G. Alvidson)

15.  Wonder Boys (directed by Curtis Hanson)

14.  Juno (directed by Jason Reitman)

13.  The Graduate (directed by Mike Nichols)

12.  Towelhead (directed by Alan Ball)

11.  Heathers (directed by Michael Lehmann)

10.  Big (directed by Penny Marshall)

09.  The Breakfast Club (directed by John Hughes)

08.  Before Night Falls (directed by Julian Schnabel)

07.  The Outsiders (directed by Francis Ford Coppola)

06.  Thumbsucker (directed by Mike Mills)

05.  Stand By Me (directed by Rob Reiner)

04.  Rumble Fish (directed by Francis Ford Coppola)

03. The Big Chill (directed by Lawrence Kasdan)

02.  Donnie Darko (directed by Richard Kelly)

01.  Dead Poets Society (directed by Peter Weir)

"Most people don't grow up, Most people age.  They find parking spaces, honor their credit cards, get married, have children, and call that maturity.  What that is, is aging."  - Maya Angelou

"The afternoon knows what the morning never suspected."  -Robert Frost