Oskar Matzerath is a very unusual boy. Refusing to leave the womb until promised a tin drum by his mother, Agnes, Oskar is reluctant to enter a world he sees as filled with hypocrisy and injustice, and vows on his third birthday to never grow up. Miraculously, he gets his wish. As the Nazis rise to power in Danzig, Oskar wills himself to remain a child, beating his tin drum incessantly and screaming in protest at the chaos surrounding him.
A mute Scottish woman arrives in colonial New Zealand for an arranged marriage. Her husband refuses to move her beloved piano, giving it to neighbor George Baines, who agrees to return the piano in exchange for lessons. As desire swirls around the duo, the wilderness consumes the European enclave.
A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.
Tired of seeming invisible in their high school, and in an effort to make space for gender non-conforming kids in high school traditions, Jax makes a bid for the homecoming court.
16-year-old Marianne will be confirmed. She is reluctant to do this, but her mother is more than happy for her to complete the confirmation. Marianne travels to a rectory in the country where she and a group of other girls will live while they read to the priest. On Midsummer's Eve, she meets by chance one of the other confirmands' fiancés and the feeling arises.
Crystal Lake is about a group of young girls who take over a skate park, forming an all-female force field on the half pipe. There on the reclaimed ramp, with no boys around, they are thriving and visible. This is an anthem for young feminists, which presents female friendship as a means to survive adolescence.
Joey Buttafuoco's story, of how a sexy, possessive young girl destroyed his life by telling her friends the two are lovers, and then shooting his wife.
Puberty is an ordeal and a joy. Children become adolescents: how do they react to this development? With the help of four different short films, the Brit Roger Lambert succeeds in wonderfully fathoming this important time. In "Split" (1974), a boy with behavioral difficulties tries to make life bearable with imaginary aliens. In "I Want To Be Famous" (1976), it's Steve, the youngest and smallest in his class, who creates a fantasy world for himself until his best friend Stuart, down-to-earth and clever, forces him to face reality. "Follow You Follow Me" (1979) observes the vulnerable friendship between two boys: shy Joseph and confident Peter. But Joseph's father is Peter's father's employer. With "A Seaside Story" (1986) we meet again two friends, this time they are seventeen, who are vacationing together at the sea: the self-confident Martin and Sam, the dreamer. At a beachfront guesthouse run by an eccentric lady, the two have an unforgettable time.
In the vein of "The Breakfast Club", four teens head to the forest to celebrate grad night and end up with more than hang overs when they are detained by the Ranger on charges of arson.
It is the last night of 14-year-old Astrid's and Issi's holiday by the beach. The mission is clear, especially for Issi: to find a guy and hopefully lose her virginity before the holidays are over.
When teenage friends Laura visits Josh’s family home for the first time, the nature of their relationship is challenged by a series of misunderstandings forcing Josh and Laura to confront their true feelings.
Four best friends (Tibby, Lena, Carmen & Bridget) who buy a mysterious pair of pants that fits each of them, despite their differing sizes, and makes whoever wears them feel fabulous. When faced with the prospect of spending their first summer apart, the pals decide they'll swap the pants so that each girl in turn can enjoy the magic.
Accio and Manrico are siblings from a working-class family in 1960s Italy: older Manrico is handsome, charismatic, and loved by all, while younger Accio is sulky, hot-headed, and treats life as a battleground — much to his parents' chagrin. After the former is drawn into left-wing politics, Accio joins the fascists out of spite, but his flimsy beliefs are put to test when he falls for Manrico's like-minded girlfriend.
Kevin, an intelligent guy helps out Maxwell to improve his reading skills. In return, Kevin wants Maxwell to take him out places since he is not authorized to go out. Being the social outcasts of the town, Kevin and Maxwell come to realize that they are similar to each other and accept that they are "freaks" and nothing will stop them.
A 16-year-old girl visits her gay half-brother and ends up seducing his boyfriend, thus wreaking havoc on all of their lives.
After the suicide of his best friend, a teenage boy is forced to deal with his guilt and sexuality.
Manhattanite Ashley is known to many as the luckiest woman around. After a chance encounter with a down-and-out young man, however, she realizes that she's swapped her fortune for his.
July 1996, the beach, the sea, the sun. Sophie, 10, spends her summer vacations with her mother and her cousin Laurence. But Laurence has grown up and her mother's thoughts are elsewhere. While the whole country is still looking for two missing little girls, Sophie discovers that this will be her last summer as a child.
Jamie Graham, a privileged English boy, is living in Shanghai when the Japanese invade and force all foreigners into prison camps. Jamie is captured with an American sailor, who looks out for him while they are in the camp together. Even though he is separated from his parents and in a hostile environment, Jamie maintains his dignity and youthful spirit, providing a beacon of hope for the others held captive with him.
Selma's mother died giving birth to her, and Selma's step aunt is living proof that men only cause trouble. So the 11 year old girl makes a deal with her best friends that they will stay away from boys and dedicate their lives to science. And by the way, Selma was probably born on another planet and not meant to fall in love with anyone. But what happens when her friends break the pact, and she actually meets a boy who's not like the rest?