Sometimes it’s not enough just to talk yourself into working hard. Sometimes the best way to motivate yourself is to watch others go through similar trials and tribulations, perhaps over the course of 90 minutes and with some popcorn on the side. See where we’re going with this?
Steven Spielberg once said that “audiences are harder to please if you’re just giving them special effects, but they’re easy to please if it’s a good story.” And he’s right; even g-rated movies for students can pack an emotional punch with the right timeless messaging. It’s certainly served Mr. Spielberg well over the years.
In this article, let’s go through movies with moral lessons for students who might just need a bit of external motivation or help with homework. These films border on the heartwarming, and even cliché, but their best qualities will show any downtrodden viewers that perseverance goes a long way in the face of adversity. Since this is primarily a students’ list, most of the movies here are set in schools and center around the varied experiences of students, teachers, and coaches. However, that doesn’t mean non-students can’t enjoy them nor that students can’t relate to their older characters. The heart of a good motivational story is its ability to portray empathy in hard times; otherwise overcoming obstacles wouldn’t be so rewarding nor a victory worth sharing.
If you’ve been struggling to motivate yourself, just trust that somewhere in this list is a story that can make you realize your own potential.
Table of Contents
First, A Word on Motivational Moviemaking
There are ten motivational movies for students listed here. What makes them work?
When movies trigger emotions, they force audiences to connect characters’ experiences with their own. Watching others not give up, discover their calling, or confront challenges makes us believe that we can do the same.
These movies put their protagonists in dire circumstances and conflicted states of mind. Whether it’s an underfunded school or stuffy institution, characters navigate their surroundings only with the understanding that they deserve more than what they’re given. As you read through these entries, and perhaps watch some, keep that same spirit in mind.
Rock Steady Row
First up is one of the better movies for high school students who might be feeling anxious about the transition to college. Trevor Stevens’s directorial debut follows a college freshman, Leroy, who takes on both fraternities and his university’s dean after his bike is stolen. The film satirizes all aspects of college life, from co-ed accommodations to administration corruption, and portrays the prototypical American university more as a lawless free-for-all than an esteemed institution. Its dark humor is served well by the fact that, as viewers, we sympathize with its underdogs against unforgiving power structures.
If you’re a high school student who’s over motivational movies in the more traditional sense – 90 minutes of heartwarming friendship-building filled with bright, uplifting musical scores – then Rock Steady Row will probably resonate with your more cynical side. Rather than scare you with its over-the-top depictions of college, it’s more likely to make you laugh.
Remember the Titans
One of the best sports movies of all time, and featuring one of Denzel Washington’s most iconic roles, Remember the Titans dramatizes the true story of a black football coach put in charge of a Virginia high school team amid white opposition over racial integration. Starting from a place of racial animus and distrust, the team eventually rallies under head coach Herman Boone’s leadership as he earns their respect; for his part, Boone is tasked with producing an undefeated season and faces termination if he loses a single game.
Apart from its themes of black resilience, the film still stands out among motivational movies for high school students in promoting humble initiative, camaraderie, and hard work. Whether or not you’re an athlete, Remember the Titans has no shortage of emotional moments, not to mention classic rock hits from the 1960s and 1970s, which are sure to strike a chord nevertheless.
Dead Poets Society
If National Treasure is every history teacher’s favorite film, then Dead Poets Society is for the English teachers.
In Dead Poets Society, we follow Robin Williams as John Keating, an English teacher at a preppy boarding school whose unconventional methods inspire his students to reject external pressures through the (unauthorized) study of poetry. As far as motivational quotes from movies go, Williams’s are iconic for their relentless passion:
- “Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all.”
- “Carpe diem, seize the day. Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.”
The story of these elite boys finding self-expression, despite demands from overbearing parents and teachers, makes Dead Poets Society one of the best motivational movies for students to study hard not to advance job prospects or college applications, but simply for the love of study.
Stand and Deliver
Whereas Dead Poets Society is about privileged students learning to follow their passions, Stand and Deliver is about underprivileged students learning to beat the odds.
In this one, we watch the true story of how math teacher Jaime Escalante gets a job at a high school struggling with low test scores and students from poor, working-class backgrounds. Rather than lower his expectations, Escalante resolves to teach them calculus with the goal of preparing them for the Advanced Placement exam.
Stand and Deliver is one of the best motivational movies for students who face academic challenges and are willing to work hard to rise above them. What makes it special is that when nobody else did, the real Jaime Escalante believed in his students enough to make them believe in themselves. Watch this movie if you’ve ever been told, especially by a teacher or counselor, that you’re simply not good enough.
Lean on Me
Released only a year after Stand and Deliver, Lean on Me features a similar story of academic resilience with its own twists.
Also based on a true story, it stars Morgan Freeman as a principal whose New Jersey high school suffers from abysmal performance and social disorder. Freeman’s strict, no-nonsense approach to troublemakers leads to memorable acts of discipline at first, but it also inspires students to “clean up their act” and teachers to revitalize their commitments in the classroom.
Among motivational movies for students, Lean on Me stands out for reinforcing the idea that education is largely a community-based responsibility, demanding dedication from students, teachers, administrators, and parents alike. Those viewers who attend “rough” schools will likely relate to this movie’s portrayal of drug abuse and violence, but they’ll also reflect upon its message that academic performance is served best, first and foremost, by students taking their studies seriously./p>
Parts
Who could have guessed that the best motivational movies would be based on true stories?
In this 2015 drama, we travel to another underfunded high school in Phoenix, Arizona. George Lopez plays teacher Fredi Cameron, whose engineering club produces a ragtag robotics team of students who compete against more privileged college organizations, ultimately resulting in their shock victory over MIT. It’s a great motivational underdog story, particularly for students who are interested in technology and come from underprivileged backgrounds.
Spare Parts also stands apart for its portrayal of Hispanic characters and community. Most of the students at Carl Hayden High School are Hispanic, and the film’s robotics team is comprised of four Mexican boys of whom three are illegal immigrants, which introduces to the plot its own dramatic challenges. Some of the film’s components are tried and true, but often that’s all a viewer needs for an inspiring, positive experience.
Front of the Class
We’ve gone over movies covering sports, poetry, race, and socioeconomics, but this one is about disabilities. Front of the Class is based on the book of the same name by Brad Cohen, who documents what it’s like to teach with severe Tourette’s syndrome and how it inspires students with similar, persistent challenges.
Cohen’s struggles with uncontrollable movements and noises, not to mention his upbringing in a broken family and a still-unaccepting father, set the stage for a powerful story of bravery and perseverance. Being told that he’ll never amount to anything doesn’t dissuade Cohen from pursuing his dream career in a position which, no less, requires him to be the center of attention. Students who get picked on or teased will hopefully find solace in his determination to beat the odds; as Cohen sums it up, “I get that look a lot, but I never let it get to me.”
Good Will Hunting
With nine Oscar nominations and two wins, Good Will Hunting’s praises have been well sung since its release in 1997. Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and (again) Robin Williams come together to tell a story about a janitor at MIT whose mathematical genius becomes apparent, but whose emotional maturity only develops with the help of therapist Sean Maguire.
The story of Will Hunting’s growth from violent, self-sabotaging prodigy to vulnerable, hopeful man shows audiences that there’s more than one side to academic success. Without revealing too much, Hunting’s “smarts” only turn out to mean so much without the healing process of honest introspection. That’s why this movie will motivate students who may overexert themselves in the classroom but disregard their mental health, perhaps thinking it’s simply less important. Good Will Hunting is an uplifting story about how reaching your true potential, and thus achieving contentment, is achievable with humility and love.
Legally Blonde
While a bit less dramatic than the others, Legally Blonde is a fun movie about authenticity and overcoming unfair stereotypes. Elle Woods is a fashion enthusiast, sorority girl, and “dumb blonde” from Southern California who shocks her more “serious” ex-boyfriend upon joining him at Harvard Law School. It starts out with Woods trying to get him back but develops into her journey as a passionate law student, pursuing her studies diligently and culminating in her winning a dramatic murder trial.
This one is for any student who’s been made to feel that their interests or image make them stupid or less deserving of professional success. Elle Woods doesn’t hide her feminine side at Harvard but instead turns it into an asset in her journey to become a lawyer. In Legally Blonde, our protagonist proves her worth to herself and, more importantly, to the naysayers who judge books by their covers.
Freedom Writers
Lastly, we have Freedom Writers. In this one, Hilary Swank plays Erin Gruwell, an English teacher for at-risk students whose challenges include gang violence and racial tension. Rather than the disciplinary actions of Lean on Me, Gruwell comes around to her students by teaching the importance of empathy, tolerance, and acknowledging trauma. The film’s title comes from one of the real Erin Gruwell’s projects, which compiled her students assigned diary entries into a book, published in 1999, entitled The Freedom Writers Diary.
With its grounded reference points – the film is set just after the LA riots and heavily features Holocaust education – Freedom Writers makes a clear case for the futility of (racial) intolerance. Just as students in the movie are encouraged to humble themselves, and thus to understand each other, so students watching may be motivated to re-evaluate their own relationships. As Gruwell shows, discovering acceptance is its own education.