Best movies like Pump Up the Volume
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Mark Hunter is an intelligent but shy teenager who has just moved to suburban Arizona from New York. Unbeknownst to his parents and peers, at 10pm each school night Mark takes to the shortwave radio in his basement and transforms into pirate DJ "Hard Harry". Mark's show, at once thoughtful and profane, becomes an underground hit with students at his high school, inspiring the wrath of his principal and the Federal Communications Commission [FCC].
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 31000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: teen, cult classic, independent film, realistic, dark comedy, funny, feel good, dark, offbeat, serious
Best tv shows and movies like Pump Up the Volume (1990):
Similar in 90%
Spike Island (2012)
Plot Summary:
Teenage musicians travel to England's Spike Island in the hope of attending an outdoor performance by their favorite band, the Stone Roses.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: UK
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, captivating, realistic, sad
Similar in 76%
Times Square (1980)
Plot Summary:
Two ill-matched teenage girls form a punk band and soon have New York by its ears.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: cult classic, independent film, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, cynical, queer cinema, rockumentary, eighties
Similar in 86%
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains (1982)
Plot Summary:
Corrine Burns retreats far into plans for her band, The Fabulous Stains, after her mother's death.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: retro, psychotronic, thinking, cult classic, independent film, clever, offbeat, humorous, realistic, witty
Similar in 90%
We Are the Best! (2013)
Plot Summary:
Three girls in 1980s Stockholm decide to form a punk band -- despite not having any instruments and being told by everyone that punk is dead.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Drama, Music
Country: Sweden, Denmark
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: touching, stylized, lyrical, feel good, semi serious, atmospheric, gothic, social, steamy, sentimental
Similar in 82%
There Goes My Baby (1994)
Plot Summary:
A group of high school seniors meets in the summer of 1965 and all struggle with the choices they have to make.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: independent film, sentimental, touching, serious, realistic, contemplative, nostalgic
Similar in 85%
Desperate Teenage Lovedolls (1984)
Plot Summary:
Two girls rediscover their love for playing rock, find a drummer and begin practicing. When one of their mothers intervenes, they run away from home and are forced to fend for themselves on the streets against gangs and rival bands. Soon they are discovered and taken under the wing of rock manager Johnny Tremaine (played by Steven McDonald) who uses them for sex and his own aspirations of wealth. The Love Dolls set out to get revenge on those who have wronged them, and rise to the top of the rock world.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 243
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: independent film, offbeat, humorous, realistic, not serious, campy
Similar in 80%
All That I Love (2009)
Plot Summary:
Follows four friends in their quest to form a punk band. As workers protests sweep across the country, Janek and Staszek, the sons of a navy man, the rebellious Kazik, and the affluent Diabel gel as a band, but their disparate lives are touched by social turmoil and outside perceptions.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: Poland
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: sincere, uplifting, touching, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 76%
The Boat That Rocked (2009)
Plot Summary:
The Boat that Rocked is an ensemble comedy, where the romance is between the young people of the 60s, and pop music. It's about a band of DJs that captivate Britain, playing the music that defines a generation and standing up to a government that wanted control of popular culture via the British Broadcasting Corporation. Loosely based on the events in Britain in the 60's when the Labour government of Harold Wilson, wanted to bring the pirate stations under control, enough to see the passage of the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act on 15 August 1967.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 115000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: UK, France, Germany, USA
Duration: 135 min
Plot tags: humorous, funny, sentimental, light, colorful, realistic, semi serious, melancholic, hilarious, indie film
Similar in 90%
Bandslam (2009)
Plot Summary:
A high school social outcast and the popular girl bond through a shared love of music.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Music, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: romantic, teen, humorous, semi serious, light, realistic, erotic, surprise ending, sexy, clever
Similar in 85%
Little Darlings (1980)
Plot Summary:
Two 15-year old girls from different sides of the tracks compete to see who will be first to lose their virginity while at camp.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: cult classic, sex comedy, teen sex comedy, funny, deep, feel good, humorous, realistic, witty, semi serious
Similar in 86%
Heathers (1988)
Plot Summary:
A girl who halfheartedly tries to be part of the "in crowd" of her school meets a rebel who teaches her a more devious way to play social politics: by killing the popular kids.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 113000
Genere: Comedy, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: black comedy, dark comedy, cult classic, teen, witty, semi serious, aesthetic, realistic, retro, parody
Similar in 84%
World's Greatest Dad (2009)
Plot Summary:
In the wake of a freak accident, Lance suffers the worst tragedy and the greatest opportunity of his life. He is suddenly faced with the possibility of fame, fortune and popularity, if he can only live with the knowledge of how he got there.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 40000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: dark comedy, black comedy, clever, melancholic, dark, disturbing, cult classic, hilarious, offbeat, philosophical
Similar in 79%
School of Rock (2003)
Plot Summary:
Fired from his band and hard up for cash, guitarist and vocalist Dewey Finn finagles his way into a job as a fifth-grade substitute teacher at a private school, where he secretly begins teaching his students the finer points of rock 'n' roll. The school's hard-nosed principal is rightly suspicious of Finn's activities. But Finn's roommate remains in the dark about what he's doing.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 324000
Genere: Comedy, Music
Country: USA, Germany
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: feel good, funny, entertaining, inspirational, humorous, hilarious, realistic, cult classic, teen, witty
Similar in 77%
Detroit Rock City (1999)
Plot Summary:
In 1978, a Kiss concert was an epoch-making event. For the three teen fans in Detroit Rock City getting tickets to the sold-out show becomes the focal point of their existence. They'll do anything for tickets -- compete in a strip club's amateur-night contest, take on religious protesters, even rob a convenience store!.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 41000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: feel good, road movie, funny, entertaining, teen, humorous, cult classic, period piece, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 83%
Moxie (2021)
Plot Summary:
Inspired by her mom's rebellious past and a confident new friend, a shy 16-year-old publishes an anonymous zine calling out sexism at her school.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 28000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: teen, funny, light, captivating, romantic, sad, comedy drama, teen comedy
Similar in 90%
Thumbsucker (2005)
Plot Summary:
Justin, a teenager boy, throws himself and everyone around him into chaos when he attempts to break free from his addiction to his thumb.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: emotional, humorous, witty, sentimental, dark comedy, realistic, independent film, funny, gothic, educational
Similar in 80%
SLC Punk! (1998)
Plot Summary:
Two former geeks become 1980s punks, then party and go to concerts while deciding what to do with their lives.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 32000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: realistic, philosophical, harsh, teen, intense, sentimental, humorous, funny, bleak, cult classic
Similar in 75%
Almost Famous (2000)
Plot Summary:
In 1973, 15-year-old William Miller's unabashed love of music and aspiration to become a rock journalist lands him an assignment from Rolling Stone magazine to interview and tour with the up-and-coming band Stillwater – fronted by lead guitar Russell Hammond and lead singer Jeff Bebe William.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 289000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: sentimental, road movie, feel good, realistic, semi autobiographical, teen, emotional, independent film, cult classic, sweet
Similar in 88%
Rocket Science (2007)
Plot Summary:
Hal, a 15-year-old high-school student with a minor yet socially alienating (and painful) disability: he stutters uncontrollably. Determined to work through the problem, Hal opts for an extreme route he joins the school debating team, which sends him on a headfirst plunge into breakneck speech competitions and offers a much-needed boost toward correcting the problem.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: clever, sincere, psychological, sentimental, touching, teen, indie film, realistic, funny, feel good
Similar in 78%
Ghost World (2001)
Plot Summary:
Two quirky, cynical teenaged girls try to figure out what to do with their lives after high school graduation. After they play a prank on an eccentric, middle aged record collector, one of them befriends him, which causes a rift in the girls' friendship.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 125000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA, UK, Germany
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: black comedy, thought provoking, independent film, melancholic, teen, realistic, cult classic, atmospheric, indie film, humorous
Similar in 82%
My Suicide (2009)
Plot Summary:
A teen coming-of-age romantic dramedy about a media-obsessed geek and the most beautiful and twisted girl in school.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, realistic, witty, semi serious, independent film, depressing, teen, clever, offbeat
Similar in 81%
The Edge of Seventeen (2016)
Plot Summary:
Two high school girls are best friends until one dates the other's older brother, who is totally his sister's nemesis.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 138000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA, China
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: teen, emotional, witty, touching, realistic, depressing, suspense, comedy drama, parody, inspirational
Similar in 90%
Empire Records (1995)
Plot Summary:
The employees of an independent music store learn about each other as they try anything to stop the store being absorbed by a large chain.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 60000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: teen, funny, cult classic, aesthetic, inspirational, romantic, epic, serious, melancholic, stylized
Similar in 76%
Dazed and Confused (1993)
Plot Summary:
The adventures of a group of Texas teens on their last day of school in 1976, centering on student Randall Floyd, who moves easily among stoners, jocks and geeks. Floyd is a star athlete, but he also likes smoking weed, which presents a conundrum when his football coach demands he sign a "no drugs" pledge.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 196000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: feel good, talky, teen, sentimental, cult classic, realistic, funny, melancholic, semi serious, touching
Similar in 75%
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
Plot Summary:
Follows a group of high school students growing up in southern California, based on the real-life adventures chronicled by Cameron Crowe. Stacy Hamilton and Mark Ratner are looking for a love interest, and are helped along by their older classmates, Linda Barrett and Mike Damone, respectively. The center of the film is held by Jeff Spicoli, a perpetually stoned surfer dude who faces off with the resolute Mr. Hand, who is convinced that everyone is on dope.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 114000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: teen sex comedy, feel good, humorous, funny, sexy, sex comedy, teen, cult classic, light, hilarious
Similar in 90%
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Plot Summary:
A high school slacker pretends to be sick to skip school and have an exciting day off alongside his girlfriend and his best buddy through Chicago, while trying to outwit his obsessive school principal and his unconformited sister along the way.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 380000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: feel good, entertaining, funny, light, teen, humorous, hilarious, intense, semi serious, inspirational
Similar in 75%
Charlie Bartlett (2007)
Plot Summary:
Awkward teenager Charlie Bartlett (Anton Yelchin) has trouble fitting in at a new high school. Charlie needs some friends fast, and decides that the best way to find them is to appoint himself the resident psychiatrist. He becomes one of the most popular guys in school by doling out advice and, occasionally, medication, to the student body.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 66000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: teen, entertaining, independent film, sentimental, cynical, funny, feel good, indie film, clever, witty
Similar in 81%
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)
Plot Summary:
Nick cannot stop obsessing over his ex-girlfriend, Tris, until Tris' friend Norah suddenly shows interest in him at a club. Thus beings an odd night filled with ups and downs as the two keep running into Tris and her new boyfriend while searching for Norah's drunken friend, Caroline, with help from Nick's band mates. As the night winds down, the two have to figure out what they want from each other.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 95000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: feel good, teen, funny, independent film, romantic comedy, sweet, indie film, heartbreaking, romantic, exciting
Similar in 84%
Say Anything... (1989)
Plot Summary:
A budding romance between noble underachiever Lloyd Dobler and high school valedictorian Diane Court is threatened when Diane's overly possessive, disapproving father interferes with their relationship. With a prized scholarship to study abroad hanging in the balance, Diane must find a way to make both men happy.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 95000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: feel good, sweet, light, romantic, teen, romantic comedy, humorous, sentimental, cult classic, touching
Similar in 75%
The Breakfast Club (1985)
Plot Summary:
Five high school students, all different stereotypes, meet in detention, where they pour their hearts out to each other, and discover how they have a lot more in common than they thought.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 428000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: teen, talky, feel good, realistic, cult classic, humorous, semi serious, funny, inspirational, sincere