Before Lindsay Lohan became a Mean Girl and Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron became High School Musical sweethearts, Winona Ryder was a Heather and Molly Ringwald and Andrew McCarthy were our favorite couple from two different worlds.

Today's popular teen flicks would have never existed without the high school classics that made and shaped the genre. What makes a great high school movie is the legacy they've made on generations of teenagers, despite the decade they grew up in. These are the movies with the unforgettable characters, witty lines, and the feeling of being forever young. The...