Best Movies about Underage drinking

Movies about Underage drinking

By The Recovery Village | Editor Daron Christopher
Medically Reviewed By Benjamin Caleb Williams, RN A licensed behavioral health or medical professional on The Recovery Village Editorial Team has analyzed and confirmed every statistic, study and medical claim on this page. | Last Updated: June 20, 2023

Learn about the effect of media on underage drinking and what you can do to protect your teen.

Media has an influence on teenagers that can lead to changes in behavior and reshape their view of what is normal in society. While the influence of media on youth can be impactful, there are several even stronger influences, including family, especially parents, peers and authority figures.

Media’s effect on teens can be either direct or indirect. Direct media typically involves media – typically advertising – that deliberately promotes a certain behavior, such as drinking alcohol. An example of this could be an ad that recommends a certain brand of beer. Indirect media is media that does not deliberately promote an activity or behavior through advertising, but may promote a certain stereotype.

An example of indirect media could be a movie that portrays drinking alcohol at a bar as a good way of forming friendships and meeting new people without displaying the negative effects that drinking can cause.

Teen Exposure to Alcohol in Various Media

One of the uncomfortable facts about teen alcohol use is that almost 70% of high schoolers have had alcohol by their senior year of school. It is likely that alcohol advertising to youth plays a significant role in causing teenagers to use alcohol.

While peer pressure is the main motivator for alcohol use in teens, peer pressure is driven by a desire to be acceptable to a group, and this definition of what is acceptable or expected is often heavily influenced by media. Some of the ways in which teens are exposed to alcohol in media include:

• Alcohol Use on TV – Teen TV shows such as Pretty Little Liars a trapný include portrayals of underage drinking in high school and present teen drinking in a positive light.
• Alcohol Use in Movies –Movies about teenage drugs and alcohol such as the American Pie série, Hodně špatné a Project X all promote underage drinking as a positive and fun activity.
• Alcohol Use in Music – Alcohol references in teen music are often connected with sex and violence and are increasingly common.

Many movies or TV shows that do not glorify underage drinking still present the regular consumption of alcohol or visiting nightclubs and bars as a normal part of life without any potential consequences. Media that portrays alcohol use often shows positive aspects of alcohol without displaying any of the risks or negative effects that alcohol can create.

Teen Interpretation of Alcohol Advertising

Alcohol use among teens who regularly watch movies that include alcohol use more than doubles the chance that they will start drinking while underage. Alcohol advertising also influences both the amount that teenagers are likely to use and what brand of alcohol they will use. Teenagers who are more compliant with authority or who are not well educated on media are more likely to be influenced by alcohol advertising than teens who are more questioning of authority or teens who have been educated about agendas behind media and advertising. The influence that alcohol advertising has on teens will vary for each teen, based on their background and environmental influences.

How Celebrities and Music Artists Influence Teen Alcohol Use

Celebrities’ influence on teens as role models is strong because they are widely recognized, rich and seen as always having fun. Teens see the image of them that is portrayed and desire to become what they are, causing them to imitate celebrity lifestyles. Because of the role of drugs and alcohol in the music industry and in movies, celebrities often use alcohol or drugs. This can influence youth to try similar behaviors themselves in an attempt to imitate and become their role models.

Limiting Teen Exposure to Alcohol in Media

Limiting the exposure of your teenager to media that includes alcohol use is ideal, but may not be very realistic. The use of alcohol in media is quite pervasive, and unless you control most of their access to media, it is unlikely that you can stop them from being exposed to media that includes alcohol use. You can, however, educate them on the differences between how alcohol is portrayed in the media and real life.

Take time to explain to them that alcohol can lead to increased risk of injury, hangovers and several unpleasant side effects that are not shown on TV can help them to understand that what they see on TV about alcohol use is not realistic. Explain to them the risks of alcoholism and how alcohol use can raise their risk of addiction later in life. Also provide them with information about the motivations behind alcohol advertising and how the focus is on selling them an idea, not on accurately portraying the consequences of alcohol use.

If you suspect or know that your teenager uses alcohol, then you should consider seeking immediate professional help. Teenage alcohol use can have a devastating impact on their development and on their future, and immediate intervention is needed to lessen the possible consequences on underage drinking. The Recovery Village has a strong record of helping teens who misuse alcohol to obtain and maintain sobriety. Dosáhnout to one of our understanding team members today to let us know how we can help your family.

Editor – Daron Christopher

Daron Christopher is an experienced speechwriter, copywriter and communications consultant based in Washington, DC. Read more

Medically Reviewed By – Benjamin Caleb Williams, RN

Benjamin Caleb Williams is a board-certified Emergency Nurse with several years of clinical experience, including supervisory roles within the ICU and ER settings. Read more

Teens & Alcohol related topics:

Raising Children Network (Australia). “Media Influence on Teenagers.” 2019. Accessed Aug. 25, 2019.

National Institute on Drug Abuse. “Principles of Adolescent Substance Use D[…]Research-Based Guide.” Jan. 2014. Accessed Aug. 25, 2019.

Common Sense Media. “Alcohol, Drugs, and Smoking.” 2019. Accessed Aug. 25, 2019.

Bellum, Sara. “Teen Party Movies: Epic Adventure or Bad Hangover?” National Institute on Drug Abuse. Aug 29, 2012. Accessed Aug. 25, 2019.

Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. “Study: Alcohol in Movies May Lead to Underage Drinking.” Feb. 21, 2012. Accessed Aug. 25, 2019.

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “Alcohol Advertising and Youth.” April 2007. Accessed Aug. 25, 2019.

Moreno, Megan A. “Media Influence on Adolescent Alcohol Use.” Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. July 2011. Accessed Au

The Recovery Village aims to improve the quality of life for people struggling with substance use or mental health disorder with fact-based content about the nature of behavioral health conditions, treatment options and their related outcomes. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers.

A Brief History Of Teenage Drinking in Hollywood Movies

Multiple studies have shown that depicting alcohol in films make teenagers more likely to drink. But movies and television shows that strive to portray realistic teenage characters can’t avoid the subject of drinking entirely. For decades, the media has wavered between glorifying, criticizing, and ignoring underage drinking. To this day, no one quite knows how to handle the touchy topic.

While Disney has shied away from the issue of teenage drinking in its recent ventures, way back in 1940, Pinocchio blatantly argued against it. The film depicted an island free from rules and full of temptations (including beer), but the child inhabitants who indulged got their comeuppance when their bad behavior turned them into donkeys. In Pinocchio, underage drinking was both portrayed as desirous and rejected as a forbidden and evil act.

The 1980s saw a surge in teen movies, but many avoided the subject of underage drinking entirely, or chose not to make a value judgment on it. Two of the most famous films of the era, Klub snídaně a Ferris Bueller den Off, don’t involve alcohol at all. Other films involved alcohol in a party setting, but did not praise or cast scorn on the drinkers. Teenage drinking was only important in that it amplified the films’ themes of rebellion and growing up.

In the 1990s, underage drinking was seen as more of a problem. A lot of shows aimed at very young children discouraged drinking long before viewers were old enough to consider doing so. In 1991, Tiny Toon dobrodružství featured a horrifying episode that was later banned, in which three of the characters tried beer, stole a cop car, and drove it off a cliff. Around the same time, the show Full House featured two episodes about the perils of underage drinking, which focused on D.J., but let her boyfriend Kevin and her friend Kimmy do all the imbibing. Both episodes were wrapped up with heavy-handed lessons about safety and health that were scored to sentimental violin and piano music.

A study by communication professor Susannah Stern, published in the Journal of Health Communication, focused on films from 1999 through 2001, and discovered that 40% of those films’ teen characters drank alcohol. However, the films didn’t pass moral judgment on the teens who drank; at the turn of the century, underage drinking was treated as a fact of life. A follow up study by Stern and Lindsey Morr looked at top-grossing teen-centric films from 2007 through 2009, and found that only 20% of teenagers were shown imbibing alcohol. Although the percentage decreased, the films did not portray drinking in a harsher light, or depict consequences of underage drinking. Even a film series as well-loved as Harry Potter gave in to the trend. The penultimate book’s film involved quite a bit of butterbeer and mild tipsiness, reinforcing the theme of growing up.

Ever the bastion of the after-school special, Veselí dedicated an episode to its characters “discovering” drinking, which was appropriately titled “Blame It On The Alcohol.” The uptight Rachel Berry throws her first house party for the glee club, the members of which get into all sorts of debauchery. Yet the only consequences of their actions are hellish hangovers and a gentle reprimand from glee club director Mr. Schue. The school’s principal even rewards them after a performance-gone-wrong-then-right. Ironically, Mr. Schue is the one for whom drinking causes the most damage, as his drunken voicemail is read on the school’s PA system. While the glee club kids renounce alcohol, and have rarely been seen drinking since, the episode implies that a great time was had by all.

Why are movies and TV shows more lax about the issue of underage drinking when it’s a bigger problem than ever? Perhaps teenage drinking has been accepted as inevitable. Or maybe we can depend on other mediums and institutions, from schools to the internet, to supply teens with the facts they need to make informed decisions about drinking. Whatever the case may be, it is clear that the television and film industries have moved away from combatting this difficult issue, and toward prioritizing drama, comedy, and storytelling.

The Normalization of Teen Drinking in the Media

Podle CDC , 19% of teenagers aged 12-20 have drunk alcohol before. However, the media has created a standard that pressures them to drink as teenagers, especially at high school parties. Well-known movies and TV shows, such as Gossip Girl or One Tree Hill , which feature high schoolers as the main characters, contain multiple scenes of underage drinking. Most of the time in these scenes, the underage characters get drunk and something terrible happens.

Although alcohol consumption rates can be influenced by several different factors, such as availability/pricing, gender differences, social norms, internal and external factors, the media is a big part of it. The “media” encompasses social media, film, the internet, influencers, books/magazines, and music. It has frequently led to teens thinking drinking alcohol is a «standard» experience that they need to complete while in high school.

Podle studie zveřejněné BMJ , “Teens being exposed to movies that feature alcohol usage led to 28 percent of kids drinking alcohol and of those teens, 20 percent moved on to binge drinking.” Teens’ actions and thoughts are heavily influenced by the people and the media surrounding them. Many teens also probably know others their age who have drunk alcohol or have even had a taste themselves.

The legal drinking age in the United States is 21, while in many other countries, like the U.K., the drinking age is as low as 16. However, in the US, this leads to many teens purposefully drinking underage because it’s prohibited. This is the same as in any other country, the only difference is that because it’s illegal in the US and the minimum age is higher, teens are not educated about it nearly enough in their teen years to make responsible decisions about drinking, other than the “don’t do this” conversations they have with their parents. And despite being illegal, it’s surprisingly easy to obtain alcohol .

According to a publication published by the NIAAA (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) titled “ International Perspectives on Adolescent and Young Adult Drinking ,” the level of underage drinking and alcohol problems are a result of several influences including: “The drinking culture and attitudes… overall historical, cultural, economic, and social circumstances that affect many areas related to alcohol consumption… [and] Alcohol control measures and their enforcement.”

This means that because different countries have separate and unique cultures and lifestyles, the general public in each country views and talks about alcohol differently. The media (including marketing) in turn presents alcohol-related things differently in each country as well to gain better ratings or exposure.

However, because of international youth culture and mass media, alcohol-related behaviors are different than those of adults. For example, young adults and teens are also at a higher risk of developing social problems, which increases with their level of drinking.

A person’s drinking behavior is also affected by internal and external factors. Internal ones include personality while external ones involve social norms and availability of alcohol. The media, especially music, hugely affects social norms and culture, which explains why cultures that display teen alcohol consumption in the media see a greater prevalence of teens thinking they need to drink to «fit in.»

V článek published by the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, the rates of illegal drug and alcohol use were analyzed between the United States and European countries based on information provided by the ESPAD (European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs) and Sledování budoucnosti (National Survey Results on Drug Use). It was seen that the percentage of U.S. teens who drank alcohol was less than half of the percentage of European teens. Although, the percentage of US teens who used other drugs, such as marijuana, was almost double the number of European teens.

Statistiky od Alcohol Change UK show that “In 2018 in England, 44% of pupils aged 11-15 in England reported having ever drunk alcohol.” The University of Bristol also stated how 72 percent of the most popular UK box office films (between 1989 and 2008) depicted alcohol use. It can be inferred from the data that teens who watch or are exposed to films or media consisting of underage drinking are more likely to do it themselves as well.

In Turkey, however, alcohol advertising is completely banned by law. Movendi International , an organization for global development through alcohol prevention, states how Turkish law “prohibits every type of advertisement and presentation of alcoholic beverages, prohibits campaigns, promotions, and any activity that encourages the consumption and sale of alcoholic beverages in any kind of media.” Additionally, according to the NIAAA, Turkey has the lowest percentage of youth drinking. 7% of 15 to 16-year-olds drank alcohol at least 40 times in their lives and only 1% had ever been intoxicated. It can be gathered that, because of Turkey’s laws against alcohol presentation in the media, its rates of illegal drinking are one of the lowest and have even slightly decreased in the past decade . However, adults who do drink in Turkey are more likely to do so at high levels.

Drinking alcohol also has several consequences that can result from occasional heavy drinking and intoxication. Health problems, such as liver disease, arise and can lead to death. “Alcohol [also] interferes with cognitive, perceptual, and motor skills and therefore can contribute to unintentional injuries and deaths, particularly after heavy alcohol consumption. In fact, in many societies, alcohol-related fatalities are particularly common among young adults and contribute substantially to alcohol-related mortality” ( Ahlström, Salme K, and Esa L Österberg ).

Tracing back to the media, teens’ information and education about drinking alcohol comes mainly from the movies and shows that they watch (due to the stigma around talking about drinking alcohol in schools), which showcases others their age taking part in the same actions. Although you’d think that people would take more caution after viewing these scenes, many times the opposite happens because they don’t believe that what happens in the movies will happen to them, after all, “that doesn’t happen in real life, it only happens in the movies.”

On the contrary, the media is supposed to be a representative of society and because they do engage in underage drinking it would be toxic to deny that. Not portraying realistic issues that teenagers experience makes it seem as if teens have great and easy lives when most of them struggle with mental health and serious issues. Unfortunately, the media sometimes glamorizes drinking as a teenager, when the opposite happens and those intoxicated experience blackouts or make bad decisions. Although, there have been films and media that have captured the authenticity of drug and alcohol issues, bringing to light the reality that some people in society face.

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