WORTH WATCHING

Parents should share these movies with their teenagers

My wife went on a four-day outof-state retreat recently, leaving me at home with our 15-year-old son. We had lots of free time, because it was summer break, so I decided we should binge on a little movie tutorial. I wanted to expose my son to the movies I regard as essential viewing because of their cultural and historical relevance.

Here are the seven movies we watched, all of which I think every parent should view with their teenagers. One caveat: Check out each of these movies on one of the many parent-friendly websites that provide guidance about sexual content, violence and language. Every parent has different standards and every teenager is unique in terms of what they can handle.

Mark Redmond is the executive director of Spectrum Youth & Family Services in Vermont and the author of The Goodness Within: Reaching Out to Troubled Teens With Love and Compassion. For The Washington Post