You make a good point about the purpose of the films. Their makers no doubt told themselves they were just helping teens figure out how to manage social life, but their hidden (maybe even unconscious) agenda was to promote their own views of how teens "should" behave.

As a nerdy kid in HS who feared and resented the "in crowd" for their popularity, I would have welcomed some guidance. But I think even I would have seen through films like this.