With how fast the year is flying by, it’s almost hard to believe that summer is right around the corner. Depending on where you are in the world, soon enough temperatures will start to rise, and the sun is going to be beating down on you. Movies are a great way to get in the mood for a particular season, especially Christmas, which seems to have an abundance of holiday films at your fingertips.
Summer is also a big genre in movies, often depicting a perfect sunny vacation or perhaps a group of friends making the most of their break. Whatever the case might be, there’s most likely a movie that’ll depict that exact situation. Let’s take a look at 15 movies to get you hyped for the summer.
15 Dirty Dancing (1987)
How could we have a summer movie list and not include Dirty Dancing? Baby and Johnny are the blueprints for a forbidden summer romance. It’s best to keep the rose-colored glasses on as you watch this movie since some aspects, like their age, are kind of unsavory. However, when you look past that fact, it’s such a fun, summery movie about a family attending a beach resort and their youngest daughter falling in love. The soundtrack is great, and this is easily one of Patrick Swayze’s best and most iconic roles.
14 Aquamarine (2006)
If you watched this movie as a kid, there’s a high chance that you did and maybe still do believe in mermaids. Two best friends try to grapple with the fact that this is their last summer vacation together, and they set out to have the most memorable time.
When a mermaid washes up in their pool after a bad storm, their summer gets flipped upside down.Aquamarine is a very pure summertime movie that all young people should watch, and even older people, if they want to get swept up in a summer romance and friends learning how to say goodbye.
13 Grown Ups (2010)
Not all summertime movies have to focus on a group of teenagers, and Grown Ups proves that a movie about adult friends can be just as good. Great, even. It’s such a fantastic ensemble cast, with Adam Sandler gathering his group of friends: Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, and Rob Schneider, and it all seems very genuine as they spend a few weeks of summer at the lake.
Even though they’re adults, they seem to act like children as they get into dangerous and hilarious situations that’ll have you belly-laughing. There was a sequel that came out, and in his Netflix special, Adam Sandler sang in his tribute to Chris Farley that if his good friend was still alive, they’d already be working on a third installment.
12 The To-Do List (2013)
When a movie features that special do-or-die time between the summer before a freshman's first year of college, it’s an instant hit. It’s 1993, and recent high school graduate Brandy comes to the startling decision that she has to be completely experienced before starting college.
So, being the valedictorian student she is, she makes a to-do list complete with everything you could possibly imagine. Aubrey Plaza is hilarious as Brandy, and the ensemble cast is packed with stars such as Bill Hader, Rachel Bilson, Andy Samberg, Donald Glover, and much more, if you can believe it.
11 The Kings of Summer (2013)
A trio of friends, Joe, Patrick, and Biaggio, all decide that they need to run away to escape their overbearing parents and prove that they’re men who can live on their own. The three decide to build a house in the middle of the woods, even hunting their own food and living completely off the grid.
Joe and Patrick get along fine for the first couple of months, with Biaggio joining their group naturally, but then tensions quickly rise as a girl is brought in, and a love triangle is formed. The Kings of Summer is a great movie that focuses on what it’s like to be young and want your own freedom.
10 RV (2006)
This 2006 movie will have you thinking twice before you pile up your family in an RV and take them cross-country. Robin Williams is an absolute treasure in this family comedy, portraying a father who is desperate for a bump in the company he works for, and he’d seemingly do anything to get it. So, he rents a huge RV, which he’s never driven before, and as one can expect, several hilarious instances happen to this family.
Such as the toilet getting clogged, a family of raccoons moving in, and the RV crushing a police car. RV is the perfect family flick to enjoy on a hot summer day when you might need the extra laughs.
9 Soul Surfer (2011)
You might be surprised to see a movie about a girl getting attacked by a shark and, in return, losing her arm on this list, but Soul Surfer is such a great summer movie. Bethany Hamilton was born and raised in Hawaii and was a pro-surfer for most of her teenage years and beyond. One day, while out surfing with her best friend like they always do, Bethany is attacked by a shark, which results in her arm being taken.
This true story will have you laughing in one scene and then reaching for the tissues a few minutes later. Heartwarming, soul-touching, and sunny beach vibes all wrapped into one.
8 Dazed and Confused (1993)
Dazed and Confused launched so many successful careers and has a stacked ensemble cast to prove it. Stars such as Ben Affleck, Matthew McConaughey, Cole Hauser, and more are taking part in this summertime classic. From this movie comes one of McConaughey's most iconic and memorable quotes, "Alright, Alright, Alright."
The plot follows a group of high schoolers on their last day of senior year before summer comes and eventually college for some. Quite a bit happens in this single day, such as various forms of hazing and abuse from older students wanting to break in the incoming first-year student. There are bullies, nerds, stoners, and burnouts; everything you would need in a movie like this.
7 Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005)
Cheaper by the Dozen 2 was a great sequel to the first movie, and Steve Martin and Eugene Levy are a great duo in this comedy. The Baker family packs up and heads out of the city for the summer and drives up to the lake since so many things are changing for them. Once there, they all cram into a rundown cabin, and a past rivalry heats up once again between Tom Baker and Jimmy Murtagh.
There are plenty of belly-laugh moments, such as Steve Martin swinging on a tire swing, as well as heartwarming moments like when the eldest Baker child goes into labor in a canoe. Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt will make you wish you could be a part of a large family such as the Bakers, even if twelve kids seem like too much.
6 The Parent Trap (1998)
The Parent Trap is such a great comfort movie when you need a pick-me-up and a double dose of Lindsay Lohan. The movie opens with Hallie and Annie at summer camp, discovering that they are twin sisters who were separated by their parents at birth. It was not a great decision on the adults' part, but it did make for a great plot line. It’s very nostalgic if you’ve ever been to summer camp, with the cheesy matching uniforms and the isolation cabin.
The summer vibe doesn’t stop at camp but continues on as the two sisters go to Napa, California, and London, England. There's plenty of touching moments in this summer flick, such as Chessie discovering that Hallie is actually Annie, as well as hilarious moments such as the twins pushing a sleeping Meredith into the lake. If you watched it at least once, you most likely tried to learn the very elaborate handshake between Annie and Martin.
5 Mamma Mia! (2008)
Imagine a perfect summer spent in Greece, and you’re about to get married to who you think is the love of your life. Not only that, but you’re also on the hunt to find your dad, and you’ve come down to three possible candidates. This ABBA musical has everything you could possibly want, and Meryl Streep absolutely kills every musical number she’s involved in.
Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, and Bill Skarsgard all play off each other wonderfully, and their three personalities clash in the best way. The wedding scene is very dreamy, and while you’re watching, you might start to subconsciously plan a getaway to Greece for your ownMamma Mia! experience. You could make it a double feature night by putting in the sequel that recounts the life of Donna and how she came to meet the three men that are possibly Sophie's father, and have a karaoke night as well with great songs back to back.
4 The Sisterhood of Traveling Pants (2005)
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants is a perfect movie all about girlhood and growing up as a teenager who’s not too sure what to make of life. Four best friends who were all born around the same time have starkly different personalities and different body types. While shopping one day, they came across this magical pair of jeans that somehow fit all four of them.
Of course, they have to buy them, and over the course of the summer, they pass the jeans around. All four girls had life-changing experiences while wearing the pants, some devastating and some liberating. Family ties are broken and once again made anew, an unlikely friendship blossoms, two forbidden romances, and the girls rediscover what it means to be best friends in this iconic movie.
3 Staten Island Summer (2015)
Maybe you want something a little less family-friendly and want a good old-fashioned, raunchy summertime movie. Written by SNL’s Colin Jost, Staten Island Summer follows two friends who set out to have a huge blowout party before college rolls around. Graham Phillips stars as Danny Campbell and Zack Pearlman as Frank Gomes, an unlikely pair that have been friends for years but aren't fully accepting the fact that they’ll be apart, come fall.
They both work at their local community pool and decide that’s where they’re going to throw the party, which proves to be difficult due to their anal boss. It's a gaudy comedy that takes shots at some of the classic tropes, such as finally getting the girl and having the best summer they could possibly have. The movie features several SNL alums, such as Cecily Strong, Bobby Moynihan, Fred Armisen, and even more.
2 Adventureland (2009)
This coming-of-age film is perfect if you take a summer job in need of extra cash and absolutely hate it. James Brennan, played by Jesse Eisenberg, who just graduated from college and plans to set out on an extravagant Europe trip.
However, his parents fall through on the finance part of it, and James is forced to take a job at Adventureland, an amusement park located somewhere in Pennsylvania that is loosely based off the theme park in Farmingdale, New York. James at first detests the job, but learns to accept it as he becomes friends with Joel (Martin Starr) and becomes something more with Em (Kristin Stewart).
1 Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
Wet Hot American Summer takes aim at the overly sexualized movies that were being put out in the '80s and spoofs a camp counselor's experience. Filled with a great cast; Bradley Cooper, Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, and more, the plot follows what happens on the very last day of summer camp and how little time they have in order to complete all of their desired hookups.
If that wasn’t good enough, to add an even more ridiculous element to the plot, a piece of NASA's Skylab is rapidly falling toward Earth and could possibly land right on the campgrounds.
Comments
Post a Comment