Summer is just beginning, which means there is more time to binge-watch. Instead of spending the day in the sun, cuddle up in the comfort of AC, and rot the day away with one of these summer films.
“Call Me By Your Name” (2017)
Set in 1983, Northern Italy, this coming-of-age romance movie is the perfect summer watch. Director Luca Guadagnino follows the romance of 17-year-old Elio Perlman (Timothée Chalamet) and his 24-year-old lover, Oliver (Armie Hammer). Oliver, a graduate student studying archeology with Elio’s father, stays with the Perlmans at their summer home in Italy. As the two spend more and more time together, their chemistry becomes apparent. However, their forbidden romance leads to them sneaking around, searching for seclusion to show their true feelings.
“Crazy Rich Asians” (2018)
Starring Constance Wu as Rachel Chu and Henry Golding as her boyfriend, Nick Young, this romantic comedy takes place in Singapore and centers around Rachel Chu’s attempts to garner the approval of Nick Young’s very particular mother. As the pair of lovers travel from New York to Singapore for Nick’s best friend’s wedding, Rachel is introduced to a whole new world of excess, luxury and judgment from Nick’s family.
“The Parent Trap” (1998)
This 90s classic follows the love story of a divorced couple reunited by their twin daughters, Hallie Parker and Annie James, both played by Lindsay Lohan. The twins, who had each been living with a different parent their entire lives, are reunited at a summer camp. There, they hatch a plan to meet their other parents and reunite them.
“Florida Project” (2017)
This slice of life movie directed by Sean Baker follows the summertime adventures of a six-year-old little girl living in a motel with her unemployed single mother. As she struggles to make ends meet, the little girl tries her best to enjoy the world to the fullest with her friend. With their child-like wonder, the kids enjoy and explore the surrounding world, remaining blissfully ignorant to the woes of their caretakers.
“Little Miss Sunshine” (2006)
Directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, this summertime classic follows a dysfunctional family on a road trip to take their youngest child to compete in a beauty pageant. On their journey from Albuquerque to California, the family is tested through a series of setbacks, forcing them to rely on each other for support and comfort.
“Sisterhood of The Traveling Pants” (2005)
Based on Ann Brashares’ 2001 novel, this movie follows four best friends sharing one pair of perfect pants on their first summer away from each other. Lena Kaligaris (Alexis Bledel), Tibby Rollins (Amber Tamblyn), Carmen Lowell (America Ferrera), and Bridget Vreeland (Blake Lively) are lifelong friends who are all living extremely different summers but remain connected through jeans that magically fit them all. Lena is spending the summer visiting her grandparents, Bridget is attending soccer camp, Carmen is spending some time with her father and Tibby is all by her lonesome at home.
“Jaws” (1975)
Set in a New England beach town, this Steven Spielberg classic thriller follows the investigation and fear of a beach plagued by shark attacks. After a young woman went missing during a beach party, her dead body washed up on the shore of the beach. Authorities concluded she was killed during a shark attack, and after a bounty was placed on the shark, many people went searching for the beast in hopes of receiving the $10,000 award.
“Dazed and Confused” (1993)
Following multiple different teenagers in the 70s on their last day of high school, the film has no central plot but instead connects the stories of various characters. From the graduates hazing the new kids at school to the characters hanging out at the pool hall, this movie is the perfect start to any summer.
“Endless Love” (1981)
Set in the summer of the early 1980s in suburban Chicago, this movie follows the love story of 15-year-old Jade Butterfield (Gabriella Wilde) and 17-year-old David Axelrod (Martin Hewitt). Through a pesky little fire, a nasty divorce, jail time and fighting, these two seem to have every obstacle in the way of their love. However, after years of fighting for their love, David and Jade are reunited in less-than-ideal circumstances to live out their endless love.
“Teen Beach Movie” (2013) & “Teen Beach Movie 2” (2015) — Make it a double feature
Following two surfers on their ‘last summer’ together, Brady (Ross Lynch) and Mack (Maia Mitchell) get transported into the world of the 1960s musical West Side Story, where surfers and bikers are feuding. Spending the duration of the first movie trying to figure out a way out of the musical and back home, the pair realize they need each other and spend the rest of their time together surfing and enjoying each other’s company…until the next movie where those characters they met end up at their home.
“High School Musical 2” (2007)
Following the wise words of Sharpay Evans (Ashly Tisdale), “I want fabulous,” the summer movie is exactly that: absolutely fabulous. Set in the summer following “High School Musical,” Sharpay and her brother Ryan Evans (Lucas Grabeel) retreat to the country club for a summer of singing and swimming. Unbeknownst to them, their entire high school was just hired to work at this country club, including Troy (Zach Efron) and Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens). Sharpay spends the summer trying to steal Troy away from his girlfriend. By the end of summer, the whole school comes together to perform in the country club talent show and play nice with each other.
