Summer as it used to be. In summer movies, it’s summer, sure. But it is not only the weather or the season that makes a summer movie. After all, climate change is not the only reason why we often associate summer with nostalgic feelings.
Summer feeling also means a break from everyday life and time for adventure. Particularly at a young age, the summer vacations are a time of transition and change. But also after school, summer is a time of departure, if only for vacation. Trips often bring special experiences and sometimes adventures.
That’s why summer movies are also about a time of departure and adventure. Still, the weather has to be right, of course. Stay tuned for the 15 best summer movies of all time!
Dirty Dancing (1987)
During the summer vacation of 1963, 17-year-old Francis Houseman (Jennifer Grey), a daughter from a good family and called only “Baby” by her sisters, encountered dance instructor Johnny (Patrick Swayze). Instantly, their desire to dance increases. And when Johnny’s dance partner drops out at an event, “Baby” steps in. Mr Papa is less than thrilled, and the summer love drama takes its course.
La Dolce Vita (1960)
Anita Ekberg in evening dress in the Trevi Fountain in Rome. This must be one of the most legendary scenes in film history, similar to Marilyn Monroe’s subway scene in “The Darned Seventh Year” (1955), which incidentally could also pass for a summer movie.
Yet New York can’t compete with Rome when it comes to summer nostalgia. But it is not only the hot summer nights that make “La Dolce Vita” a summer movie. Tabloid journalist and ladies’ man Marcello Rubini (Marcello Mastroianni) covers all the hotspots of the decadent chic scene in the Italian capital: beaches, squares, cafés, bars, nightclubs.
Fellini’s masterpiece, shot even in black and white, gives a vivid impression of the colorful and the scandalous hustle and bustle of summertime Rome at the end of the 1950s.
Call Me by Your Name (2017)
Let’s Stay in Italy. The precocious 17-year-old Elio Perlman (Timothée Chalamet) spends the summer of 1983 with his Italian-American family in a fashionable villa in northern Italy. Meanwhile, his father, an emeritus professor of archaeology and ancient art history, studies ancient statues.
His well-read son prefers to flirt with his acquaintance Mariza (Esther Garrel). But then, 24-year-old doctoral student Oliver (Armie Hammer), a guest of his father, totally upsets Elio’s feelings. A desire blossoms in Elio throughout an intoxicatingly beautiful summer that will change his life forever. Summery coming-of-age epic about first love with a terrific soundtrack.
The Troops of St. Tropez (1964)
Talking of the Côte d’Azur, older generations are more likely to associate the French Mediterranean coast with St. Tropez than with Cannes. The Mediterranean version of “Willkommen bei den Sch’tis” (2008) was so successful in the mid-1960s that it was followed by five sequels until 1982, featuring the choleric gendarme Ludovic Cruchot (Louis de Funes), whose name in the German dubbed version was Balduin.
The first part sees Balduin transferred from a provincial village to the vibrant high-society seaside resort of St. Tropez, where he is immediately meticulous in taking action against offenders and, above all, declares war on the growing culture of the nude. This summer comedy is entirely tailored to the French comedian Louis de Funes.
The Talented Mr Ripley (1999)
Penniless Tom Ripley (Matt Damon) is commissioned to travel to Italy to persuade young American playboy Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law) to return to the U.S. for family reasons. However, Dickie is more interested in the dolce vita with his fiancée Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow) – soon Tom is too.
The three enjoy the hot summer days in picturesque Italy together. However, Tom becomes increasingly jealous and does not want to be in Dickie’s shadow. Tragedy ensues – giving Tom a new identity…
This five-time Oscar-nominated film, based on Patricia Highsmith’s bestseller of the same name, offers a fascinating mix of gripping thriller and sultry summer film. The human abyss alternates with beautiful landscape and city shots. Italy’s weightless atmosphere, a feeling that the world is at your feet – “The Talented Mr Ripley” playfully conveys all this but is always combined with the feeling of a constant threat.
Even the most beautiful summer eventually comes to an end… A psychodrama, old-fashioned in the best sense of the word, is about a man who is consumed by envy and makes the mat shine.
An Easy Girl (2019)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0NjBayFz9Q
Naïma (Mina Farid) has just turned 16 and lives in posh Cannes with her mother in modest circumstances. School is behind her, and life is ahead of her. In between is a hot, endless summer. Naïma’s cousin Sofia (Zahia Dehar), six years her senior, comes to visit her from Paris.
Sofia, a lover of luxury who shamelessly indulges herself with spendthrift men, takes the inexperienced Naïma under her wing. As Sofia picks up a yacht owner and plans a luxurious trip with him and his friend, the naïve Naïma is also onboard – without suspecting what else is in store for her on the boat trip.
Director and screenwriter Rebecca Zlotowski skillfully play with gender-specific clichés and the audience’s expectations in her relaxed summer film. She can count on a great cast and the Côte d’Azur as a beautiful backdrop.
What About Bob? (1991)
Bob Wiley’s (Bill Murray) summer vacation is similarly messed up. A neurotic, Bob is terrified of bacteria, a virus and, in fact, anything outside of his home. Because his daily mantra of “I’m fine, I’m great, I’m wonderful” does not always work, he frequently requires psychotherapeutic support.
But when his new therapist, Dr Leo Marvin (Richard Dreyfuss), shuts down his practice for the vacations, Bob becomes the lovable stalker on a family vacation. However, in contrast to Monsieur Hulot, Bob is universally loved but puts all the more strain on his neurologist’s nerves.
In July (2000)
Yet another summer trip across Europe: Daniel (Moritz Bleibtreu), a conservative teacher, resolves to follow his supposedly great love, who he hardly knows, across Europe from Hamburg to Istanbul in the summer.
Alternative jewelry dealer Juli (Christiane Paul) is not entirely innocent in this fantasy of great love. Daniel and Juli involuntarily embark on a breakneck journey together, which brings the unlikely couple together.
Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
Return to the 21st century, production-wise at least. For in terms of content, this Summer Movie is also a nostalgic trip back to the 80s. Back in 2001, the parody of typical 80s teen sex comedies like “Popsicle,” “Porky’s”, or “I Think I’m Standing in the Woods” was quite a flop in theaters.
However, it became a cult film over the years, featuring many now-famous faces from film and television, including, for instance, Bradley Cooper (“A Star is Born”) in his first role, Paul Rudd (“Ant-Man”), Christopher Meloni (“Happy”) and Elizabeth Banks (“Pitch Perfect”). The action takes place on the last day at a summer camp in 1981.
Netflix has made two eight-part miniseries out of the iconic comedy: The prequel series is set on the first day of summer camp (i.e., before the movie), and the sequel series is set ten years after. In both series, most of the cast from the feature film are back.
Y Tu Mamá También – Lust for Life (2001)
“Y Tu Mamá También”, as the original title, a Mexican youth drama by Alfonso Cuarón. This master director was already nominated for an Oscar with “Lust for Life.” Still, he is best known for his Oscar-winning films “Gravity” and “Roma” – and, of course, the dystopian sci-fi drama “Children of Men.”
In “Lust for Life,” two teenage friends, Tenoch (Diego Luna) and Julio (Gael García Bernal), dream up a remote dream beach to persuade attractive Luisa (Maribel Verdú) to take a trip to the sea. Unsurprisingly, she accepts. A charming road trip from Mexico City to the sea, where, after lots of tequila and marijuana, sexual escapades and quarrels, they find a secluded beach.
Stand by Me (1986)
In this adventure story based on a tale by Stephen King, four teenagers, Gordie (Wil Wheaton), Chris (River Phoenix), Teddy (Corey Feldman) & Vern (Jerry O’Connell), set out on a summer hike. A day or so’s walk from their small hometown is supposed to be the body of a boy who was hit and killed by a train.
Their friends want to be hailed as heroes when they recover the missing boy’s body. The adventures on the way there will probably not be forgotten by the four twelve-year-olds for the rest of their lives. And for the viewer, the film will also awaken many a youthful memory of more or less adventurous experiences during the summer vacations.
The Endless Summer (1966)
Summer, sun, beach and surfing: Who does not associate the surfer lifestyle with a perfect summer? “The Endless Summer” was one of the first surf movies at a time when the Beach Boys were storming the US charts and delivering the ultimate summer soundtrack.
However, the music for the film is by the surf rock band The Sandals. Set to a soundtrack that could have come from a Tarantino film, the film follows surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August around the world. Starting in California, they tour beaches worldwide: From Africa to Australia and New Zealand to Tahiti and Hawaii and back to California again.
“The Endless Summer” is regarded as a pioneer of surf travel to the world’s most remote beaches, searching for the perfect wave. Aside from the two sequels, “The Endless Summer II” (1994) and “Step Into Liquid” (2003), showing the evolution of the surf sport and lifestyle since the first film, this documentary has also had a significant influence, extending to films such as “Dangerous Surf” and “The Beach.”
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Similar but a bit weirder, it goes on: Wes Anderson makes us in “Moonrise Kingdom” witness an adventurous summer on a small island off the coast of New England: unnoticed by their surroundings, orphan and scout Sam (Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kara Hayward), who is ignored by her family, fall for each other.
During the summer of 1965, the teens elope, sparking a hysterical search by the local Boy Scouts and village police officer Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis). The youth welfare office even gets involved. To make matters worse, a massive summer thunderstorm is brewing.
My Girl (1991)
In this heart-wrenching comedy about 11-year-old Vada’s (Anna Chlumsky) special summer, the adolescent brat first falls madly in love with her teacher. Then, she must also contend with her father’s (Dan Aykroyd) new girlfriend (Jamie Lee Curtis). But eventually, it turns into a romantic summer after all as Vada experiences her very first love with her bosom friend Thomas J. (Macaulay Culkin).
Before Sunrise (1995)
Summer travel through Europe by train is a classic youth dream in the USA and Europe itself. Young American Jesse (Ethan Hawke) has made a dream come true. On a train from Budapest to Vienna, the chatty American meets Celine’s no less talkative Frenchwoman (Julie Delpy).
The two immediately feel attracted to each other. Jesse persuades Celine to get off the train with him in Vienna. They roam together through the night in the wonderfully summery Danube metropolis until Jesse has to take a plane back to the U.S. the next morning.
