With summer right around the corner, students may be looking to get into the spirit of the season with movies that evoke that vibe. There are countless options for nostalgic summer flicks, but here is a list of ten that are particularly good for getting in the summer mood.
10. The Last Summer
The most recent release to make this list is a 2019 Netflix original that showcases different teenagers as they face their last summer before leaving for college. The film highlights how their lives intersect as they explore relationships with themselves and others.
As university students, it is easy to laugh at each character's predictions for what college will be like. There is a unique nostalgia to this film, but it is lower due to its recent release and its
9. Monte Carlo
Released in 2011, this fun adventure comedy stars Selena Gomez and Katie Cassidy, who are best friends, and Leighton Meester, Gomez's stepsister. The three go on a summer vacation to Paris, which goes wrong in many ways when they learn that Gomez looks identical to an heiress from the area. Naturally, she goes to impersonate her, which has mixed results, but ultimately bonds all three girls as sisters.
8. Call Me By Your Name
While this film may have been released in 2017, it is set in Italy in the year 1983, leading to a unique feel. This film follows two young men, ages 17 and 24, as they fall in love over a summer. The uncomfortable age gap leads this film to be lower on the list, but the movie is still a gorgeous queer love story, even if it has a tragic end. An artistic work, this film is sure to help people get in the mood for an angsty or artsy summer.
7. Jaws
A thriller released in 1975, this film focuses on a town as it attempts to hunt a shark with a taste for human blood, who continually attacks beach-goers. While this is not a lighthearted movie, there is a focus on the beach and ocean that can put anyone in a relaxed summer mood, even from the gloominess of unpredictable weather in Ohio. If you enjoy thrillers or sharks, this is the perfect film to kick off your summer.
6. Camp Rock
2008 was a good year for summer movies, because this is the second film from that year to make this list. A Disney Channel original, this story stars Demi Lovato and Joe Jonas in a summer camp focused on music. Jonas is camp royalty, while Lovato's mom has to work in the kitchen to afford to send her. Regardless, the two find their way together and learn that some duets are better than solos throughout a fun-filled summer.
5. The Sandlot
Released in 1993, this classic summer film focuses on a small group of young boys in the summer of 1962 as they get together and play baseball. The nostalgia comes from the themes of growing up, allowing viewers to feel connected to the boys, following a new kid who is being brought into the team. Appropriate for most ages, this baseball-filled adventure comedy is lower on the list only due to some of its slightly outdated aspects, but it is still a great summer movie.
4. High School Musical 2
Arguably the best of the trilogy, the musical was released in 2007, focusing on characters that fans loved after the first film and showing how they spend their summers. With students counting down the bell on the last day of the school year, this movie is certain to garner nostalgic feelings of celebrating school letting out for a few months of freedom. While they may work summer jobs, the movie is summer-saturated, and characters are always singing, leading to a fun viewing.
3. Teen Beach Movie
While 2013 is recent in comparison to many movies on this list, this Disney Channel original manages to hit all the points that many students might be looking for in a summer film. This musical manages to hit a good balance between leaning into the cheese and remaining self-aware.
Starring Ross Lynch and Maia Mitchell as they are sucked into the world of a fictional story and have to try to navigate their way back after messing things up. Along the way, they learn to express their feelings and follow their hearts, whether that leads them to surfing, biking or singing.
2. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
This novel series received its first adaptation in 2005, showcasing four teenage girls who are lifelong best friends as they embark on their first summer apart from one another. The star-studded core four are portrayed by America Ferrara, Blake Lively, Alexis Bledel and Amber Tamblyn, who are said to be all different sizes.
Despite this, they find a pair of pants that fits all of them, and looks fabulous on each girl. They decide to share them equally over the summer, mailing them to each other across the distances. The jeans are with the girls through conflict, grief, new friendships, romances and more, through a summer of sorrow and joy, focusing on the strong female friendships of the core girls. This film is filled with themes of self-acceptance, giving a nostalgic feel to viewers.
1. The Parent Trap
This classic film, starring child actress Lindsay Lohan, was released in 1998. It was a remake of a film released in 1961, and is a rare case of the remake being better than the original. Lohan plays a set of twins separated shortly after birth, one girl going to each parent. When the girls meet at summer camp, they have a rivalry that lands them in a cabin together, where they bond and eventually put together their connection. Both wanting to meet their other parent, the girls decide to switch places, which ends up causing shenanigans for each family.
When their father looks willing to add an evil stepmother, the twins plot to get their parents back together, and shenanigans ensue. From the summer camp to the pool and pond scenes, this movie is inseparable from summer and comes with layers for viewers to enjoy at all ages.
No matter which film puts you in the summer mindset, make sure to enjoy your time off from school. Even if you take summer classes, make sure to enjoy the warm season by carving out time to study by the pool or watching a nostalgic film from your childhood or teenage years.
