06/10/10

Growing up I never watched too much television. In fact, not until I was in middle school did I even put the baseballs and bikes and basketballs down until bedtime. But, once VHS tapes became affordable and my family got cable (circa 1993ish), everything changed. Suddenly, summers weren’t just about sports and sleeping in. I could watch movies late into the night. I could watch movies during the afternoon. My friends and I could be sneaky and watch R-rated movies while our parents worked. Also, I was lucky enough to grow up in a place where I could easily ride my bike to a theater (this back when movies were $4.25). 

Since I like to think of most things in accordance to season, the warm weather of late has me thinking about all of those summers past. All of those summers and all of those movies. So, about two weeks ago, I started compiling a list of my favorite “summertime” movies. I quickly realized that a huge number of movies fall into this category. First, we have the big summer blockbusters - the popcorn flicks that cost tons to make and are usually panned by critics. These movies remind me of summer. Then we have the baseball movies, which, of course, definitely remind American me of summer. Teen movies that often take place over summer break or towards the end of the school year - you know the ones. And, of course, movies that just simply feel like summer - this likely because they’re shot in or around California.

And yes, before you say it, some of these movies are kind of cheesy. Who cares. And some of them might only remind me of summer because that’s when they came out. Who cares. And some of them are big, loud, dumb studio creations. Big deal. And no, we’re not saying that this is the order in which we regard these films. Not even close. These are our favorite films to watch on hot days (or when dreaming of hot days). So, here we go, ScreenTime’s Top 50 Summertime Movies:

50. Half Baked; 49. Can’t Hardly Wait; 48. Rumble in the Bronx; 47. I Know What You Did Last Summer; 46. Summer School; 45. Caddyshack; 44. Con Air; 43. Can’t Buy Me Love; 42. Grease; 41. The Blair Witch Project; 40. Armageddon (!!!); 39. Forrest Gump; 38. Mission Impossible; 37. Repo Man; 46. Swingers; 35. American Pie; 34. A League of Their Own; 33. Rush Hour; 32. Crooklyn; 31. The Rock; 30. Iron Man 2; 29. The Burbs; 28. Clueless; 27. Eight Men Out; 26. Revenge of the Nerds

25. Iron Man; 24. European Vacation; 23. Pineapple Express; 22. The Sure Thing; 21. National Lampoon’s Vacation; 20. Signs; 19. Stand By Me; 18. The Sandlot; 17. Terminator 2: Judgment Day; 16. Sugar; 15. Wet Hot American Summer; 14. Encino Man; 13. Superbad; 12. Major League; 11. The Wackness; 10. Slacker; 9. George Washington; 8. White Men Can’t Jump; 7. Friday; 6. Say Anything

5. Adventureland (Greg Mottola) - The most recent film of our Top 10, Mottola’s post-Juno coming-of-age classic makes pretty much every flick in the Apatow family tree look bad. The story is simple: guy graduates college and needs to save money for grad school; he gets a stupid job, makes friends, meets a girl, learns about himself and, of course, it all comes to a head. Simple. What stands out is not just the pure 1980s summerness of it all, but the style. The music. The cinematography. The performances. Adventureland, a cousin to any 80s Cusack movie (as well as Superbad and Knocked Up), is the absolute best of its kind.

4. Die Hard with a Vengeance (John McTiernan) - I remember seeing this action classic on the first sticky hot day of 1995. My freshman year of high school was almost over and me and my cronies were ready for anything. We saw this big, loud, awesome action flick multiple times before we started our sophomore years … and I still watch it somewhat often to this day - though usually on the coldest day of the winter, when I’m dreaming of summer. Big action done right.

3. Kids (Larry Clark) - A bunch of sweaty young heathens walking around New York City, simultaneously dodging and embracing trouble at every turn, rocked my world. I snuck into this movie with nervous, sweaty hands and a McDonalds cheeseburger in each pocket. I thought I was a rebel … and then I saw Kids. This was my favorite movie of 1995 and my 11th favorite movie of the 1990s. Needless to say, it holds up. Beautifully filmed, wonderfully written, shocking and wholly original. Oh, and what a killer soundtrack!

2. Dazed and Confused (Richard Linklater) - There might not be a better high school film ever made. A bunch of stoner kids hang out and party after the last day of school in 1976. Funny, relatable and incredibly enjoyable from the opening frame to the credits.

1. Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee) - This is, without a doubt, the sweatiest, stickiest movie ever. It’s so sweaty that the plot (racial tension in Bed-Stuy in the late 1980s) is pushed along by the hot weather of the single day the film takes place over. I could go on and on about this, director Spike Lee’s masterpiece. But, well, just go see it if you haven’t in a while (or, gasp, ever). It’s not just ScreenTime’s favorite summertime film, it’s our favorite film of the 1980s and one of our favorites of all-time.

Written by G. William Locke