In Your Summer Era: 20 Films For Your Every Summer Self
Collage of stills featuring Alain Delon, Romy Schneider and Jane Birkin in La Piscine (1969); Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel in 500 Days of Summer (2009); Timothée Chalamet and Michael Stuhlbarg in Call Me by Your Name (2017); Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday (1953), directed by William Wyler.
What constitutes the perfect summer movie? Some of the best movies are set during the summer, and it's no surprise why — truly nothing compares to those long, unstructured days and cool, breezy nights. As sizzling hot days approach, we all have a choice to make as to what our summer identity will be, and today we’re rounding up some key titles in a watchlist packed with summer romance, coastal towns, summer camp, ill-advised adventures, and of course, Timothée Chalamet.
Eurosummer
TikTok’s latest aspirational trend, albeit packaged quite narrowly, tends to orbit the idea of a summer spent in Italy, Greece, and France. Picture this: dancing along cobbled pathways after a dip in the Mediterranean, clutching to the back of someone on a Vespa as you soar through the streets of Rome, working through isolation while restlessly travelling through the Alps. If your idea of a good time is head-to-toe linen and a headscarf, you may be familiar with Eurosummer — the official idealised summer aesthetic of endless sunshine, al fresco seafood lunches, and absolutely nothing to do except stroll along the French Riviera or Amalfi Coast. It’s main-character energy at its most glamorous, and especially ideal for those looking to romanticise their aperol-spritz filled afternoons.
Roman Holiday (William Wyler, 1953)
The Green Ray (Éric Rohmer, 1986)
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Woody Allen, 2008)
Mamma Mia! (Phyllida Lloyd, 2008)
Indie Summer
If the crystal blue Mediterranean and scorching heat sound great to you, but you crave some circa 2017 Timothée Chalamet with your summer days, you may be part of the indie summer community. Call Me by Your Name is arguably the most quintessential summer film, brimming with first love and heartbreak, 1980s nostalgia, and a northern Italian villa. Expect long days spent lounging in the grass, contemplating what it means to be alive. Don’t forget to have an identity crisis, or fix a fractured family dynamic. Within this slice of summer, we’ll take the search for belonging over a forced happy ending, any day. To have an indie summer is to feel in an all-consuming way: the profound, the boredom, the joy, and the pain.
Boyz n the Hood (John Singleton, 1991)
Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson, 2012)
Call Me by Your Name (Luca Guadagnino, 2017)
The Florida Project (Sean Baker, 2017)
Road Trip Energy
Pack your bags and cue the perfect playlist, the summer road-trip film is for adventurous, chaotic, and spontaneous sun-soaked days. More focused on the journey rather than the destination, road-trip energy promises self-discovery, and is often wrapped in memorable characters, hilarious moments, and the sense that anything can happen at any time. Summer is for travelling and experiencing unforeseen freedom. Expect to get into trouble — only to find yourself getting out of it in the most unexpected ways.
Jaws (Steven Spielberg, 1975)
Shark Tale (Rob Letterman, Bibo Bergeron, Vicky Jenson, 2004)
Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (Paul Hoen, 2010)
The Way, Way Back (Jim Rash, Nat Faxon, 2013)
Coming-of-Age
Within the sun-kissed zeitgeist of summer films, one genre stands above for perfectly pairing the wistfulness for sweltering days with the sense of freedom and possibility that comes with it, and that is the coming-of-age. Perhaps because summer brings graduation season, and with that protagonists on the brink of independence, as well as the possibility of heartbreak. Long, unsupervised days offer the ideal landscape for chaotic escapades and reckless quests. This setting extends the ideal backdrop for thoughtful reflection and transformative growth. If you’re after a summer of change or engaging in youthful rebellion, watch these films.
Stand by Me (Rob Reiner, 1987)
The Parent Trap (Nancy Meyers, 1998)
Booksmart (Olivia Wilde, 2019)
Aftersun (Charlotte Wells, 2022)
Summer of Love
Summer can be sizzling-hot in more ways than one. It’s Meryl Streep, choosing between love and personal growth in East Africa; Patrick Swayze thrusting and swaying, and Jennifer Gray crawling across the floor to the best ‘80s soundtrack; an unlikely bond between two Yorkshire teenagers who discover they can be more than friends. Sweaty days of salt-coated skin and ice cream cones give way to sultry nights of dreamy romances. Plus, there’s nothing like the fashion of a summer romance movie: crisp white tees, denim cut-offs, makeshift crop tops, and bohemian swimwear abound.
La Piscine (Jacques Deray, 1969)
Out of Africa (Sydney Pollack, 1985)
Dirty Dancing (Emile Ardolino, 1987)
500 Days of Summer (Marc Webb, 2009)
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