These Classic Summer Movies Are The Send-Off This Season Deserves

Not sure how we all missed it, but we apparently entered some time-space-continuum wormhole this year whereby each month flies by faster than the one before it. And now here we are, with a week until summer officially ends. Of course, no one’s mad about the arrival of fall (bring on the cozy books and pumpkin spice lattes), but still… you want to give summer a proper send-off. And what better way to do that than by soaking up the last lazy, hazy days you’ve got left in the season watching some classic summer movies?

You know the type: These are the movies that, even if they span several seasons, they just feel quintessentially summery. Maybe you watched them every summer growing up, or they came out during that one summer we all have — the summer full of core memories that seems like it’ll last forever, but that we didn’t realize at the time would be the last great summer of adolescence.

No matter how these movies found you, they’ll always represent the best of summer in your mind. So, let’s celebrate what’s left of it with this oh-so-nostalgic watch list.

The Best of the Best

1. The Sandlot (1993)

It’s the summer of 1962, and Scotty Smalls is the new kid in town. But when Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez, a young baseball phenom, introduces him to baseball, life changes for Smalls forever. If you and your friends/siblings didn’t all have a crush on a different character in this movie, were you even a ‘90s kid? And as summer movies go, this one may just be the most quotable.

2. Cocktail (1988)

Tom Cruise plays fast-talking NYC bartender Brian Flanagan, who moves to Jamaica and falls in love with artist Jordan Mooney (Elisabeth Shue). But Brian’s baser qualities get the best of him when he takes a bet with his old bartending mentor, Doug Coughlin, to sleep with a wealthy older woman and blow Jordan off. More dram-com than rom-com, but the summer essence is still strong with this one.

3. How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998)

Can we take a minute to marvel over the fact that this movie came out nearly three decades ago and Angela Bassett, who stars as the titular character, still looks the same? The woman is a work of art. This movie also takes us to Jamaica, where successful 40-something Stella goes on vacation and meets handsome young islander Winston (Taye Diggs). And, well, let’s just say things get steamy as Stella starts to get the hang of work-life balance.

4. Weekend at Bernie’s (1989)

If you’re living that “nothing will stand in the way of my vacation” life, Weekend at Bernie’s should resonate deeply with you. Somehow, this cinematic treasure from the ‘80s managed to take a totally macabre idea — salesmen Richard (Jonathan Silverman) and Larry (Andrew McCarthy) pretend their dead boss is still alive — and make it hilarious, fun, and lighthearted.

5. Summer School (1987)

I feel 100% certain I had no business watching this movie as much as I did growing up, but here we are. In it, high-school gym teacher Freddy Shoop (Mark Harmon) gets tasked with teaching remedial English in summer school. Freddy is unenthusiastic about the gig, at best — until he realizes the underachievers in his class actually have a lot to offer. It’s kind of like The Breakfast Club meets Stand and Deliver… only less emo and at the beach.

6. The Great Outdoors (1988)

Few things feel more summery than vacationing in a cabin by a lake. In The Great Outdoors, family man Chet Ripley (John Candy) is determined to relive the good old days at Pine Lodge Resort with his family. When his brother Roman (Dan Aykroyd) crashes the trip with his family, though, things go sideways fast. The hilarity and chaos that ensue are peak summer travel vibes.

7. Dirty Dancing (1987)

Nobody puts Baby in the corner! This classic film takes place during the summer of 1963 at Kellerman’s in the Catskill Mountains. There, Frances “Baby” Houseman (Jennifer Grey) meets and falls in love with camp dance instructor Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze), ultimately leading to a very dramatic dance moment at the movie’s end. Arguably the movie’s greatest contribution to society? The iconic lift, attempted in lakes and swimming pools across America by countless ‘90s kids.

8. Y Tu Mamá También (2001)

In this coming-of-age film, best friends Julio (Gael García Bernal) and Tenoch (Diego Luna) find themselves in an interesting situation: on a road trip with Maribel Verdú (Luisa Cortés), the wife of Julio’s cousin. She’s just found out about her husband’s latest affair and decides to take the best friends up on their offer to road trip to a remote beach in Mexico. The problem? They made it up to impress her. As they head off to destination unknown, they all learn a lot about friendship, sexuality, each other, and themselves.

9. The Goonies (1985)

If you saw the word Goonies and immediately heard “Hey, you guyyyys!” in your head, you’re my kind of people. In this adventure, a group of kids living in Astoria, Oregon, find their families facing foreclosure due to an encroaching development. So, when they come across an old treasure map, they do the only logical thing: go off in search of the loot that could save their homes. There are booby traps, skeletons, a pirate ship, the awkward crushes of adolescence… what more could you want?

10. Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead (1991)

When I watched this in my youth, I wished I could be like teen Sue Ellen Crandell (Christina Applegate), whose mom takes off to Europe for the summer and leaves her at home. Now that I’m a mom myself, I envy Sue Ellen’s mom. Summer in Europe? Yes, please! A summer at home taking care of my four siblings and ultimately having to go to work to support everyone when the babysitter unexpectedly croaks? Hard pass.

11. Friday (1995)

For starters, Friday has an all-star cast: Ice Cube, Chris Tucker, Nia Long, Tom Lister Jr, John Witherspoon, Regina King, Faizon Love… the list goes on. But there’s something that feels undeniably summery about a movie that’s really about doing a whole lot of, well, nothing. Just hanging around. Getting in trouble. Talking trash. Pure shenanigans. If summer was a quote, it would be “It’s Friday, you ain’t got no job, and you ain’t got sh*t to do.”

The Best of the Rest

1. The Wood (1999)
2. E.T. (1982)
3. Thelma & Louise (1991)
4. The Parent Trap (1998)
5. Jaws (1975)
6. Grease (1978)
7. The Inkwell (1994)
8. Stand By Me (1986)
9. Under the Tuscan Sun (2003)
10. Summertime (1955)
11. Mamma Mia! (2008)
12. The Man in the Moon (1991)
13. Before Sunrise (1995)
14. Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
15. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
16. A Goofy Movie (1995)
17. Dazed and Confused (1993)
18. I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
19. My Girl (1991)
20. The Endless Summer (1966)
21. Flipper (1996)
22. Blue Crush (2002)
23. Billy Madison (1995)
24. A League of Their Own (1992)
25. National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983)
26. Now and Then (1995)
27. The Notebook (2004)
28. Camp Nowhere (1994)
29. What About Bob? (1991)
30. Empire Records (1995)
31. The Karate Kid (1984)
32. Andre (1994)
33. Point Break (1991)
34. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)

What else would you add to the list?