Since the sun has finally decided to bless us with its presence, and people are beginning to get sunburns, ice cream cones, and mosquito bites, I think it’s safe to say summer is officially here.
Personally, I enjoy watching movies that reflect the seasons we are currently in. So I’ve decided to curate a summer watchlist for you. Some evoke a summer feeling, of a sun-baked city or a shimmering lake, a hot summer night or a hot, dry, and deserted America.
1. Falcon Lake (2023)
The first film on the list is Falcon Lake (2023) directed by Charlotte Le Bon. This is one of my favorite movies, introduced to me by one of my close friends who knows my taste in movies better than I do. This beautiful, atmospheric, and eerie French-Canadian film is set in cottage country. Barely fourteen-year-old Bastien (played by Joseph Engel) and his family are staying at their family friends’ cottage. The sixteen-year-old daughter of the other family, Chloe (played by Sarah Montpetit), begins to bond over the summer. Seemingly innocent, the film has a darkness to it lurking in the shadows.
2. Real Women Have Curves (2002)
I won’t say too much about this film, but you can visit my previous post about it: Is Lady Bird the Whitewashed Version of Real Women Have Curves. The film Real Women Have Curves (2002), directed by Patricia Cardoso, takes place in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, following Ana (played by America Ferrera) after her high school graduation.
3. Mustang (2015)
Mustang (2015), directed by Deniz Gamze Ergüven, is set in the stunning northern Turkish countryside. Five sisters navigate life as they, one by one, come of age under a strict upbringing and the expectation of marriage. The film revolves around the powerful bond between the sisters and what they are willing to do for each other. This is an example of a foreign film that introduces you to a young girl’s experiences that may be very different from yours, and in other ways similar. I discuss this in my post Why Watching Films About Women Matters More Than Ever
4. American Honey (2016)
American Honey (2016) follows a teenage girl, Star (played by Sasha Lane), who meets Jake (played by Shia LaBeouf), a magazine salesman on a traveling sales team. He invites her to come along and work with them. In an attempt to escape her toxic mother and bad home life, she joins him on their roadside adventure. Director Andrea Arnold paints a beautiful and raw coming-of-age story of Star and all the very real characters she meets along the way across the country.
5. Ghost World (2001)
Ghost World (2001), directed by Terry Zwigoff, is another story set in th summer after graduation about a teenage Scarlett Johansson (Rebecca) and Thora Birch (Enid) floating through life, with all sorts of quirky mishaps and characters they meet along the way.
6. It Follows (2014)
It Follows (2014), directed by David Robert Mitchell. Is an atmospheric, psychological horror movie with one of my favorite Scream Queens, Maika Monroe. It Follows, I truly believe in going into horror movies blind, so I am not giving you much to go off here other than it has a summery feeling to it (at least in a couple of scenes?) and that’s why I’ve included it on this list, but really it’s because I love this movie and you should too.
7. 3 Women (1977)
3 Women (1977) is a Robert Altman classic, but more importantly, it stars two 70s icons: Sissy Spacek (as Pinky) and Shelley Duvall (as Millie). Taking place in a motel apartment complex in a deserted Californian town, a psychological drama between two girls working at an old folks home. Pinky is shy and awkward and follows around a chatty Millie until one day, the tables turn.
8. Stealing Beauty (1996)
If you want to feel like you’re living in the Tuscan countryside for 116 minutes, this movie is for you. Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, starring Liv Tyler as Lucy and Jeremy Irons as Alex. Stealing Beauty (1996) may not have the strongest messaging, but it has all the vibes. A young Lucy spends the summer staying with family friends in a Tuscan villa, in the hopes of meeting a boy. She makes connections with the people staying at the villa, navigates summer romances, and forms an unlikely bond with the older man staying with them.
9. Water Lilies (2007)
Directed by Celine Sciamma , Water Lilies (2007) is a coming-of-age film that takes place in a French suburb over the summer, following a tween named Marie (played by Pauline Accquart) who tries to join the local pool’s synchronized swimming team in an attempt to get closer to Floriane (played by Adele Haenel) who she is mesmorized by.
10. Aftersun (2022)
Aftersun (2002) is perfect for a feeling-blue kinda summer day, directed by Charlotte Wells. A young father named Calum (played by Paul Mescal) takes his 11-year-old daughter Sophie (played by Frankie Corio)on a vacation. Through the lens of a young Sophie, this film focuses on memory rather than plot, with darker underlying themes, if you need abreak from the summer heat, stay in and cry with this film.
11. Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)
Ending it off with an absolute classic comfort film that I hold very close to my heart. Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005) is directed by Ken Kwapis and features an iconic cast: America Ferrera as Carmen, Alexis Bledel as Lena, Blake Lively as Bridget, and Amber Tamblyn as Tibby. The film follows four best friends who one day find a pair of mysterious jeans that magically fit all four of them perfectly. So, as they spend their summers apart, they send their jeans from friend to friend, each along with letters sharing their summer adventures.
I hope this list of films (all very different vibes, of course) serves you well when you’re at a loss for what to watch on a hot summer night. And I can’t wait to talk more about these in detail.
Till next time, dolls!
Anatomy of a Doll 