Beat the Heat with Summer Movies

As the mercury hits 100 degrees in parts of the country, now might be a good time to stay indoors and watch a classic summer movie. Here are a few of our top picks.

Thrills and Chills

From traditional slasher fare like 1980's "Friday the 13th" to 2019's mind-bending "Midsommar," there is no shortage of scary summer flicks.

If you prefer creature features, look no further than Steven Spielberg's classic "Jaws," which terrified audiences upon its release in the summer of 1975. The film remains a cautionary tale of what can happen when officials ignore public health threats rather than risk losing business.

If you like your monsters to come from outer space, then check out 1996's blockbuster "Independence Day." For a double dose of '90s nostalgia, top off the night with 1997's teen horror classic "I Know What You Did Last Summer."

Just for Laughs

In 1979, Ivan Reitman's "Meatballs" launched Bill Murray's film career and spurred a new film genre – the summer camp comedy. Decades later, 2001's "Wet Hot American Summer" took the genre to a new level of absurdity. If you prefer a more family-friendly camp flick, check out "The Parent Trap," either the 1961 original starring Hayley Mills or the 1998 remake with Lindsay Lohan.

If summer camp isn't your scene, then you may prefer Bill Murray as groundskeeper Carl Spackler in 1980's "Caddyshack," directed by Harold Ramis. The film explores class conflict at the elite Bushwood Country Club, as the loudmouthed nouveau riche Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield) riles up the dignified regulars, including the uptight Judge Elihu Smails (Ted Knight).

No summer is complete without a road trip, so pile the family into the station wagon and head to Walley World vicariously through the Griswolds by watching 1983's "National Lampoon's Vacation," another Harold Ramis classic. You also may want to get away to "Fire Island," streaming on Hulu and featuring scenes filmed at Broadway Stages.

If you would rather stay put and reminisce about summers of old, check out 1993's "Dazed and Confused" for a nostalgic but hilarious trip down memory lane.

Dramatic Fare

Summer is a time of growth and transition for school-aged children, so it is no surprise that many coming-of-age films take place when the days are longest. In the 1960s, "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "The Graduate" examined fateful summers that would forever change the lives of the children and young adults who lived through them. Since then, many films have reexamined summers from that tumultuous era. In 1973, a then-unknown George Lucas looked back at his teenage years with "American Graffiti," which follows various groups of teenagers cruising around town on the last night of summer break in 1962. Other films exploring that era include 1986's "Stand by Me," 1987's "Dirty Dancing," 1993's "The Sandlot," and 2012's "Moonrise Kingdom." For a 21st century take on the summer subgenre, check out 2013's "The Way, Way Back."

Spike Lee has directed his share of hard-hitting summer-set dramas, including the semi-biographical "Crooklyn," about a young girl with several brothers growing up in Brooklyn in the summer of 1973. Lee's pivotal 1989 classic "Do the Right Thing" explores racial tension in the borough that boils over into violence on a hot summer day.

For true crime drama, check out Lee's 1999 film "Summer of Sam," which takes place in the Bronx during the summer of 1977, when serial killer David Berkowitz was on his murdering spree. For more New York-set true crime drama, watch 1975's "Dog Day Afternoon," inspired by a Brooklyn bank robbery gone terribly wrong on a scorching hot day in August 1972.

That’s it for now folks.  We hope you enjoy summer and keeping cool with a few fun flicks!