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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Pace chapter.

My favorite type of movies would have to be the summertime ones. What I mean by this is a movie that transports you into summer; it makes you feel the sun shining on your skin, the carefreeness of not being in school, and the desire to just be outdoors. Many of the movies on this list are listed in my top four on letterboxd and are constantly being rewatched, all year long.

Aquamarine (2006)

The summer movie of all summer movies. You won’t find a movie that radiates summer more than this one. It’s the coming-of-age story of two teen girls and their newfound friend, who just happens to be a mermaid. They are finding the tricky balance between embracing teen rebellion and holding onto their childlike innocence. It’s filled with young love and the power of friendship. At the end of the day, these girls are family; their love is stronger than any budding romance, even if it’s with the most popular guy in town.

Sandlot (1993)

This 1993 movie never fails to make me cry happy tears. It is the perfect feel-good sports film that leaves you with a smile on your face the whole time. When the new kid in town doesn’t seem to fit in with the other neighborhood kids, the local baseball prodigy takes him under his wing and teaches him the ways of baseball. They’re joined by a wild team of boys that are always getting into trouble, but luckily they always have each other’s backs.

The Parent Trap (1998)

The 1998 Parent Trap, starring Lindsey Lohan, is my favorite of the two Parent Trap movies. It starts off at a summer camp, so it’s destined to make you feel like you are in the prime of summer. I will say, I might be biased, as I love summer camps and grew up not far from Napa, which is where Hallie and her father resided. So, growing up, I always felt a special connection to this movie.

The way way back (2013)

I think this movie deserves way more recognition and popularity than it’s given. It’s one of my all-time favorite movies. After every rewatch, I am left with the burning desire to go work at a waterpark. The connection shown between Duncan (Liam James) and Owen (Sam Rockwell) makes the movie so special.

Surfs up (2007)

This is one of the best movies ever made in my humble opinion. It is the perfect movie because it is entertaining for all ages. I watched it with my four-year-old brother, and we both equally enjoyed and were invested in it. For a long period of time, we would rewatch it together almost every week, as it was both of our favorite movies. The original movie came out in 2007, and the sequel came out almost a decade later, in 2016. Although the sequel is nowhere near as good as the first one, it is still worth a watch.

stand by me (1986)

When I was younger, this movie terrified me. I was terrified of the dead body, however, in my recent years of rewatching, I have found a deep love for this film. I loved following along as the four boys embark on this adventure to discover a supposed dead missing boy. It’s another movie that will never fail to make me cry, but this time, they aren’t happy tears. I loved how the story was told from the perspective of an older writer as he recounts his early childhood years spent with his best friends.

Call Me by Your Name (2017)

This is the heartwarming and gut-wrenching story of a forbidden romance between Elio and Oliver. For the first time ever, I preferred the movie to the book it was based off of. I attribute that solely to the actors. They left me with a desire to visit Italy in summer; to ride my bike around and lay in fields. Timothée Chalamet did a remarkable job with his performance as Elio. 

theater camp (2023)

This is the newest released movie that made it onto my list because I just don’t think the same quality “summer” movies are made anymore. But this movie does just that By transporting us to a theater summer camp. Again, it’s set at a summer camp, which by default, gives you summer energy. The slow pace and mockumentary style makes it extremely different from any other movie on this list. I’m once again biased, as it makes me think of the summer camp that I spend my summers at. Also, Molly Gordan and Ayo Edebiri are both in it, guaranteeing it’s worth the watch. 

Mamma mia! (2008)

This beloved movie transports you instantly to summer in Greece. Ever since my first time watching it, I have dreamed of spending my summers in Greece. The clear distinct color palette makes the movie very aesthetically pleasing. It’s filled with classic ABBA songs, which you will undoubtedly sing along to. This is yet another movie that couldn’t get more summer if it tried. 

Dazed and Confused (1993)

This movie takes place in the span of one day: the last day of school and first day of summer! It’s a tradition of mine to watch it on my last day of school each year. It sets the scene for my whole summer. This movie gives us so many iconic and quotable moments, such as “All right, all right, all right.” 

Cassidy Burry is originally from northern California and is a current sophomore at Pace University. She is majoring in Communications and Media, with a minor in digital storytelling and journalism, and french studies. This is her second year as a member of Her Campus Pace. Throughout her childhood she has collected various magazines, and Vogue in particular has been a great inspiration in her decision to pursue journalism. Cassidy also writes articles for a nonprofit, SisterLove, based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are the first women’s HIV, sexual, and reproductive justice organization in the southeastern United States. She feels honored to help advocate and educate people on the importance of reproductive and health care rights. These rights are extremely important to Cassidy, and ones she will not stop fighting for. Cassidy loves spending time with kids. Over the summer she is a summer camp counselor, at Camp Winnarainbow. Before that she worked at a school program. That involved taking kids, ages four through seven, to different parks, beaches, and other locations native to northern California. They would focus on teaching the kids the importance of the environment and how to leave it better than we found it. They regularly would clean up the beaches and parks they visited. Cassidy has always had a love for her community and giving back. She spent a large majority of her time in high school volunteering at a kitchen and garden that grew and produced meals for chronically ill people and their family. In her free time she works part time as a barista at a local bakery. Cassidy has a deep love for music ranging from all genres. She was actually named after the song “Cassidy '' by the Grateful Dead. She has found that being named after that legendary band has brought meaningful connections to her everyday life. For the majority of her childhood she played competitive soccer. And now that she is no longer playing herself, she looks forward to the Women’s World Cup every four years. She hopes that women in sports will gain more recognition in the future, and will not be seen as second to men’s sport.