Monday, February 11, 2013

SUMMER SCHOOL (1987)

Carefree gym instructor Mark Harmon is ready for some summer vacation!  He's got tickets to Hawaii for him and his hot girlfriend, he's got his Hawaiian shirt, he's got his sunglasses, he's got his leis around his neck and right as the bell rings...he's blackmailed into teaching summer school.  On top of that, his girlfriend dumps him.  Resigned to his fate, he meets his students and they're a bunch of losers, but at least they're entertaining losers.

Maybe it's because I first saw SUMMER SCHOOL when I was still a kid and I actually visualized high school would be like this, but for whatever reason I love this movie.  The school setting (I'm almost positive it's the same high school from THE KARATE KID) is bright and sunny, Shawnee Smith, the beach scenes are pretty, the character development are entertaining, two of the students love THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE series (one even has images and a button from THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2 on his bedroom wall, plus a number of other awesome horror posters!), 80's music, a MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL reference, an Iron Maiden "Life After Death" shirt, the rivalry between Harmon and the vice principal isn't overly mean-spirited and seems pretty realistic, they go on field trips, plenty of hot babes.  Even after dozens of viewings this summer school is still fun!  SUMMER SCHOOL is one of those movies that I can just watch over and over and always enjoy it.

If you're a fan of light-hearted 80's comedies then you'll probably enjoy SUMMER SCHOOL.  Only sad note: no nudity.

[Updated 2022: If you love this movie, then check out the audio commentary on the blu-ray. Trust me.]