The best summer movies to stream on Netflix, Hulu, and more
Is there a definition of a summer film? The term refers to films that are released during the summer, which is a great time to be excited about. Many studios will save some of their most exciting and ambitious movies for this time, so you have the opportunity to cool off in a theatre during hot days.
But that’s not what we’re here for today. We’re here to talk about movies that FeelLike summer. Beach parties, summer camp, hot days — it’s more than a season. It’s a vibe.
Our team of Polygon movie experts has compiled the following 17 movies to be enjoyed this summer. That’s 17 movies for 13 weeks of summer, so the adventurous among you can space it out accordingly. Enjoy!
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House
A group of girls chooses to take a summer vacation at a country mansion. Too bad it’s haunted by ghosts, spirits, and monsters that perfectly blur the lines between silly, surreal, funny, and scary.
Amazon
HBO Max
Whispers from the Heart
If there’s a movie that will make you nostalgic for experiences you’ve never had, it’s this film about one girl’s summer in 1995 Tokyo.
HBO Max
Target
Be there for me
The four young men form an unbreakable friendship and embark on a trek to find the remains of their missing child.
Netflix
Target
A League of Their Own
This fictionalized version of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League’s real story was hugely successful and features an all-star cast including Geena and Tom Hanks.
Amazon
Target
Stray Dog
A collaboration between Toshiro Mizuno and Akira Kurosawa. Two legends in Japanese cinema. Stray DogThe story follows the adventures of a young officer from police, who is unable to use his firearm on a scorching summer day. He becomes increasingly panicky as danger sets in and the heat increases.
Amazon
Target
Tubi
Girls Trip
It’s a hilarious, raunchy comedy that follows friends on a summer vacation. This was Tiffany Haddish’s breakout role.
Amazon
Apple
Target
Vudu
Get Spirited Away
Your summer will probably be less eventful than Chihiro’s, but that doesn’t mean you can’t journey to the Spirit World with her.
HBO Max
Dog Day Afternoon
Al Pacino takes a Brooklyn bank robbery on the hottest of days. But things don’t go according to plan. This leads to long hostage situations and makes for an intense movie.
HBO Max
Target
Rear Window
A suspense-filled Hitchcock classic about a man, recovering from a broken leg, who spends his summer watching other people’s apartment windows and becomes convinced he’s witnessed a crime.
Amazon
Apple
Vudu
All People Want One!
Technically an end-of-summer movie, Richard Linklater’s comedy is set in the 1980s and follows a college baseball team on the last days before school starts.
