Summer School (1987)

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Summer School was definitely an underrated film. From the very beginning of the movie when "Happy" by Oingo Boingo starts playing, it definitely sets the tone for the entire movie; a summer full of adventure, excitement, homework (blah!), rebellious teens and a teacher who can turn them all around, in a very comedic and entertaining way.Summer School stars Mark Harmon as Freddie Shoop, an unambitious gym teacher who has plans to go to Hawaii with his girlfriend Kim, until the "bite in the ***" vice principal Gills springs summer school upon him right before he's about to leave. With a cast of misfit teens who refuse to learn, Freddie is forced to bribe them into doing their work and passing, and the hilarity begins.While a lot of the comedic aspects are somewhat cheesy (the good 80s kind), they still make you laugh and there are some touching (yet comedic) moments throughout the movie. Those of us who grew up in the 80s and/or early 90s were able to enjoy this flick while it was fresh. I think even the newer generation could enjoy this film and see what we found so entertaining about it. It has "passion and a plucky spirit!" If you're looking for something different, look no further! This movie will give you a few good laughs and even keep your attention until the end. Even after all of these years, I still make sure to watch this once or twice a year. It really never gets old, and nostalgia is only about a 10% factor for me.A great soundtrack, a funny mood, teenage shenanigans, lovable characters, and fun in the sun will definitely keep you entertained!

Phys-ed teacher Freddy Shoop (Mark Harmon) is set to leave for Hawaiian vacation when he's forced to teach the remedial English summer school. He's even less motivated than the students. The class includes flirty Pam (Courtney Thorne-Smith), sleepy Larry (Ken Olandt), football jock Kevin (Patrick Labyorteaux), pregnant Rhonda (Shawnee Smith), geek Alan (Richard Steven Horvitz), sassy Denise (Kelly Jo Minter), giant black guy Jerome (Duane Davis), Italian transfer student Anna-Maria (Fabiana Udenio), horror fanatics Dave (Gary Riley) and Francis aka 'Chainsaw' (Dean Cameron). Mr. Shoop keeps flirting with fellow teacher Robin Bishop (Kirstie Alley) who is actually dating Vice Principal Phil Gills (Robin Thomas).I love this movie and I don't care if it's critically panned. It's charming light fun with a little dig at the education system. I love all the characters. The kids are a fun group. Mark Harmon is perfect as a laid-back teacher. I think some critics are looking for something edgy from director Carl Reiner. These are slacker characters who find their inner voices. These are fun nice characters.

Gym teacher Freddy Shoop (Mark Harmon) is watching the clock as the last day of school wanes. He and his beautiful young girlfriend are going to Hawaii on an extended vacation. But, alas, an instructor (Carl Reiner, who also directed this laughfest) scratches off 50 big ones on a lottery ticket and informs the principals that he won't be teaching summer school after all. This bombshell arrives when teachers are getting in their cars and driving out of the parking lot. Vice Principal Gill (Robin Thomas) manages to corral ONE teacher only in the lot, Freddy. Using some direct manipulation as to Mr. Shoop's future employment, Gill forces Freddy to stay and teach remedial English. Horrors! On the first day of the summer session, Freddy is not surprised that none of his students want to listen to him and that teaching them anything will be a challenge. However, next door, there is a very pretty new teach, Robin (Kirstie Alley), who has an honors history class. Although she is quite friendly, Robin is reluctant to accept Freddy's obvious attentions. This is because, Shoop learns, she has begun dating Gill. Horrors again! Willing to try anything to get out of actual teaching, Freddy takes his class on field trips to amusement parks and petting farms. Naturally, this almost gets him fired so Shoop makes a deal with Gill. IF he gets all of his students to pass the final examination, he can keep his job. With students like Chainsaw, a goof-off, Larry, an exotic dancer by night and a dozer by day, and a dyslectic young lady, will Freddy make it happen? This is a fun film, perfect for rainy days during summer vacation for teens. Yes, there is some objectionable material involving bad language and sexual innuendo that will not please all viewers. But, there's lot of humor, too, and a wonderful soundtrack that keeps the energy flowing. The cast is very nice, too, with Harmon doing a great slacker-teacher turn and the rest keeping pace. Especially fine are the young, teenage thespians who light up the screen. Of course, the setting in California is also gorgeous, while costumes, photography, and dialogue go beyond typical youth-oriented material. In short, you should sign up for this summer school. It will not remotely make you miserable.

This is a really silly teen movie, where all the teens are well into their twenties, as usual for Hollywood. I guess it was trying to hitch a ride on the success of "The Breakfast Club" two years earlier, but it lacks that cult classic's poignancy and dark humor. This one, about a gym teacher shanghaied into teaching remedial English instead of going to Hawaii, has its amusing moments, but basically is entirely predictable, and the characters are so shallow it's hard to care what happens to them, even for an hour and a half. I doubt that Phys Ed teachers, who have to graduate from college just like every other teacher, and who've always seemed to me like a decent bunch of people, would much appreciate the implication that they are all dummies. Oh well... For all you J.A.G. fans, you get to see Patrick Labyorteaux a decade before he became Bud Roberts.