9 Best Summer Movies

Here now are my picks for the 9 best summer movies of all time. I don't mean movies that came out in the summer, but movies that epitomize what summer is all about. Without a doubt there will be comments on which movies should have been on the list. Please feel free to share. Yes, "Jaws" is awesome, and takes place over the 4th of July weekend, but fleeing from a shark is not what summer is about. Anyway, save your skin from melanoma, log on to NetFlix, and grab the popcorn.

For every kid who grew up playing any type of sport. "The Sandlot" tells the tale of kids whose summer days were filled to the gills with baseball. This cast of unknowns obvioulsy had a blast playing baseball everyday and ranking on each other. I remember this movie came out right when I was entering high school, but its theme of friendship rang as true to me then as it does today. Look for small parts by comedian Denis Leary and "Darth Vader" himself, James Earl Jones.

Smack-dab in the middle of John Cusack's wheelhouse, this movie is nothing if not summer fun. Cusack, playing a kid trying to get a basketball scholarship, gets roped into a Nantucket boat race, fights with a wealthy developer's offspring, and still has time to romance pre-"Strip Tease" Demi Moore. A convoluted plot, but lots of fun from the guy who guided Cusack through "Better Off Dead." Requisite small part for Cusack's long-time friend, Jeremy Piven.

Bill Murray. Check. Summer camp. Check. Bill Murray as a summer camp counselor who helps the little guys beat the jocks in a camp challenge. Check. One of Murray's first movies after his run on Saturday Night Live, "Meatballs" tells the tale of a shy kid at summer camp who is brought out of his shell by Murray's over the top, fun at any cost, counselor. Of course there are sexy counselors, nerdy kids, and the rich-kid enemy camp across the lake, but its the never give-in attitude that makes for a fun time. You'll long for two weeks at camp after re-visiting this classic.

Yeah, I put this movie on the list mainly because I have a heart. After defending his turf in "Home Alone," Macaulay Culkin discovered a girl and faced his fears in "My Girl." But really this is the story of a girl who's widowed father, who happens to own a funeral home, struggles with her life after the death of her mother. Poignant tales inter-weave between the girl, Vida, her best friend, father, and father's new girlfriend (Jamie Lee Curtis).

Not a block-buster, but this small coming of age story of a teenage boy looking to lose his virginity to a WWII widow is an excellent and worthy summer flick. There are no big stars here, but the young actors who spend their days worrying about getting laid convey the innocence of their youth superbly, despite the realities the rest of the world is undergoing at the same moment. Must see for all teenagers. Garth Brooks is obvioulsy a fan - - see this movie then listen to his "That Summer" and you'll see the similarities.

Yes, Daniel-san, it is a summer movie. The age-less one, Ralph Macchio, as Daniel Larusso, starts this movie with a cross-country moving trip at the end of summer. A fish out of water tale of the new kid falling for the popular kid's girlfriend. LaRusso, in desparate need of self-defense lessons is be-friended and tutored in the ways of karate by the Yoda-like apartment maintenance man. You know the rest, and three sequels later the original still holds up as the best. Bonus points for Banarama's "Cruel Summer" blasting out while Daniel bikes to school. Useless info: It is rumored that Will Smith is getting jiggy with the idea of doing a re-make starring his own son.

It's our time down here! Who didn't want to go on a treasure hunt with their buddies? A bunch of misfits set out to find a rumored pirate treasure, hoping to save their homes from foreclosure and demolition. An excellent cast of 80's stars introduced us to the future Sam Gamgee of "Lord of the Rings," Sean Astin. This really is a movie that you can watch over and over again. Watch it again today.

We actually had a huge station wagon, and we often traveled to Disney World. I can't speak to how my folks felt during such trips, but I know for my brother, sister, and me the mis-adventure of the Griswald's hit close to home. Chevy Chase in the perfect Chevy Chase roll as, Clark Griswald, a dad hell-bent to give his family the best summer vacation ever. The happless journey across country to fictional Wally World is chock-full of hilarious speedbumbs and detours. Randy Quaid pokes his head in as Clark's red neck loser cousin and Christie Brinkley will always be the girl in the red Ferrari.

More than just a hit Ben E. King song, it's really a love letter to the live's of our youth. Four young boys, hanging onto their own sense that time is flying by, head out to find the body of a missing local kid their own age. Along the way they face their failures and share their hopes and dreams, despite the razzing they take from each other. Keifer Sutherland pops up as a local thug and a brief John Cusak cameo help to tie the the friendships together. Rob Reiner directs the boys, and the viewer, in an excellent portrayal of what it means to be best friends, making us long for our friends of summer's past.