8 Summer Films On Netflix You Should Be Watching

Next time you load up Netflix, why not go in with an actual film in mind, instead of scrolling for 30 minutes? We’ve rounded up eight films that encapsulate the summer, from the beaches of Martha’s Vineyard and Greece to an adolescent road trip through Mexico. While we may still be mourning Mamma Mia being taken off, these go some way to filling the gap.

Jaws

The story of a small beach town terrorised by a giant shark doesn’t need much introduction; it’s just so obviously the best summer film ever made. There’s a scene where a man and a woman take their grandchild into the water, on the 4th of July, on a clear summer day, on an idyllic beach, and it’s filled with absolute dread.

The Lost Daughter

An underrated gem of the past few years, with an absolutely stacked cast – Olivia Colman, Ed Harris, Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Dakota Johnson and Peter Sarsgaard all star in the sun-drenched psychological thriller.

Colman and Buckley share duties as Leda, a university professor on vacation in Greece. In the present, we see her become increasingly troubled by her interaction with young mother Nina (Johnson). In the past, we gradually learn why she is so troubled. Think Mamma Mia crossed with Black Swan.

What is more summer than a road trip, and few cinematic road trips are better than the one in Y tu mamá También. Set amid political upheaval in 1999 Mexico, two teenage boys in the summer after graduating from school head off with òn older woman in search of a secluded beach. Directed by Alfonso Cuarón and starring Gabriel Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, it takes the long, languid teenage summer genre and turns it into something melancholic.

Once Upon A Time In Hollywood

The only film on this list to actually take place in winter, but owing to LA’s almost purgatorial climate of constant sunshine, it still brings the summer vibes, not least with Brad Pitt’s flowy yellow shirt. But what really makes it a summer film is its laid-back energy. Quentin Tarantino called it his “hang-out” movie, inspired by the likes of American Graffiti and Dazed and Confused, where plot is superseded by the random, surreal, almost hallucinatory misadventures that only happen in summer.

Glass Onion

We’re getting another Benoit Blanc mystery later this year, and I’ve developed a theory that Director Rian Johnson is basing each film on a season of the year. The original Knives Out was distinctly autumnal, and its sequel, Glass Onion, was summer. Daniel Craig‘s southern sleuth heads to a billionaire’s private Greek island for a party that, of course, turns deadly.

Asteroid City

Wes Anderson. You either love him or can’t stand his films, but one thing they are is unique. His record has been a bit patchy lately, but Asteroid City stands out as a clear winner in his latter-stage filmography. Inspired by the likes of Close Encounters, it follows a large cast of eccentric characters witnessing an alien arrival in a small desert town. It could all be a figure borne by communal heatstroke.

My Octopus Teacher

My Octopus Teacher is a visually stunning escape into the kelp-filled waters of a South African kelp forest, where filmmaker Craig Foster spends a year following the daily life of a wild octopus. What starts as a personal reset slowly becomes an unexpectedly calming and curious friendship. It’s low-stakes, slow-paced, and filled with peaceful underwater scenes that feel perfect for a quiet summer afternoon. You might not expect a sea creature to be your ideal summer companion, but this one makes a strong case.

Lonely Planet

Liam Hemsworth and Laura Dern team up to form the most random on-screen romantic pairing in recent years. No, it’s not an origin story of the guidebook founders, but instead follows two travellers who fall for each other on a writers’ retreat in Morocco. Lonely Planet is essentially the cinematic version of a beach read: you might find it cheesy, but you’ll get serious wanderlust.