The 1980s was the decade for teen comedies. What separates SUMMER SCHOOL from the rest of the teen comedies of the decade is the unique premise. To my knowledge, SUMMER SCHOOL is the only movie about the title subject. No other movies have been made about summer school. This is the one and only. Despite the unique premise, many of the characters are still stereotypical teen comedy teenagers such as the geek, the jock, and the stoners. That doesn't make the characters any less enjoyable, it just makes them feel like characters that have been seen several times before. Out of all the characters, the best one is Chainsaw, wonderfully played by Dean Cameron. His sidekick is played by Gary Riley, who surprisingly did not go on to do much after this film. It's a shame since I really enjoyed his performance here. The other stand-out character among the group of teenage misfits is Pam House, played by Courtney Thorne-Smith in one of her earliest roles. She does a good job with her role and is quite cute as well.
No SUMMER SCHOOL review would be complete without talking about Mark Harmon's performance as Freddy Shoop, the gym teacher who gets stuck teaching the group of teenagers Remedial English. Harmom is extremely likable and charming in his role and without him, the movie wouldn't be half as good as it is. This is Harmon's movie. He brings the character to life like no other actor could. Thanks to him, SUMMER SCHOOL remains an 80s classic. Highlights include the gore scenes, the field trip scenes, and Jerome Watkins' (Duane Davis) line at the end of the movie, which is just one of the great lines scattered throughout this underrated gem. I give it 7/10.
