thejcowboy22 The laid back slacker of a Physical Ed teacher Mr.Freddy Shoop (Mark Harmon)is really looking forward to his summer recess. In anticipation of spending his time in Hawaii with his lovely girlfriend, Shoop and his class watch the gymnasium scoreboard clock as they count down the the seconds to the final bell. Meanwhile in another part of the building a determined Mr. Dearadorian, English teacher, (DIRECTOR/ACTOR)Carl Reiner is rubbing scratch offs from the roll of California lottery tickets he purchase in hopes of winning his way out of his lousy job as Summer School Teacher. Our elated and exasperated English professor looks in shock as he realizes that he has won the big money prize and tells his boss good bye and runs off leaving the lone teacher poor Mr.Shoop holding the proverbial ball. No vacation, no Hawaii, just long days in the classroom teaching remedial English to a bunch of the strangest group of students you'll ever try to teach. From a hay fevered nerd Alan, Pregnant Rhonda,Larry the Chippendale dancer,Anna Maria Italian Beauty Queen, Dyslexic Denise and Wannabee House guest of Mr. Shoop Pam. The two stand out characters in this whole movie are students Francis Chainsaw (Dean Cameron) and his side kick Dave (Gary Reilly). With their array of disgusting props and viewing of their favorite Movie the Texas Chainsaw Massacre those two bring classroom participation to a comedic fever pitch. Shoop is basically clueless in teaching English and asks for Neighboring teacher (A SLENDER Miss Robin Bishop) Kirsty Alley for help on how to teach.At first Robin is standoffish due to the fact that she's dating cutthroat Assistant Vice principal Phil Gills(Robin Thomas) but Mark Harmon gives the Shoop character a special endearing charm and despite his transitional methods of teaching, he takes his misfits students to the beach, petting zoo and viewing The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Shoop is so taken in by his class that he makes deals with them by helping Denise with her driving exam,working with Larry at his football skills Lamaze coach for a pregnant Rhonda (Shawnee Smith) and hosting a party at his beachfront home for his rowdy pupils. The summer moves swiftly as the goal here is getting these kids ready for the English remedial exam. Just when it looks like all is lost as Mr. Shoop feels he's been taken advantage of because his Students over time didn't live up to their end of the bargain. Shoop storms out of his class, quits and the antics of his students rise to a higher level of comedy.You won't be disappointed in the outcome. Great period piece with no shortage of comedy but make sure you bring back the pass you used to go to the bathroom. I rate this movie 7 teacher's apples here!

honoringgod02134 This is really an example of how a romantic comedy should be and how fantastic a romantic comedy can be. Intelligent, witty and great fun. It gives its audience respect by delivering a clever story with good actors and great lines.The story is quite absurd and so is the duo in it - Mark Harmon and the gals. But this is just a good thing. Hollywood usually thinks its audience is filled with morons when making romantic comedies, but this is not so. There are still a few of us out here who enjoy the combination of intelligence, elegance and romance. This film delivers on all counts.Love is a simple enough ingredient for a film. This film knows how to use it and the result is wonderful.

jbartelone There are few teen movies that I really get into. One is The Breakfast Club for its poignant portrayal of stereotyped high school students. The other is Summer School, because it is fresh, funny, and fun, every time I watch it.The format is predictable. In Summer School we have Freddy Shoop, a slacker gym teacher who longs for summer vacations, so that he doesn't have to teach! Mr. Shoop is up for tenure. Therefore, when the original Remedial English teacher wins a lottery, the dead-pan, strict, vice principle Mr. Gills is forced to hire Mr. Shoop as his replacement.The fun begins with trips to such places as amusement parks and petting zoos! But when a student's grandmother discovers that her grandson came home from an allergy attack from the animals, she marches into Mr. Gill's office demanding that the field trips stop and the education begins.Gills initially suspends Mr. Shoop for this. But Shoop asks, "What if I become a model teacher?" Gills blackmails him into keeping his job. He must get all of the students in his class to pass the English Proficiency test by the end of the term, or he loses not only his tenure, but also his job.Mr Shoop's students are smarter than they are given credit for. Most of the kids have fine potential, but are lazy to get their work done. Mr. Shoop bribes them by granting a favor to each student in exchange for them to show up, make an effort, and study for the proficiency test.I suppose the sticking part of this movie is why the students should have to be bribed to want to learn? However, it is a plus how Shoop begins to believe in the kids and gets them to instill confidence in themselves. In this type of movie, there are several "set backs" along the way as expected. But in the end, despite the student's average scores being below a 70%, (And the average scores of the students incidentally are NOT correct when you calculate the number of students whose scores are announced at the film's conclusion! The producers forget to do some basic math homework!) The head principle over-rides Gills' recommendation that Mr. Shoop be fired based on the improvements from the pre-test scores to post test scores and grants Mr. Shoop's tenure.One can not expect a serious motivational movie such as Lean on Me or Stand and Deliver from this. However, Summer School has a pleasant comic element without disintegrating into slapstick. Mark Harmon is great as the teacher and two stand out performances are the actors who play "Chainsaw" and "Dave" who are the human equivalent of "Beavis and Butthead!" For parents, there is some gross "special effects violence" when the kids recreate a scene from "Texas Chainsaw Massacre," which gives the film a PG-13 rating. (Some commercial TV/standard cable stations edit out this scene completely.) There are maybe one or two swear words in the film, but nothing really objectionable for a young teen crowd.A very entertaining movie and fine repeated viewing for most teens and their families. I recommend that everyone attend "Summer School!" You'll have a great time!

ILoveCheapHorrorFlix Jethro Gibbs he is not in this movie. Mark Harmon is an all around fun grown up who hasn't grown up. Even though this movie was filmed in the 80s, the only real way to tell was Pam's uncles awful mullet, a bit of clothing, and the free sunglasses. This movie could've been filmed yesterday and you probably wouldn't even notice. Courtney Thorne-Smith is painfully sexy, Kirsty Allie coming in second. The acting is surprisingly good, and there are minimal obvious errors and goofs. This movie is fun, easy to watch, and a real "brighten up your day" kinda film. Mark Harmon, Courtney Thorne-Smith, Kirsty Allie, and Wonder Mut...all on the beach. What more could you want? Thumbs up twice for this gem!