Freddy Shoop, Oceanfront High School's laid back gym teacher, gets roped into teaching a remedial English class over the summer break. Shoop's students are "unmotivated, irresponsible," and according to the vice principle, "not too bright." But, with his job on the line, Shoop makes an attempt to get through to the kids. His methods are a little unusual, but dammit, they sorta get results.
Summer School is a fun and fairly light 80s comedy. Not too mentally taxing, which is appropriate given the subject matter. While the plot is fairly simple and standard,
Summer School is blessed with a bevy of fun characters: a surfer girl, a dumb jock, a nervous nerd, a girl with an undiagnosed learning disability, a foreign exchange student, a pregnant girl, a kid secretly moonlighting as an exotic dancer and pair of nutty gorehounds named Chainsaw and Dave. Mark Harmon is great as Shoop and Kirstie Alley showcases the fun and flirty banter that would serve her so well on
Cheers.
Summer School, it won't feel like homework.
Rating: 71%
Fun Fact: Shawnee Smith, who played Rhonda, was also in 1988's
The Blob,
Who's Harry Crumb? and a couple of the
Saw films.
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