''Aloha Summer'' is a 1988 American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film directed by

Tommy Lee Wallace Thomas Lee Wallace (born October 8, 1949) is an American film producer, director, editor and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror genre, directing films such as '' Halloween III: Season of the Witch'' and ''Fright Night Part 2' ...

and starring

Chris Makepeace Christopher Makepeace (born April 22, 1964) is a Canadian former actor, known for his starring roles in the coming-of-age film ''My Bodyguard'' (1980) and comedy horror ''Vamp'' (1986), and supporting roles in the screwball comedy '' Meatballs'' ...

Yuji Okumoto is an American actor of Japanese descent. He is best known for his role as Chozen Toguchi in The Karate Kid (franchise), ''The Karate Kid'' franchise. He has also appeared in such films as ''Real Genius'' (1985), ''True Believer (1989 film), Tru ...

Tia Carrere Althea Rae Duhinio Janairo (born January 2, 1967), known professionally as Tia Carrere (), is an American actress, singer and former model who got her first big break as a regular on the daytime soap opera '' General Hospital''. Carrere played C ...

and

Don Michael Paul Donald Michael Paul (born April 17, 1963) is an actor, director, writer, and producer. Biography He starred in the films '' Heart of Dixie'' and '' Rich Girl'' with Jill Schoelen and appeared in ''Aloha Summer''. He wrote the screenplay for '' ...

. The plot is about a group of teenagers and their experiences one summer in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

Premise

In 1959, an American teenager travels from the

Contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

to Hawaii with his parents for a vacation and meets five other teenagers. The film follows the teenagers as they learn about surfing, drinking, sex, and friendship.

Reception

Caryn James of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called it "empty nostalgia done for its own sake". Kevin Thomas of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' wrote the film surprises viewers with its depth and themes, which include racism. ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' wrote, "Though they didn't create a very good movie, the filmmakers had their hearts in the right place, and for that they should be commended."

References

External links

* * * * 1988 films 1980s teen comedy-drama films American teen comedy-drama films Films set in 1959 Films set in Hawaii Films shot in Hawaii Films directed by Tommy Lee Wallace 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{1980s-comedy-drama-film-stub