Alternative Summer Movies

Alternative Movies

If you’re looking for movies with a bit more substance—you know, the type that tickle your brain or simply have nothing to do with crazy special effects—then take a look at our alternative summer movie list. Because lets face it, crazy teen vampire love affairs aren’t for everyone.

By Elisa Osegueda

Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky 6/11

Coco Chanel, best known for her international fashion designs, exposes a darker, twisted side of her voluptuous life in Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky, a tale of seduction, betrayal and forbidden love.

Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work 6/11

Joan Rivers continues to fascinate the public, and finally at the age of 76 she exposes her truths in Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work. Directed by Ricki Stern, the provocative documentary allows audiences to follow Rivers on a tumultuous, year-long ride, witnessing private dramas of self-doubt and anger, and the struggles and thrills this irreverent comedian must face to keep her dream alive.

Cyrus 6/18

Meet Cyrus (Jonah Hill). He’s a 21-year-old musician. His best friend is Molly (Marisa Tomei)—his mother, and he’s not ready to share her with anyone, including John (John C. Reilly), a romantic hopeful who falls head over heels for Molly. Follow the trio on a hilarious journey of new beginnings.

I Am Love 6/18

Travel to Milan and witness a romantic, heated love affair that crosses all boundaries. I Am Love depicts the lives of the Recchi family, an elite nucleus undergoing a shift of power.

Love Ranch 6/30

Helen Mirren and Joe Pesci grace the screen in Love Ranch. The two brilliantly portray a husband and wife team who own the first legalized brothel in Nevada.

Great Directors 7/2

A deep and intimate look at the art of cinema and the artists who create it, Great Directors is a celebration of films and filmmaking. The film features in-depth conversations with world-class filmmakers Bernardo Bertolucci, David Lynch, Stephen Frears, Agnes Varda, Ken Loach, Liliana Cavani, Todd Haynes, Catherine Breillat, Richard Linklater, and John Sayles.

Grease: Sing-a-long 7/8

Get ready to jam with Rydell High's most famous graduating class! A newly restored print brings the highest-grossing musical of all time, GREASE (1978), to the big screen as a sing-along. This may be the only time you can belt out a tune loud and proud in a theatre.

The Kids are All Right 7/9

The lovely Mia Wasikowska leaves her fantasy role in Alice in Wonderland behind for a more dramatic character in The Kids Are All Right. As the teenage daughter of a lesbian couple (Julianne Moore and Annette Bening), she searches, along with her younger brother, for the identity of their biological father (Mark Ruffalo).

The Concert 7/23

Alexei Guskov, a once celebrated Russian conductor, now finds himself working as a custodian. Determined to make his way up the ranks, he poses as an orchestra group leader. He sets off to perform in Paris and along the way reunites with a young, beautiful violin prodigy (Mélanie Laurent) who holds the key to his past and future.

Life During Wartime 7/23

The intersecting stories of three sisters Joy (Shirley Henderson), Trish (Allison Janney), and Helen (Ally Sheedy) expose an emotional yet hilarious portrait of life during wartime.

Charlie St. Cloud 7/30

Charlie St. Cloud is the story of a young sailor with a bright future, who is ready to venture out to college and give love a chance. Everything changes for Charlie (Zac Efron), however, when a deadly accident claims the life of his younger brother (Charlie Tahan).

Hugh Hefner: Playboy Activist and Rebel 7/30

The legendary Playboy Magazine founder Hugh Hefner is ready to show it all—figuratively speaking, that is. He’s baring it all in his documentary Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist and Rebel, allowing audiences to take an intimate look at the outspoken playboy and his empire.

Eat, Pray, Love 8/13

Julia Roberts stars as Elizabeth Gilbert, a woman who many believe has it all, but after a painful divorce, she decides to travel the world—searching for her life’s purpose. In between travels, she meets Felipe (Javier Bardem) and before long…she unexpectedly finds the meaning of true love.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World 8/13

Michael Cera plays the bass guitarist of a garage-rock band, and in true rock-n-roll fashion, he has no problem getting the ladies...until he meets Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), whose ex-boyfriends becomes Cera's "biggest" obstacles.

Going the Distance 8/27

A clever and funny take on a couple’s struggles to maintain a long distance relationship, Going the Distance stars Drew Barrymore and Justin Long. Watch as the two pursue their dreams in New York and San Francisco.

Piranha 3D 8/27

A sudden underwater tremor sends the residents of Lake Victoria into a massive panic as tales of the prehistoric man-eating fish resurface. With Spring Break increasing the number of residents from 5,000 to 50,000, an unlikely group of strangers band together to stop the razor-toothed offenders from taking any lives.