Especially if you’re experiencing that heatwave that’s skulking about. Truthfully, sometimes the most appealing summer activity is to get yourself as close to an air conditioner as possible. But while you’re keeping cool, why not excite and inspire your senses?

Movies That Encapsulate Summer

A summer movie is a beautiful thing, Full of life, vibrant colors and usually some sublime scenery. The perfect summer movie can make you feel like you’ve had a beach vacation even in the dead of winter. The perfect dose of magic mushrooms can make you feel like you are in the summer movie itself. Yes, this is our list of the perfect summer movies to trip to! Some are beautiful, some are uplifting, some are kooky and some are plain epic. 

So take your dose of shrooms and pour yourself a cool drink (or hit two birds with one stone by making some magic truffle iced-tea!) and settle down with one of our summer flick picks!

1. Stand By Me (1986)

This film perfectly encapsulates the heady days of summers gone by. Even if you weren’t an adolescent boy in the late 50s one can’t help but feel heavy waves of nostalgia when watching this film. Four friends on the precipice between childhood and adulthood, embark on a girmly life-affirming mission to see a dead body, telling stories and getting into scrapes along the way. Strikingly poignant and surprisingly heart-warming, the shrooms will help the emotional sucker-punches really hit home. 

2. Ponyo (2008)

This dreamy Studio Ghibli film tells the tale of Ponyo, a goldfish washed ashore in a glass jar who is rescued by a 5 year old boy calle Sōsuke. They become close, and they work together to realize Ponyo’s dream of becoming a human girl. It’s heartwarming, with beautiful trippy scenes and enchanted churning oceans. Add a psychedelic twist and you’ll be in a sea of bliss. 

3. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

This epic, epic movie makes Lord of the Rings seem short. It remains one of the most iconic movies of all time however, partially because of the stunning desert scenery. Stark and harsh and yet majestically beautiful this film has captivated audiences for many years. Running almost the length of a whole shroom trip, you can ride alongside Lawrence and co’s journey and feel relatively cool (temperature-wise) in comparison. 

4. Life of Pi (2012)

This action adventure movie features stunning CGI that, when tripping, will blow your mind. The story centers around a young boy, Pi, who is set adrift on a raft after a storm with his family’s zoo animals including a zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a Bengal tiger. After nature takes its course, it’s just Pi and the tiger left. Each scene is like a work of art, and after witnessing Pi’s months-long journey at sea you’ll feel as though you have been on a spiritual cruise of your own. 

5. The Trip (1967)

A film that exemplifies the Summer of Love who’s title says it all really. Paul, a disaffected TV commercial director shaken by his wife’s affair goes on an LSD journey facilitated by his psychonaut buddies (played by the iconic twosome of Bruce Dern and Dennis Hopper). We see inside Paul’s head — which is chock full of beautiful and terrifying hallucinations — carnivals, mysterious figures on horseback, even his own death. The soundtrack is equally trippy. Scripted by Jack Nicholson, and based on his own LSD experiences, if you want a legit psychedelic era experience, look no further. 

6. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Moonrise Kingdom is a magic and melancholic coming-of-age tale, with the signature Wes Anderson symmetry and world-building. Two odd-ball 12 year olds fall deeply in love and decide to run away together, on the fictional island of New Penzance. However, a dangerous storm is approaching and the dysfunctional adults (a classic Anderson all-star cast including Tilda Swinton, Bruce Willis and Edward Norton) must track down the young lovers before it’s too late. Cue a stunning climax including a Genesis-esque flood, animal masks and daring scouts. The scenery sings while sober — on shrooms it’s an opera. 

7. Fantasia (1940)

This film is a classic movie to watch while high. Incredible classical score, quintessential Disney visuals. Back in the day, there was truly a scene for any kid — whether you liked dinosaurs, wizards, centaurs, fairies or scary demons. A sprinkling of psychedelics will help you see this masterpiece through the fresh eyes of a child again, full of wonder, surprise and joy. Try not to giggle at the ballerina hippos flirting with the skeezy crocodiles, we dare you!

8. Palm Springs (2020)

Imagine Groundhog Day but set in a holiday resort and with a cast of millennials. Andy Samburg gives his best goofy stoner energy to this sci-fi rom-com mash up. The sun is shining, the swimming pool is insanely turquoise, and some seriously existential questions get asked as the characters wake up again and again in ‘paradise’. 

9. Fire of Love (2022)

Released only this year, this moving, visually stunning documentary is a love story of many facets. It centers on Katia and Maurice Krafft, a couple bonded by their love for each other as well as their obsession with volcanoes. The film consists of their own awe-inspiring footage (literally — flowing lava is one of the most trippy things you’ll ever see!) as well as interviews and a poignant voice over by Miranda July. It may end tragically, but jeez is it life affirming. 

10. Moana (2016)

If you want a warm hug of a trip you should dive deep into the Polynesian paradise of Moana. Don’t discount ‘new’ Disney! With its crispest, shiniest visuals you’ll want to reach through the screen and touch the water. The film is steeped in mythology as well as whimsy. Tattoos dance, the water is its own being, Moana radiates strength — this film may be aimed at the little ones, but it will give you big feels. 

What’s your favorite sunshine-filled summer movie to trip to? Let us know in the comments below!

And, if you wanna soak up the real life sun check out our guide on how to trip in nature.