One Hot Summer
One Hot Summer is the bittersweet story of one 12-year-old girl, Alice, and her struggle to discover the meaning of love. Alice lives with her mother and father in a middle class suburban home in Long Island. It is the year 1961. A new family has just moved in across the street from them with their 17-year-old daughter, Sheryl. Alice wishes with all her might that she could be just like the very attractive and very popular girl. She spends most of her time observing Sheryl and mimicking her moves, using her perfume and listening to the same records as the teen. Sheryl starts dating a young man, Rick, who works at the Spare and Strike, the local bowling alley. Sheryl and Rick soon fall in love and become inseparable. He is a greaser-hood type and Sheryl's mother soon puts an end to their relationship. Sheryl starts sneaking out at night to see Rick and, as Alice is witness to this act, Sheryl takes Alice with her on the trips down to the boardwalk. Sheryl soon starts feeling like she has the flu and, after a trip to the doctor's office, Sheryl and her mother discover that Sheryl is pregnant. Sheryl's mother arranges to send Sheryl to a home for unwed mothers in California. Sheryl is prohibited to see Rick again and counts on Alice to deliver the letter to Rick that will explain where she is being taken and why. Now it is up to Alice to find Rick and try to reunite the two teens that are so desperately in love.
- Starring: Thomas Howell, Juliette Lewis, Helen Shaver and Eliza Dushky
- Director(s): Craig Volotin
- Producer(s): That Night, Inc.
- Screenwriter(s): Craig Bolotin
- Distributor: Warner Brothers, Inc.
- Animal Coordinator: Unknown
- Release Date: Monday, April 27, 1992
Featured Animal Action
Animal action is limited to one scene in which Alice and some of her peers are playing spin the bottle. When Alice is the one picked to get a kiss the young boy puts a frog in her mouth instead. This scene was shot in cuts. The real frog was held by the actor then a fake rubber frog was placed in the girl's mouth. In the ending scene special effects were used to create the illusion of fireflies fluttering in the night sky.