One of my favorite summer movies is Whip It. The directorial debut of Drew Barrymore it's an inspiring coming-of-age story set to the beat of girl pop-punk bands and roller derbies. Bliss (Ellen Page) is a misfit in her small Texas town and dreams of leaving. After seeing her first roller derby she tells the women of the Hurl Scouts team (loads of hilarious team names in this film) that they are her "new heroes." Maggie Mayhem (Kristen Wiig) tells Bliss to "put on some skates and become [her] own hero." And this is the basic premise of the movie: becoming the person you want to be. Bliss gets knocked down and around a few times both figuratively by life and literally in the roller rink, but step-by-step she becomes her own person in her own terms. Unlike other teen films where the protagonist discovers who they are through a transformation dictated by someone else, Bliss shapes her life and her future herself. It's a fun film with a good message and suits the hot summer months perfectly.
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